1967 Nobel Prize in Literature

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1967 Nobel Prize in Literature
Miguel Ángel Asturias
"for his vivid literary achievement, deep-rooted in the national traits and traditions of Indian peoples of Latin America."
Date
  • 19 October 1967 (announcement)
  • 10 December 1967
    (ceremony)
LocationStockholm, Sweden
Presented bySwedish Academy
First award1901
WebsiteOfficial website
← 1966 · Nobel Prize in Literature · 1968 →

The 1967 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Guatemalan writer Miguel Ángel Asturias (1899–1974) "for his vivid literary achievement, deep-rooted in the national traits and traditions of Indian peoples of Latin America."[1] He is the first Guatemalan and the second Latin American author to receive the prize after the Chilean poet Gabriela Mistral won in 1945.[2]

Laureate

Main article: Miguel Ángel Asturias

Miguel Angel Asturias first book Leyendas de Guatemala ("Legends of Guatemala", 1930) is a compilation of stories originating from Mayan legends. His debut novel El Señor Presidente ("The President", 1946) was a brutal portrayal of a Latin American dictatorship in the early 20th century. He wrote a trilogy – The Banana Trilogy – about the rampage of the United Fruit Company in Guatemala in the 1950s, which included Viento Fuerte ("Strong Wind", 1950), El Papa Verde ("The Green Pope", 1954), and Los ojos de los enterrados ("The Eyes of the Interred", 1960). The works of Asturias are pervaded with social pathos and a potent language that fuses myth and reality, and are generally concerned with repression and injustice against the poor and the weak, both in Guatemala and the rest of Latin America.[3] His other well-known works include Hombres de maíz ("Men of Maize", 1949) and Mulata de tal ("The Mulatta and Mr. Fly", 1963).[4][3]

Deliberations

Nominations

Miguel Ángel Asturias was first nominated in 1964 by Erik Lindegren, a member of the Swedish Academy, and became an annual nominee until 1967 when he was eventually awarded with the prize. He received 3 nominations in 1967 with a single joint nomination with Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges.[5][6]

In total, the Nobel Committee received 112 nominations for 69 writers including Samuel Beckett, Thornton Wilder, Lawrence Durrell, E. M. Forster, Georges Simenon, Ezra Pound, Robert Graves, André Malraux and J. R. R. Tolkien. Eighteen of the nominees were nominated first-time such as Ivan Drach, Carlos Drummond de Andrade, Rabbe Enckell, Saul Bellow (awarded in 1976), Jorge Amado, György Lukács, Claude Simon (awarded in 1985), Pavlo Tychyna, and Hans Magnus Enzensberger. The highest number of nominations was for the Spanish writer José María Pemán with eight nominations from academics and literary critics. The oldest nominee was the Spanish philologist Ramón Menéndez Pidal (aged 98) and the youngest was Soviet-Ukrainian poet Ivan Drach (aged 31). Five of the nominees were women namely Katherine Anne Porter, Marie Luise Kaschnitz, Lina Kostenko, Anna Seghers and Judith Wright.[7]

The authors Djamaluddin Adinegoro, Marcel Aymé, Samira Azzam, Margaret Ayer Barnes, Vladimir Bartol, Ion Buzdugan, Ilya Ehrenburg, Forough Farrokhzad, Sidney Bradshaw Fay, Hugo Gernsback, João Guimarães Rosa, Langston Hughes, Lajos Kassák, Patrick Kavanagh, Margaret Kennedy, José Martínez Ruiz, André Maurois, Carson McCullers, Christopher Okigbo, Dorothy Parker, Arthur Ransome, Elmer Rice, Georges Sadoul, Siegfried Sassoon, Alice B. Toklas, Jean Toomer, David Unaipon, Robert van Gulik, Adrienne von Speyr, and Vernon Watkins died in 1967 without having been nominated for the prize. The Ukrainian poet Pavlo Tychyna died months before the announcement.

Official list of nominees and their nominators for the prize
No. Nominee Country Genre(s) Nominator(s)
1 Jorge Amado (1912–2001)  Brazil novel, short story
  • Earl William Thomas (1915–1981)
  • Antônio Olinto (1919–2009)
  • Fred Ellison (1922–2014)
  • Sociedade Brasileira de Autores Teatrais
  • Brazilian Writers Association
2 Carlos Drummond de Andrade (1902–1987)  Brazil poetry, essays Gunnar Ekelöf (1907–1968)
3 Louis Aragon (1897–1982)  France novel, short story, poetry, essays Cyrille Arnavon (1915–1978)
4 Miguel Ángel Asturias (1899–1974)  Guatemala novel, short story, poetry, essays, drama
  • André Saint-Lu (1916–2009)
  • Hans Hinterhäuser (1919–2005)
  • Henry Olsson (1896–1985)
5 Wystan Hugh Auden (1907–1973)  United Kingdom
 United States 		poetry, essays, screenplay Walther Braune (1900–1989)
6 Samuel Beckett (1906–1989)  Ireland novel, drama, poetry
7 Saul Bellow (1915–2005)  Canada
 United States 		novel, short story, memoir, essays PEN Centre Germany
8 Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986)  Argentina poetry, essays, translation, short story
9 Emil Boyson (1897–1979)  Norway poetry, novel, translation Asbjørn Aarnes (1923–2013)
10 Arturo Capdevila (1889–1967)  Argentina poetry, drama, novel, short story, essays, history
  • Rodolfo Maria Ragucci (1887–1973)
  • Pedro Miguel Obligado (1892–1967)
  • Edmundo Correas (1901–1991)
11 Josep Carner (1884–1970)  Spain poetry, drama, translation
12 Alejo Carpentier (1904–1980)  Cuba novel, short story, essays Lars Gyllensten (1921–2006)
13 René Char (1907–1988)  France poetry Georges Blin (1917–2015)
14 Mohammad-Ali Jamalzadeh (1892–1997)  Iran short story, translation Ehsan Yarshater (1920–2018)
15 Lawrence Durrell (1912–1990)  United Kingdom novel, short story, poetry, drama, essays Harald Patzer (1910–2005)
16 Rabbe Enckell (1903–1974)  Finland short story, poetry Kauko Aatos Ojala (1919–1987)
17 Hans Magnus Enzensberger (1929–2022)  West Germany poetry, essays, translation Wolfgang Baumgart (1949–2011)
18 Edward Morgan Forster (1879–1970)  United Kingdom novel, short story, drama, essays, biography, literary criticism Albrecht Dihle (1923–2020)
19 Max Frisch (1911–1991)   Switzerland novel, drama
  • John Stephenson Spink (1909–1985)
  • H. M. Heinrich (?)
20 Rómulo Gallegos (1884–1969)  Venezuela novel, short story Lars Gyllensten (1921–2006)
21 Jean Genet (1910–1986)  France novel, autobiography, drama, screenplay, poetry, essays Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982)
22 Jean Giono (1895–1970)  France novel, short story, essays, poetry, drama
23 Witold Gombrowicz (1904–1969)  Poland short story, novel, drama Henry Olsson (1896–1985)
24 Robert Graves (1895–1985)  United Kingdom history, novel, poetry, literary criticism, essays John Wintour Baldwin Barns (1912–1974)
25 Graham Greene (1904–1991)  United Kingdom novel, short story, autobiography, essays Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982)
26 Lawrence Sargent Hall (1915–1993)  United States novel, short story, essays Robert Brumbaugh (1918–1992)
27 Taha Hussein (1889–1973)  Egypt novel, short story, poetry, translation Jussi Aro (1928–1983)
28 Eugène Ionesco (1909–1994)  Romania
 France 		drama, essays Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982)
29 Ernst Jünger (1895–1998)  West Germany philosophy, novel, memoir Rudolf Till (1911–1979)
30 Friedrich Georg Jünger (1898–1977)  West Germany poetry, essays, novel, drama Fritz Schalk (1902–1980)
31 Marie Luise Kaschnitz (1901–1974)  West Germany novel, short story, essays, drama Hermann Tiemann (1899–1981)
32 Yasunari Kawabata (1899–1972)  Japan novel, short story Howard Hibbett (1920–2019)
33 Basij Khalkhali (1918–1995)  Iran poetry Sadeq Rezazadeh Shafaq (1892–1971)
34 Väinö Linna (1920–1992)  Finland novel Lars Huldén (1926–2016)
35 György Lukács (1885–1971)  Hungary philosophy, literary criticism Erik Lindegren (1910–1968)
36 Karl Löwith (1897–1973)  West Germany philosophy Franz Dirlmeier (1904–1977)
37 André Malraux (1901–1976)  France novel, essays, literary criticism
  • Henri Peyre (1901–1988)
  • Henry Caraway Hatfield (1912–1995)
  • Claude Digeon (1920–2008)
  • John Martin Cocking (1914–1986)
  • François Chamoux (1915–2007)
38 Ramón Menéndez Pidal (1869–1968)  Spain philology, history
39 Yukio Mishima (1925–1970)  Japan novel, short story, drama, literary criticism Harry Martinson (1904–1978)
40 Eugenio Montale (1896–1981)  Italy poetry, translation Uberto Limentani (1913–1989)
41 Henry de Montherlant (1895–1972)  France essays, novel, drama Pierre Grimal (1912–1996)
42 Alberto Moravia (1907–1990)  Italy novel, literary criticism, essays, drama Gustaf Fredén (1898–1987)
43 Pablo Neruda (1904–1973)  Chile poetry André Saint-Lu (1916–2009)
44 Junzaburō Nishiwaki (1894–1982)  Japan poetry, literary criticism Naoshirō Tsuji (1899–1979)
45 Germán Pardo García (1902–1991)  Colombia
 Mexico 		poetry James Willis Robb (1918–2010)
46 Konstantin Paustovsky (1892–1968)  Soviet Union novel, poetry, drama Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976)
47 José María Pemán (1897–1981)  Spain poetry, drama, novel, essays, screenplay
48 André Pézard (1893–1984)  France translation, essays Wilhelm Theodor Elwert (1906–1997)
49 Katherine Anne Porter (1890–1980)  United States short story, essays Cleanth Brooks (1906–1994)
50 Ezra Pound (1885–1972)  United States poetry, essays
  • Hildebrecht Hommel (1899–1986)
  • Berta Moritz-Siebeck (1912–1989)
51 Zayn al-ʻĀbidīn Rahnamā (1894–1990)  Iran history, essays, translation The Iranian PEN Club
52 Anna Seghers (1900–1983)  East Germany novel, short story Akademie der Künste der DDR
53 Georges Simenon (1903–1989)  Belgium novel, short story, memoir Justin O'Brien (1906–1968)
54 Claude Simon (1913–2005)  France novel, essays Erik Lindegren (1910–1968)
55 Charles Percy Snow (1905–1980)  United Kingdom novel, essays Friedrich Schubel (1904–1991)
56 John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (1892–1973)  United Kingdom novel, short story, poetry, philology, essays, literary criticism Gösta Holm (1916–2011)
57 Pavlo Tychyna (1891–1967)  Soviet Union poetry, translation Omeljan Pritsak (1919–2006)
58 Ivan Drach (1936–2018)  Soviet Union poetry, literary criticism, drama
59 Lina Kostenko (born 1930)  Soviet Union poetry, novel
60 Pietro Ubaldi (1886–1972)  Italy philosophy, essays Academia Santista de Letras
61 Robert Penn Warren (1905–1989)  United States novel, poetry, essays, literary criticism Franz Link (1924–2001)
62 Tarjei Vesaas (1897–1970)  Norway poetry, novel
63 Simon Vestdijk (1898–1971)  Netherlands novel, poetry, essays, translation
  • Gerhard Cordes (1908–1985)
  • Pierre Brachin (1914–2004)
  • The Dutch PEN-Club
  • Netherlands Writers Association
64 Thornton Wilder (1897–1975)  United States drama, novel, short story
  • Hildebrecht Hommel (1899–1986)
  • Frederick Albert Pottle (1897–1987)
  • Stuart Pratt Atkins (1914–2000)
65 Edmund Wilson (1895–1972)  United States essays, literary criticism, short story, drama
66 Judith Wright (1915–2000)  Australia poetry, literary criticism, novel, essays
  • Mary Durack (1913–1994)
  • Colin James Horne (1939–1999)
  • Greta Hort (1903–1967)
  • Torsten Dahl (1897–1968)
67 Carl Zuckmayer (1896–1977)  West Germany drama, screenplay
68 Arnold Zweig (1887–1968)  East Germany novel, short story Akademie der Künste der DDR
69 Arnulf Øverland (1889–1968)  Norway poetry, essays Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976)

Prize decision

Asturias was shortlisted along with Jorge Luis Borges, Graham Greene, W.H. Auden and Yasunari Kawabata (awarded in 1968). Anders Österling, chairman of the Swedish Academy's Nobel committee, favored Graham Greene whom he described as "an accomplished observer whose experience encompasses a global diversity of external environments, and above all the mysterious aspects of the inner world, human conscience, anxiety and nightmares",[8] Österling's second proposal was Kawabata, and Auden his third. An opposing group in the committee including Eyvind Johnson, Erik Lindegren and Henry Olsson did not agree with Österling and presented an alternative proposal with a shared prize to Asturias and Borges as their first proposal, Auden their second and Kawabata their third proposal. The fifth member of the committee, Karl Ragnar Gierow, gave the oppositions proposal his support by proposing Asturias/Borges, Auden and Kawabata in no particular order. Ultimately a shared prize was rejected and Asturias alone was awarded.[8][9] Despite Asturias winning the prize, Österling regarded him as a writer "too narrowly limited in his revolutionary subject world" and Borges as "too exclusive or artificial in his ingenious miniature art".[8][9]

Reactions

Largely unknown outside of the Spanish American literary world, Asturias was a surprise choice to many contemporary commentators who noted that there were other Spanish language authors more deserving of the Nobel prize.[10]

Award ceremony speech

At the award ceremony in Stockholm on 10 December 1967, Anders Österling, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy said:

This year the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to the Guatemalan writer Miguel Angel Asturias, a prominent representative of the modern literature of Latin America, in which such interesting developments are now taking place. Born in 1899 in the capital of Guatemala, Asturias became imbued, even as a child, with the characteristically Guatemalan love of nature and of the mythical world. He devoted to this native heritage, and to its libertarian spirit, a fervour which was to dominate his whole literary production. (...) Latin America today can boast an active group of prominent writers, a multivoiced chorus in which individual contributions are not readily discernible. Asturias’s work is nevertheless vast, bold, and outstanding enough to arouse interest outside of his own literary milieu, beyond a geographically limited area situated far away from us.[11]

Nobel lecture

Miguel Angel Asturias delivered his Nobel lecture entitled The Latin American Novel Testimony of an Epoch on 12 December 1967.[12] In it he spoke about the tradition and characteristics of the Latin American novel, and stated:

We, the Latin American novelists of today, working within the tradition of engagement with our peoples which has enabled our great literature to develop – our poetry of substance – also have to reclaim lands for our dispossessed, mines for our exploited workers, to raise demands in favour of the masses who perish in the plantations, who are scorched by the sun in the banana fields, who turn into human bagasse in the sugar refineries. It is for this reason that – for me – the authentic Latin American novel is the call for all these things, it is the cry that echoes down the centuries and is pronounced in thousands of pages.[12]

References

  1. ^ The Nobel Prize in Literature 1967 nobelprize.org
  2. ^ "Guatemalan Author Of Anti-U.S. Works Wins Nobel Prize; GUATEMALAN POET WINS NOBEL PRIZE". New York Times. 20 October 1967. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  3. ^ a b Miguel Ángel Asturias britannica.com
  4. ^ Miguel Angel Asturias – Facts nobelprize.org
  5. ^ Nomination archive – 1967 nobelprize.org
  6. ^ Nomination by Henry Olsson for Asturias and Borges nobelprize.org
  7. ^ "Nominations 1967". nobelprize.org. April 2020.
  8. ^ a b c Alison Flood (8 January 2018). "Nobel archives show Graham Greene might have won 1967 prize". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  9. ^ a b Kaj Schueler (January 2018). "Hemliga dokument visar kampen om Nobelpriset". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish).
  10. ^ Mead, Robert G. (May 1968). "Miguel Angel Asturias and the Nobel Prize". Hispania vol.51 no.2.
  11. ^ "Award ceremony speech". nobelprize.org.
  12. ^ a b "Miguel Angel Asturias Nobel Lecture". nobelprize.org.
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