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The world-renowned Nobel Prize in Literature for the year 2025 has been bestowed upon Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai, as declared by the Nobel awarding body.

The Academy praised the author's "powerful and prophetic oeuvre that, within cataclysmic terror, reasserts the power of creative expression."

A Legacy of Dystopian Fiction

Krasznahorkai is known for his dystopian, pensive novels, which have garnered several accolades, such as the 2019 National Book Award for international writing and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

Several of his novels, including his fictional works his debut and The Melancholy of Resistance, have been turned into movies.

Debut Novel

Hailing in the Hungarian town of Gyula in the mid-1950s, Krasznahorkai first made his mark with his mid-80s initial work his seminal novel, a bleak and mesmerising portrayal of a disintegrating rural community.

The novel would go on to win the Man Booker International Prize recognition in translation decades after, in 2013.

A Unique Literary Style

Commonly referred to as postmodernist, Krasznahorkai is famous for his long, winding phrases (the dozen sections of his novel each comprise a solitary block of text), bleak and somber themes, and the kind of relentless power that has led literary experts to compare him to Gogol, Melville and Kafka.

Satantango was widely made into a lengthy film by cinematic artist the director Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a long working relationship.

"Krasznahorkai is a significant epic writer in the Central European heritage that includes Kafka to Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdism and grotesque exaggeration," commented Anders Olsson, leader of the Nobel jury.

He portrayed Krasznahorkai’s writing as having "progressed to … continuous language with extended, meandering sentences without periods that has become his hallmark."

Literary Praise

Sontag has called the author as "the modern from Hungary master of the apocalyptic," while Sebald commended the wide appeal of his vision.

Only a few of Krasznahorkai’s novels have been translated into English translation. The reviewer Wood once wrote that his books "are shared like valuable artifacts."

International Inspiration

Krasznahorkai’s literary path has been influenced by travel as much as by his writing. He first departed from communist his homeland in 1987, staying a twelve months in Berlin for a grant, and later was inspired from Eastern Asia – particularly Mongolia and China – for works such as a specific work, and another novel.

While working on this novel, he journeyed extensively across Europe and stayed in the legendary poet's New York home, stating the renowned poet's support as essential to finishing the work.

Writer's Own Words

Questioned how he would describe his oeuvre in an conversation, Krasznahorkai answered: "Letters; then from these characters, vocabulary; then from these words, some short sentences; then additional phrases that are longer, and in the main very long paragraphs, for the period of three and a half decades. Beauty in prose. Enjoyment in darkness."

On readers encountering his writing for the first time, he added: "Should there be individuals who have not yet read my novels, I couldn’t recommend a particular book to read to them; instead, I’d advise them to venture outside, sit down in a place, maybe by the banks of a creek, with nothing to do, a clear mind, just remaining in silence like boulders. They will eventually come across a person who has already read my works."

Award Background

Prior to the declaration, betting agencies had pegged the frontrunners for this annual honor as the Chinese writer, an experimental Chinese writer, and Krasznahorkai.

The Nobel Prize in Literary Arts has been awarded on 117 previous occasions since the early 20th century. Current winners include Ernaux, the musician, Gurnah, the poet, the Austrian and Tokarczuk. The most recent honoree was the South Korean writer, the Korean writer best known for The Vegetarian.

Krasznahorkai will officially accept the award and certificate in a ceremony in winter in Stockholm, Sweden.

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