In the past two years, the 18-member Academy has bestowed the prestigious prize on US poet Louise Gluck and Tanzanian author Abdulrazak Gurnah, two writers whose work had not been widely translated and was not known to the broad public—or even some publishers
American poet Louise Gluck, winner of the 2020 Nobel Prize for Literature, poses outside her home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. The Swedish Academy is slowly recovering from a devastating #MeToo scandal that led to the postponement of the 2018 prize, and is now very conscious of its reputation when it comes to diversity and gender representation. Image: Nobel Prize Outreach/Daniel Ebersole/Handout via REUTERS
Stockholm, Sweden: The Swedish Academy will on Thursday announce the 2022 winner of the often-criticised Nobel Literature Prize, with the award committee known for its penchant for spotlighting lesser-known writers over bestselling authors.
In the past two years, the 18-member Academy has bestowed the prestigious prize on US poet Louise Gluck and Tanzanian author Abdulrazak Gurnah, two writers whose work had not been widely translated and was not known to the broad public—or even some publishers.
"After last year, I think it's maybe even a bit harder to guess" who could win this year, admitted Lina Kalmteg, literary critic for public broadcaster Swedish Radio, recalling the "total surprise" in the studio when Gurnah's name was read out last year.
"I think we can expect a more well-known name this year, after last year's surprise", said Bjorn Wiman, culture editor at Sweden's newspaper of reference Dagens Nyheter.