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

The Committee highlighted the author's "powerful and prophetic collection that, within end-times terror, reaffirms the force of art."

An Esteemed Career of Apocalyptic Writing

Krasznahorkai is celebrated for his dystopian, pensive works, which have garnered many accolades, including the 2019 National Book Award for international writing and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

Several of his books, notably his titles Satantango and The Melancholy of Resistance, have been adapted into movies.

Debut Novel

Hailing in Gyula, Hungary in 1954, Krasznahorkai first gained recognition with his mid-80s first book Satantango, a dark and captivating depiction of a collapsing village society.

The work would go on to earn the Man Booker International Prize honor in English decades after, in 2013.

A Distinctive Writing Approach

Often described as postmodernist, Krasznahorkai is renowned for his extended, meandering phrases (the dozen sections of the book each are a single paragraph), apocalyptic and melancholic motifs, and the kind of relentless intensity that has led critics to liken him to literary giants like Kafka.

This work was notably made into a seven-hour motion picture by cinematic artist the director Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a long creative partnership.

"Krasznahorkai is a significant author of grand narratives in the Central European heritage that extends through Franz Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is defined by absurdist elements and grotesque exaggeration," said Anders Olsson, head of the Nobel panel.

He portrayed Krasznahorkai’s prose as having "evolved into … smooth structure with long, winding lines devoid of periods that has become his trademark."

Literary Praise

Susan Sontag has referred to the author as "the contemporary Hungarian master of the apocalyptic," while the writer W.G. Sebald applauded the broad relevance of his perspective.

Just a small number of Krasznahorkai’s books have been published in the English language. The literary critic James Wood once remarked that his books "circulate like precious items."

International Inspiration

Krasznahorkai’s professional journey has been influenced by exploration as much as by his writing. He first departed from communist Hungary in the late 80s, staying a year in the city for a grant, and later was inspired from Eastern Asia – particularly Asian nations – for novels such as The Prisoner of Urga, and another novel.

While developing War and War, he explored across European nations and stayed in Ginsberg's New York residence, noting the renowned writer's backing as crucial to finalizing the novel.

Writer's Own Words

Questioned how he would describe his work in an conversation, Krasznahorkai answered: "Letters; then from these characters, words; then from these terms, some short sentences; then more sentences that are longer, and in the primary extremely lengthy sentences, for the duration of three and a half decades. Elegance in language. Fun in hell."

On readers finding his books for the first time, he continued: "Should there be individuals who are new to my novels, I would refrain from advising any specific title to explore to them; instead, I’d suggest them to venture outside, rest at a location, maybe by the edge of a stream, with no tasks, no thoughts, just staying in quiet like stones. They will in time encounter an individual who has encountered my novels."

Award Background

Ahead of the reveal, bookmakers had pegged the frontrunners for this year’s honor as an avant-garde author, an avant garde Chinese author, and the Hungarian.

The Nobel Award in Literature has been given on one hundred seventeen previous occasions since 1901. Recent laureates include the French author, Dylan, the Tanzanian-born writer, Glück, Handke and the Polish author. The most recent winner was Han Kang, the South Korean author best known for The Vegetarian.

Krasznahorkai will officially accept the award and document in a function in the month of December in Stockholm, Sweden.

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