Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai has been awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized by the Swedish Academy for his compelling and visionary work that finds power in the face of apocalyptic dread.[[1,2, 3]Known for his lengthy, frequently enough single-sentence narratives, Krasznahorkai joins fellow Hungarian Imre Kertész as a laureate of the prestigious award.[[1, 3]
Lászlo Krasznahorkai se convirtió en el segundo húngaro en ganar el Premio Nobel de Literatura.
Foto: Claudio Bresciani
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László Krasznahorkai has become the second Hungarian author to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, and he’s already sparking conversation with his acceptance speech. The acclaimed writer called for vigilance regarding “those new angels without wings,” singling out tech mogul Elon Musk as someone “taking over space and time with his insane plans.”
Krasznahorkai (born in Gyula, Hungary, in 1954) revealed he had initially intended to dedicate his Nobel acceptance speech, delivered this afternoon to the Swedish Academy, “to hope,” but ultimately felt compelled to speak “of the new angels” after realizing his “reserves of hope had been completely exhausted.”
“They have no wings or cloaks to gently wrap around them. They walk among us dressed in street clothes, and we don’t know how many there are. They appear disturbingly here and there in all kinds of situations in our lives,” he continued.
During his address – the only one of this week’s celebratory events, due to health concerns limiting his schedule – Krasznahorkai also focused on a lifelong preoccupation: the dignity and innocence of those living “on the margins.”
His longtime friend and Spanish translator, Adan Kovacsics, is accompanying him in Stockholm and explained that an interest in people living in poverty has been “a constant” throughout the Hungarian author’s career, and remains so today.
At just 19 years old, Krasznahorkai abandoned his law studies to live on the streets in an effort to “better understand the excluded.” This experience fostered a deep respect for those on the fringes of society, a theme that permeates much of his work and was central to his speech.
The author vividly recalled an incident he witnessed on the Berlin subway years ago, when “a vagrant, with his back bent by pain and a look begging for compassion, tried to urinate on the tracks when he was surprised by a police officer.”
Reflecting on that scene leads him to question, “human being, amazing creature, who are you? You invented the wheel, you invented fire, you realized that cooperation was your only means of survival… You invented feelings, empathy.”
On the Destruction of Imagination and the Kafkaesque
“Until, suddenly, you began to believe in nothing, and, thanks to the devices you invented yourself, destroying the imagination, now all that remains is short-term memory. This mud will swallow you, drag you into the swamp,” the author warned. American literary critic Susan Sontag once described him as the great “master of the apocalypse.”
The Kafkaesque – Franz Kafka is his literary hero – and an extreme sensitivity to beauty through literature were also prominent in Krasznahorkai’s remarks. The author, who appears humble and shy, confessed he wished he had written only one book, but not become a writer “because I didn’t want to be anyone.”
Years after publishing his first novel (“Satantic Tango,” 1985), which was adapted into a film by his friend, filmmaker Béla Tarr, he felt it wasn’t perfect and wanted to improve his style, leading him to write another book—a process he’s repeated ever since. “My life is a permanent correction,” he acknowledged.
His friend and translator notes that the writer currently lives in a rural area of Hungary, but also spends time in Trieste and Vienna. “Melancholy, resistance, and concern for those who only pursue destruction remain at the center of this unique writer’s gaze,” Kovacsics points out.
Krasznahorkai is the second Hungarian writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. His predecessor, the late Imre Kertesz, received the honor in 2002 and was, according to Krasznahorkai, “a great friend and an important literary influence.”
The author has openly expressed opposition to the policies of Hungarian President Viktor Orbán.
Spain’s Influence on His Work
Spain features prominently in his work, with stories set in the Alhambra in Granada or the La Pedrera building in Barcelona. Extremadura, Andalusia, Madrid, and Barcelona are all places he has frequented, Kovacsics notes.
Acantilado publishing house has released seven novels and a collection of short stories by the author in Spanish: ‘Melancholy of Resistance’ (2001); ‘North the Mountain, South the Lake, West the Road, East the River’ (2005); ‘War & War’ (2009); ‘Isaiah Has Come’ (2009); ‘And Seiobo Descended to Earth’ (2015); ‘Satantic Tango’ (2017); ‘Merciful Relations’ (2023) and ‘Baron Wenckheim Returns Home’ (2024).
