| 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature | |
| Subheader: | Pablo Neruda |
| Presenter: | Swedish Academy |
| Year: | 1901 |
| Holder Label: | 1971 laureate |
| Date: |
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| Location: | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Previous: | 1970 |
| Main: | Nobel Prize in Literature |
| Next: | 1972 |
The 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Chilean politician and poet Pablo Neruda (1904–1973) "for a poetry that with the action of an elemental force brings alive a continent's destiny and dreams."[1] Neruda became the second Chilean Nobel laureate in Literature after Gabriela Mistral in 1945.
See main article: article and Pablo Neruda. Pablo Neruda is known for his surrealist poems and historical epics which touches political, human and passionate themes. Among his well known works which are read throughout the world include Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada ("Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair", 1924), which established him as a prominent poet and an interpreter of love and erotica, and Cien Sonetos de Amor ("100 Sonnets of Love", 1959). A diplomat, his official journey in Asia affected him strongly, which is reflected in two volumes of poems titled Residencia en la tierra ("Residence on Earth", 1933 and 1935). Neruda's Communist sympathies reflect in his work Canto General (1939), an epic poem about the whole South American continent.[2] [3] [4]
In 1971, the Swedish Academy received 137 nominations for 91 writers. Neruda received 25 nominations since 1956 and received two nominations which eventually led to him being awarded the 1971 prize. Among the shortlist were Neruda, W. H. Auden, Patrick White (awarded in 1973), André Malraux and Eugenio Montale (awarded in 1975).
The most number of nominations were for Jorge Luis Borges and Montale, both receiving 6 nominations.[5] André Malraux was the nominee who had been nominated for most years (22 years) up to 1971. 25 of the nominees were nominated first-time, among them Elie Wiesel (awarded the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize), José García Villa, James Baldwin, Arno Schmidt, Georges Schéhadé, William Golding (awarded in 1983) and Richard E. Kim. The oldest nominee was Jacques Maritain (aged 89) while the youngest was Richard E. Kim (aged 39).[5] Peruvian novelist José María Arguedas was nominated posthumously by the professor of Scandinavian languages, Elie Poulenard (1901–1985) from University of Strasbourg. Estonian poet Marie Under was the only female nominee.
The authors André Billy, C. D. Broad, Walter Van Tilburg Clark, Daniel de la Vega, Nels F. S. Ferré, Peter Fleming, Claude Gauvreau, Gaito Gazdanov, A. P. Herbert, Philippe Hériat, Raicho Hiratsuka, Anthony Ludovici, Ogden Nash, Allan Nevins, Reinhold Niebuhr, Naoya Shiga, Kenneth Slessor, Juhan Smuul, Aleksandr Tvardovsky, Frank Underhill, Charles Vildrac, Waldo Williams, and Philip Wylie died in 1971 without having been nominated for the prize. The Indian novelist Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay and Dutch writer Simon Vestdijk died months before the announcement.
| scope=col | No. | scope=col | Nominee | scope=col | Country | scope=col | Genre(s) | scope=col | Nominator(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edward Albee (1928–2016) |  United States | drama | Dieter Schaller (1929–2003) | |||||
| 2 | Jorge Amado (1912–2001) |  Brazil | novel, short story | Laurent Versini (1932–2021) | |||||
| 3 | Jerzy Andrzejewski (1909–1983) | novel, short story | Eeva Kilpi (born 1928) | ||||||
| 4 | Louis Aragon (1897–1982) |  France | novel, short story, poetry, essays | Jean Gaudon (1926–2019) | |||||
| 5 | José María Arguedas (1911–1969) (posthumous nomination) |  Peru | novel, short story, poetry, essays | Elie Poulenard (1901-1985) | |||||
| 6 | Wystan Hugh Auden (1907–1973) |  United Kingdom United States | poetry, essays, screenplay | ||||||
| 7 | Riccardo Bacchelli (1891–1985) |  Italy | novel, drama, essays | ||||||
| 8 | James Baldwin (1924–1987) | United States | novel, short story, essays, poetry, drama | Jacob Louis Mey (1926–2023) | |||||
| 9 | Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay (1898–1971) |  India | novel, short story, drama, essays, autobiography, songwriting | Krishna Kripalani (1907–1992) | |||||
| 10 | Mykola Bazhan (1904–1983) | poetry, essays | Omeljan Pritsak (1919–2006) | ||||||
| 11 | Saul Bellow (1915–2005) |  Canada United States | novel, short story, memoir, essays | Jara Ribnikar (1912–2007) | |||||
| 12 | Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986) |  Argentina | poetry, essays, translation, short story | ||||||
| 13 | Jawad Boulos (1900–1982) |  Lebanon | essays | Camille Aboussouan (1919–2013) | |||||
| 14 | Heinrich Böll (1917–1985) |  Germany | novel, short story | ||||||
| 15 | Michel Butor (1926–2016) | France | poetry, novel, essays, translation | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | |||||
| 16 | Elias Canetti (1905–1994) | United Kingdom | novel, drama, memoir, essays | Keith Spalding (1913–2002) | |||||
| 17 | Alejo Carpentier (1904–1980) |  Cuba | novel, short story, essays | Henri Peyre (1901–1988) | |||||
| 18 | Lord David Cecil (1902–1986) | United Kingdom | biography, history, essays | Leslie Poles Hartley (1895–1972) | |||||
| 19 | Aimé Césaire (1913–2008) |  Martinique | poetry, drama, essays | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | |||||
| 20 | André Chamson (1900–1983) | France | novel, essays | ||||||
| 21 | Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca (1914–2008) |  Turkey | poetry | Yaşar Nabi Nayır (1908–1981) | |||||
| 22 | Tsendiin Damdinsüren (1908–1986) | poetry, essays, novel, translation | Walther Heissig (1913–2005) | ||||||
| 23 | Salvador de Madariaga (1886–1978) | essays, history, law, novel | Kazimir Geza Werner (1900–1985) | ||||||
| 24 | Henry de Montherlant (1895–1972) | France | essays, novel, drama | Anders Österling (1884–1981) | |||||
| 25 | Paul Demiéville (1894–1979) |  Switzerland France | essays, translation | Martin Gimm (born 1930) | |||||
| 26 | Lawrence Durrell (1912–1990) | United Kingdom | novel, short story, poetry, drama, essays | Haydn Trevor Mason (1929–2018) | |||||
| 27 | Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1921–1990) | Switzerland | drama, novel, short story, essays | ||||||
| 28 | Rabbe Enckell (1903–1974) |  Finland | short story, poetry | ||||||
| 29 | Salvador Espriu (1913–1985) | drama, novel, poetry | |||||||
| 30 | Romain Gary (1914–1980) | France | novel, essays, literary criticism, screenplay | Walther Hinz (1906–1992) | |||||
| 31 | Maurice Genevoix (1890–1980) | France | novel, essays | Yves Gandon (1899–1975) | |||||
| 32 | William Golding (1911–1993) | United Kingdom | novel, poetry, drama, essays | ||||||
| 33 | Günter Grass (1927–2015) | Germany | novel, drama, poetry, essays | ||||||
| 34 | Graham Greene (1904–1991) | United Kingdom | novel, short story, autobiography, essays | Mary Renault (1905–1983) | |||||
| 35 | Jorge Guillén (1893–1984) | poetry, literary criticism | |||||||
| 36 | Paavo Haavikko (1931–2008) | Finland | poetry, drama, essays | Eeva Kilpi (born 1928) | |||||
| 37 | William Heinesen (1900–1991) |  Faroe Islands | poetry, short story, novel | ||||||
| 38 | Vladimír Holan (1905–1980) | poetry, essays | Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976) | ||||||
| 39 | Eugène Ionesco (1909–1994) | France | drama, essays | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | |||||
| 40 | Roman Jakobson (1896–1982) | United States | essays | Jean Dubois (1920–2015) | |||||
| 41 | Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976) |  Sweden | novel, short story | Pär Lagerkvist (1891–1974) | |||||
| 42 | Younghill Kang (1898–1972) | United States | novel, memoir, drama | Robert Payne (1911–1983) | |||||
| 43 | Erich Kästner (1899–1974) | Germany | poetry, screenplay, autobiography | Kazimir Geza Werner (1900–1985) | |||||
| 44 | Richard Eun Kook Kim (1932–2009) | United States | novel, short story | Baek Cheol (1908-1985) | |||||
| 45 | Arthur Koestler (1905–1983) | United Kingdom | novel, autobiography, essays | Georges Matoré (1908–1998) | |||||
| 46 | Miroslav Krleža (1893–1981) | poetry, drama, short story, novel, essays | Gunnar Jacobsson (1918–2001) | ||||||
| 47 | Karl Krolow (1915–1999) | Germany | poetry, essays, translation | Emil Ernst Ploss (1925–1972) | |||||
| 48 | Philip Larkin (1922–1985) | United Kingdom | poetry, novel, essays | Jørgen Læssøe (1924–1993) | |||||
| 49 | Siegfried Lenz (1926–2014) | Germany | novel, short story, essays, drama | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | |||||
| 50 | Väinö Linna (1920–1992) | Finland | novel | ||||||
| 51 | Compton Mackenzie (1883–1972) | United Kingdom | novel, short story, drama, poetry, history, biography, essays, literary criticism, memoir | Magne Oftedal (1921–1985) | |||||
| 52 | Archibald MacLeish (1892–1982) | United States | poetry, essays, drama, law | William Scovil Anderson (1927–2022) | |||||
| 53 | Hugh MacLennan (1907–1990) | Canada | novel, essays | Lawrence Lande (1906–1998) | |||||
| 54 | André Malraux (1901–1976) | France | novel, essays, literary criticism | ||||||
| 55 | Jacques Maritain (1882–1973) | France | philosophy | Charles Dédéyan (1910–2003) | |||||
| 56 | Harry Martinson (1904–1978) | Sweden | poetry, novel, drama, essays | Arthur Arnholtz (1901–1973) | |||||
| 57 | Miquel Melendres i Rué (1905–1974) | essays, theology, poetry, memoir | Antoni Griera (1887–1973) | ||||||
| 58 | Arthur Miller (1915–2005) | United States | drama, screenplay, essays | ||||||
| 59 | Vilhelm Moberg (1898–1973) | Sweden | novel, drama, history | Anders Österling (1884–1981) | |||||
| 60 | Eugenio Montale (1896–1981) | Italy | poetry, translation | ||||||
| 61 | Alberto Moravia (1907–1990) | Italy | novel, literary criticism, essays, drama | ||||||
| 62 | Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977) | United States | novel, short story, poetry, drama, translation, literary criticism, memoir | ||||||
| 63 | Mikhail Naimy (1889–1988) | Lebanon | poetry, drama, short story, novel, autobiography, literary criticism | ||||||
| 64 | Pablo Neruda (1904–1973) |  Chile | poetry | ||||||
| 65 | Fritiof Nilsson Piraten (1895–1972) | Sweden | short story, novel, essays, law | Bertil Ejder (1916–2005) | |||||
| 66 | Ezra Pound (1885–1972) | United States | poetry, essays | Hans Galinsky (1909–1991) | |||||
| 67 | Evaristo Ribera Chevremont (1890–1976) |  Puerto Rico | poetry | Ernesto Juan Fonfrías (1909–1990) | |||||
| 68 | Yannis Ritsos (1909–1990) | poetry, songwriting | |||||||
| 69 | Alain Robbe-Grillet (1922–2008) | France | novel, short story, essays, screenplays | Henry Olsson (1896–1985) | |||||
| 70 | Tadeusz Rózewicz (1921–2014) | poetry, drama, translation | Gunnar Jacobsson (1918–2001) | ||||||
| 71 | Hans Ruin (1891–1980) | Finland Sweden | philosophy | Arthur Arnholtz (1901–1973) | |||||
| 72 | Georges Schéhadé (1905–1989) | Lebanon | poetry, drama, novel | Camille Aboussouan (1919–2013) | |||||
| 73 | Arno Schmidt (1914–1979) | Germany | novel, short story, biography, essays | Lars Gyllensten (1921–2006) | |||||
| 74 | Léopold Sédar Senghor (1906–2001) |  Senegal | poetry, essays | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | |||||
| 75 | Robert Shih [Shi Jieyun] (1926–1983) |  China | essays | Étienne Lamotte (1903–1983) | |||||
| 76 | Claude Simon (1913–2005) | France | novel, essays | Henry Olsson (1896–1985) | |||||
| 77 | Charles Percy Snow (1905–1980) | United Kingdom | novel, essays | Sylvère Monod (1921–2006) | |||||
| 78 | Zaharia Stancu (1902–1974) | poetry, novel, philosophy, essays | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | ||||||
| 79 | Marie Under (1883–1980) | poetry | Algirdas Landsbergis (1924–2004) | ||||||
| 80 | Simon Vestdijk (1898–1971) |  Netherlands | novel, poetry, essays, translation | Karl Ragnar Gierow (1904–1982) | |||||
| 81 | José García Villa (1908–1997) |  Philippines United States | poetry, essays | ||||||
| 82 | Gerard Walschap (1898–1989) |  Belgium | novel, drama, essays | ||||||
| 83 | Mika Waltari (1908–1979) | Finland | short story, novel, poetry, drama, essays, screenplay | Inna Koskenniemi (1923–1995) | |||||
| 84 | Sándor Weöres (1913–1989) | poetry, translation | Áron Kibédi Varga (1930–2018) | ||||||
| 85 | Patrick White (1912–1990) |  Australia | novel, short story, drama, poetry, autobiography | ||||||
| 86 | Elie Wiesel (1928–2016) | United States | memoir, essays, novel, drama | Gerd Høst-Heyerdahl (1915–2007) | |||||
| 87 | Thornton Wilder (1897–1975) | United States | drama, novel, short story | ||||||
| 88 | Tennessee Williams (1911–1983) | United States | drama, novel, screenplay, short story, poetry | Kazimir Geza Werner (1900–1985) | |||||
| 89 | Henry Williamson (1895–1977) | United Kingdom | novel, short story | Petronella O'Flanagan (?) | |||||
| 90 | Angus Wilson (1913–1991) | United Kingdom | novel, short story, essays | Gerhard Nickel (1928–2015) | |||||
| 91 | Carl Zuckmayer (1896–1977) | Germany | drama, screenplay |
The Academy's archives later revealed in 2022 that Pablo Neruda was almost denied the Nobel Prize because of his "communist tendencies" and odes to Stalin.[6] While Anders Österling of the Nobel committee praised Neruda's "poetic natural power and dynamic vitality", he questioned whether the increasingly dominant communist tendency in his poetry is compatible with the purpose of the Nobel prize. In the archives, Österling wrote that "a writer's way of thinking – whether Marxist, syndicalist, anarchist or something else – belongs to his free right. However, Neruda is fully politically involved, including through his hymns to Stalin and other purely propagandistic achievements. On that basis, I have reservations about his candidacy, without, however, wanting to firmly reject it in advance..."[6] Österling had previously spoken out against the candidacy both of Ezra Pound and Samuel Beckett, but was eventually persuaded with Neruda's and Beckett's merits later awarded them the prize, but not Pound.[6]
Bo Strömstedt, cultural editor of the newspaper Expressen, suggested ironically that Neruda's appointment to the Paris embassy might have been decisive factor for him being awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, describing it as "Pension for Diplomats".[7] In an interview, he pointed out that three laureates in the last decade had been diplomats: Saint-John Perse of France, Giorgos Seferis of Greece and Miguel Ángel Asturias of Guatemala. "I call it a Nobel old-age pension for diplomats," he said. "I think Pablo Neruda is a great poet and a greater artist than Patrick White but like choices that come too late, it's a bit dull. I'm for choosing younger persons who are in the midst of their work."[7]
Pablo Neruda delivered a Nobel lecture entitled "Towards the Splendid City" on 13 December 1971, in which he raises some great points about the craft of writing poetry and the poet's relation to society. Neruda expressed: "I believe that poetry is an action, ephemeral or solemn, in which there enters as equal partners solitude and solidarity, emotion and action, the nearness to oneself, the nearness to mankind and to the secret manifestations of nature."[8]