| 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature | |
| Subheader: | Alice Munro |
| Presenter: | Swedish Academy |
| Year: | 1901 |
| Holder Label: | 2013 laureate |
| Date: |
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| Location: | Stockholm, Sweden |
| Previous: | 2012 |
| Main: | Nobel Prize in Literature |
| Next: | 2014 |
The 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Canadian writer Alice Munro (1931–2024) as "master of the contemporary short story."[1] She was the first Canadian and the 13th woman to receive the prize.[2] [3] [4] [5]
See main article: article and Alice Munro. Alice Munro dedicated her literary career almost exclusively to the short story genre. She grew up in a small Canadian town – Huron County, Ontario – the kind of environment that often provided the backdrops for her stories. These often accommodated the entire epic complexity of the novel in just a few short pages and the underlying themes of her work were often relationship problems and moral conflicts. The relationship between memory and reality was another recurring theme she uses to create tension. With subtle means, she was able to demonstrate the impact that seemingly trivial events can have on a person's life. Her famous short story collections include Dance of the Happy Shades (1969), Who Do You Think You Are? (1978), The Progress of Love (1986), The Love of a Good Woman (1998), and Runaway (2004).[6] [3]
Due to her health condition and old age, Alice Munro was not able to personally participate in the award ceremony in Stockholm. Mrs. Jenny Munro, her daughter, received the diploma, medal and monetary prize from King Carl XVI Gustaf on her behalf on December 10, 2013.[7]
Peter Englund, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, expressed the rightfulness of bestowing Munro the Nobel prize, by saying: