Jon Fosse Wins Nobel Prize in Literature for 2023. The official statement of the Swedish academy reads: “The 2023 Nobel Prize in literature has been awarded to Jon Fosse for “his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable”. Fosse who is born in Norway has a huge volume of work to show. Specifically, only his plays number at the impressive number of 40. Except that, Fosse has written a large number of novels, essays, poetry collections and children’s books.
He published his first novel, Raudt, svart (Red, Black) in 1983. Since then, he has written novels, plays, poems, stories, essays, and children’s books. His award-winning work has been translated into more than fifty languages. He has translated many works himself also. He has staged his plays over a thousand times all over the world.
Fosse also wrote plays, which appeared on the Norwegian stages and soon reached an international audience. His breakthrough came in 1999, when French director Claude Régy staged, Someone Is Going to Come in Nanterre near Paris. Now, Fosse presents his plays all over the world for thousands of people. Except the Nobel Prize, he has also won a number of other awards. He is also a chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite of France in 2003.
Even after he won the highest honour, Jon Fosse is far from done with his writing endeavors. Furthermore, the hiatus in playwriting is over; Fosse is once again writing for the theater. Since 2020, three new plays have premiered. Jon Fosse’s released his most recent work, the novel Kvitleik (A Shining) in spring 2023. This is a luminous narrative exploring the boundary between life and death. In 2023, Fosse is also celebrating a literary milestone. This year is marking 40 years since his debut novel. It is for sure a nice way to celebrate.
