Canadian poet and writer Anne Carson wins 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature
The 76-year-old was honoured "for her bold and inventive oeuvre that, in playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature," the Swedish Academy said.
Topic: Awards and Prizes Posted Thu 8 Oct 2026 at 11:04pmThu 8 Oct 2026 at 11:04pm The Swedish Academy said Anne Carson, seen here in New York, was very taken by surprise. ( AP: Mark Lennihan, File ) In short: Canadian poet and essayist Anne Carson has won the Nobel Prize in literature.
The 76-year-old was honoured "for her bold and inventive oeuvre that, in playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature," the Swedish Academy said. What's next? This is Nobel week, which ends with Friday's peace prize.
Canadian poet and essayist Anne Carson has won the Nobel Prize in literature. The 76-year-old was honoured "for her bold and inventive oeuvre that, in playful dialogue with the classical tradition, has created new forms for contemporary literature," the Swedish Academy said. "She was very taken by surprise.
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We didn't have so much time to speak, and all she had time to tell me was that she is for the moment in Iceland, where she's listening to the wind," said Ingrid Carlberg, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy. Toronto-born Carson draws on themes and stories from ancient Greek and Roman literature for works that often blend elements of poetry, essay and fiction.
Her books include Eros the Bittersweet, a look at the pleasure and pain of desire in ancient Greek literature, verse novel Autobiography of Red, Men in the Off Hours, a collection of poetry and prose that won Canada’s Griffin Prize for poetry in 2001 and Norma Jeane Baker of Troy, which compares Marilyn Monroe and Helen of Troy.
A bust of Alfred Nobel at the Swedish Academy, where the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature was announced, in Stockholm. ( Reuters: Tom Little ) Last year, Hungarian writer László Krasznahorkai, whose surreal and anarchic novels combine a bleak world view with mordant humor, won the Nobel Prize in literature for work the judges said upholds the power of art in the midst of “apocalyptic terror.” Three science awards were announced earlier this week.
The Nobel for medicine went to three scientists whose work led to a tool that uses light to help unravel how the brain works. The physics award recognised a scientist’s efforts to demystify a rare group of neutrinos. The chemistry prize recognised two scientists for untangling mysterious mirror images in molecules, a discovery that has been used to develop countless drugs.
This week ends with Friday's peace prize. The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences will be announced Monday. The prize money this year is 12 million Swedish kronor ($1.71 million), whether for an individual, small group of laureates or organisation.
AP/Reuters
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