 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Günter Grass | ||||
.jpg) "whose frolicsome black fables portray the forgotten face of history." | ||||
| Date |
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| Location | Stockholm, Sweden | |||
| Presented by | Swedish Academy | |||
| First award | 1901 | |||
| Website | Official website | |||
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The1999Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the German writerGünter Grass (1927–2015) "whose frolicsome black fables portray the forgotten face of history."[1] He is the eighth German author to become a recipient of the prize afterHeinrich Böll in1972.
Nazi war crimes andWorld War II served as the setting for several books written by Günter Grass. His major achievement was the Danzig Trilogy which comprisesDie Blechtrommel ("The Tin Drum", 1959),Katz und Maus ("Cat and Mouse", 1963), andHundejahre ("Dog Years", 1963). Several of his novels are set in the city ofDanzig andGdańsk and its alternating German and Polish connection. His use of real and autobiographical details alongside fictitious occurrences to create a sarcastic societal satire is a defining aspect of his writing style. His other well-known works includeDer Butt ("The Flounder", 1977),Die Rättin ("The Rat", 1986), andUnkenrufe (The Call of the Toad", 1992).[2][3]
Grass' publisher said that when the news from Stockholm arrived, he had an appointment with the dentist. Journalists gathered immediately outside his workplace in Lübeck during the day. He informed the media that he was overjoyed and believedHeinrich Böll, the last German to win the Nobel Prize, would have thrilled as well. A few days later, the author spent time signing books at theFrankfurt Book Fair.[4]
Following Grass' confession in his 2006 autobiographical bookPeeling the Onion that he joined the NaziSS in his youth, a member of the German parliament called for Grass to return the award. TheNobel Foundation immediately rejected the idea of revoking the prize, saying "Prize decisions are irreversible". The Nobel Foundation had not revoked a prize in its 105-year history.[5]
