The 1944

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

was awarded to the Danish author

Johannes V. Jensen Johannes Vilhelm Jensen (20 January 1873 – 25 November 1950) was a Danish author, known as one of the great Danish writers of the first half of 20th century. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1944 "for the rare strength and fert ...

"for the rare strength and fertility of his poetic imagination with which is combined an intellectual curiosity of wide scope and a bold, freshly creative style." He is the fourth Danish recipient of the literary prize.

Laureate

Jensens early works was in the '' fin-de-siècle'' pessimism style. He found his own voice as a writer with ''Himmerlandshistorier'' ("Himmerland Stories", 1898–1910), comprising a series of tales set in the part of Denmark where he was born. This was followed by the acclaimed historical novel ''

The Fall of the King ''The Fall of the King'' ( da, Kongens Fald) is a novel by Danish author Johannes V. Jensen, published in three parts from 1900 to 1901. It tells the story of Mikkel Thøgersen and the social entanglements which bring him into the service of king ...

'' (1900-1901) centred on the Danish 16th century King Christian II. The novel series ''Den lange rejse'' ("The Long Journey", 1908–22), spanning the early history of humanity in six volumes with a focus on evolutionary theory, is regarded as Jensens greatest achievement. In addition to these books, Jensen wrote numerous prose works and essays and was also a prominent poet. His ''Digte'' ("Poems", 1906) is regarded as the start of modernist poetry in Denmark.

Nominations

Jensen had been nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature on 53 occasions since

1925 Events January * January 1 ** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...

. He was nominated every year between

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and 1944. In

1942 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in wh ...

the Nobel committee received seven nominations for Jensen, followed by two nominations in

1943 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured. * January 4 – ...

and two nominations in 1944. In total, the Nobel committee received 24 nominations for 21 writers including Gabriela Mistral (awarded in

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. Januar ...

), Hermann Hesse (awarded in

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

), Enrique Larreta, Johan Huizinga, Georges Duhamel,

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. (; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer and the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature winner "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social ...

(awarded in

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...

) and Paul Valéry. Four were newly nominated namely Abol-Gassem E’tessam Zadeh, Luis Nueda y Santiago, Charles Ferdinand Ramuz and Arnulf Øverland.

Maria Madalena de Martel Patrício Maria Madalena Valdez Trigueiros de Martel Patrício (19 April 1884 – 3 November 1947) was a Portuguese novelist and poet who became the first Portuguese woman nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature.Henriette Charasson Henriette Charasson (6 January 1884 – 24 December 1972) was a French author of Catholic themes who was nominated multiple times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Biography Charasson was born on 6 January 1884 in Le Havre, France. During Worl ...

Elisaveta Bagryana Elisaveta Bagryana ( bg, Елисавета Багряна) (16 April, 1893 – 23 March, 1991), born Elisaveta Lyubomirova Belcheva ( bg, Елисавета Любомирова Белчева, links=no), was a Bulgarian poet who wrote her fi ...

and Gabriela Mistral were the only women nominated. The authors George Ade,

Joaquín Álvarez Quintero Serafín Álvarez Quintero (March 26, 1871 – April 12, 1938) and Joaquín Álvarez Quintero (January 20, 1873 – June 14, 1944) were Spanish dramatists. Biography Quintero brothers, photograph by Kaulak Born in Utrera, Seville Province in 18 ...

, Marc Bloch, Max Brand, Édouard Bourdet,

Joseph Campbell Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...

, Jean Cavaillès,

Irvin S. Cobb Irvin Shrewsbury Cobb (June 23, 1876 – March 11, 1944) was an American author, humorist, editor and columnist from Paducah, Kentucky, who relocated to New York in 1904, living there for the remainder of his life. He wrote for the ''New York Worl ...

, Olive Custance,

Eugénio de Castro Eugénio de Castro e Almeida (March 4, 1869 in Coimbra, Portugal – August 17, 1944) was a Portugal, Portuguese writing, writer and a poetry, poet. He was a professor at the Faculty of Letters at the University of Coimbra and attended Escol ...

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, comte de Saint-Exupéry, simply known as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (, , ; 29 June 1900 – 31 July 1944), was a French writer, poet, aristocrat, journalist and pioneering aviator. He became a laureate of s ...

Enrique Díez Canedo Enrique Díez Canedo (Badajoz, January 7, 1879 – Mexico, June 6, 1944), was a Spanish postmodernist poet, translator and literary critic. Early life His maternal relatives came from an Extremaduran village called Alburquerque, but during his ...

, Agnes Mary Frances Duclaux, Edith Durham, Benjamin Fondane, Giovanni Gentile, Henri Ghéon, Jean Giraudoux, Philippe Henriot, Max Jacob,

Napoleon Lapathiotis Napoleon Lapathiotis ( el, Ναπολέων Λαπαθιώτης; 31 October 1888 – 7 January 1944) was a Greek poet. A native of Athens, he began writing and publishing poetry when he was eleven. In 1907, along with others, he established the '' ...

, Stephen Leacock,

Elsa Lindberg-Dovlette Elsa Cecilia Maria Lindberg-Dovlette (13 February 1874 – 8 October 1944) was a Swedish people, Swedish writer and Qajar Iran, Persian princess, known for her stories from a harem, an environment little understood in Europe at the time. Born in S ...

, Filippo Tommaso Marinetti,

Kaj Munk Kaj Harald Leininger Munk (commonly called Kaj Munk) (13 January 1898 – 4 January 1944) was a Danish playwright and Lutheranism, Lutheran pastor, known for his cultural engagement and his martyrdom during the Occupation of Denmark of World ...

, Robert Nichols, Augusta Peaux,

Karel Poláček Karel Poláček (22 March 1892 – 21 January 1945) was a Czech writer, humorist and journalist of Jewish descent. Life He was born in Rychnov nad Kněžnou into the family of a Jewish merchant. He attended the gymnasium there, but did poor ...

Armand Praviel Armand refer to: People * Armand (name), list of people with this name *Armand (photographer) (1901–1963), Armenian photographer *Armand (singer) (1946–2015), Dutch protest singer *Sean Armand (born 1991), American basketball player *Armand, ...

, Arthur Quiller-Couch, Jacques Roumain, Israel Joshua Singer, Ida Tarbell,

Florence Trail Florence Trail (September 1, 1854 - April 21, 1944) was an American educator and author. Though she belonged to one of the wealthiest families of Maryland, she believed in the doctrine of self-support and left home to engage in teaching, first in ...

, Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar, Margery Williams, and Harold Bell Wright died in 1944 without having been nominated for the prize.

Award ceremony

On 10 December 1944 a luncheon was held at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York in place of the customary ceremony in Stockholm. Per Hallström, chairman of the Nobel committee of the

Swedish Academy The Swedish Academy ( sv, Svenska Akademien), founded in 1786 by King Gustav III of Sweden, Gustav III, is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, Royal Academies of Sweden. Its 18 members, who are elected for life, comprise the highest Swedish lang ...

, delivered a lecture on the Nobel Prize laureate in literature that was broadcast the same day. Unable to attend the 1944 award ceremony, Johannes V. Jensen received his prize at Stockholm on 10 December 1945. At the award ceremony in Stockholm on 10 December 1945 Anders Österling, permanent secretary of the

said:

Notes

References

External links

Presentation
Lecture by Per Hallström, chairman of the Nobel committee.
Award ceremony speech
by Anders Österling. {{Nobel Prize in Literature Nobel Prize in Literature by year Nobel Prize