Canadian poet, novelist, and classicist Anne Carson, 76, has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature.
The Swedish Academy announced on October 8 that Carson was selected for this year's honor.
The Academy cited her innovative body of work that reinterprets classical literature traditions in a modern context and for pioneering new forms of literature.
Born in Toronto, Ontario, in 1950, Carson is known as a poet, essayist, translator, and classicist. She has deeply engaged with classical literature, even describing herself in her writings as someone who "teaches ancient Greek for a living." She is particularly recognized for her experimental writing that blurs the boundaries between poetry, fiction, essays, translation, and academic papers.
According to Minumsa, Carson has been praised as a "true poet who writes unforgettable verses." Her extensive creative experience across genres, combined with her unique freedom of expression, has garnered her a devoted readership. The influence of ancient literature adds a sense of mystery and philosophical depth to her works.
Carson has gained attention for her works that combine modern emotions of love, desire, and loss with ancient Greek mythology. Her notable work, Autobiography of Red, retells the story from the perspective of Geryon, a monster from the tenth labor of Hercules in Greek mythology. The narrative explores the love between the beautiful and brutal Hercules and the lonely boy Geryon, who has red wings, and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award upon its release in the U.S.
The Beauty of the Husband, dedicated to British Romantic poet John Keats, celebrates a blind yearning for beauty. The narrator, a wife, reflects on her love for a man with a fatal allure, recounting the process of falling in love, marrying, and ultimately parting ways in a "fictional essay" format.
Carson was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1998 and received the MacArthur Fellowship, often referred to as the "genius grant," from the MacArthur Foundation in 2000. She has built an international reputation, winning the T.S. Eliot Prize in 2001 and the Princess of Asturias Award for Literature in 2020.
Many of Carson's works have been translated and published in South Korea, including Eros the Bittersweet, Short Stories, Glass, Irony, and God, Plainwater, Autobiography of Red, The Beauty of the Husband, Red Doc>, Float, and Knox.
Carson has consistently been mentioned as a strong contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature. This year, she was among the names highlighted by major foreign media and betting agencies, alongside Chinese author Can Xue.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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