The Swedish Academy awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize in Literature to Tomas Transtromer. Transtromer's win marked the first Swede to win the award since 1974.
Who is Tomas Transtromer?
Transtromer, considered one of Sweden's most well regarded writers, is not well known in America. His bibliography, however, includes 15 poetry collections and a memoir. Over sixty different translations of Transtromer's poems exist, including English translations, which are quickly being reprinted.
Tomas Transtromer was born in 1931 in Stockholm. He studied at Stockholm University where his curriculm was multi-facted, focusing on literature, history, religion and psychology.
Transtromer began his writing career in 1954 when he published his first poetry collection 17 dikter (Seventeen Poems) (1954 Bonniers).
Outside of his work in the literary field, Transtromer also worked extensively in the world of psychology. Transtromer worked at the Institution for Psychometrics at Stockholm University and later at Roxtuna, a youth correctional facility as a psychiatrist.
In 1990, Transtromer suffered a debilitating stroke that left him partially paralyzed. He has published little since the stroke but continued to be a favorite, particularly among his countrymen to win the Nobel prize.
Along with winning the Nobel prize, Transtromer's awards include the Aftonbladets Literary Prize, the Bonnier Award for Poetry, the Neustadt International Prize for Literature, the Oevralids Prize, the Petrach Prize in Germany, and the Swedish Award from International Poetry Forum.
Transtromer's Poetry
Transtromer's poetry speaks of the world around him. He writes of nature, particularly the Swedish landscape and winter. He writes of death and of the humanity he witnessed through his work in the psychological field.
The Wall Street Journal Blog published an excerpt of Transtromer's poetry from his collection The Sorrow Garden. The American publisher of Transtromer's work also features an excerpt of his poetry on their website.
Ken Worpole descriped Transtromer's work, saying, "Transtromer is the creator of unexpected images of apparently artless simplicity and staying power, possessing a unique voice full of understanding for human bewilderment and wonder. His is not an urban world, but one of forests, empty country roads and Baltic shipping channels, though also occasionally of African villages and hot, barren rooms. Life is a series of transitional states of consciousness and occasional moments of epiphany, but it is also at times both beautiful as well as mysterious."
To read English transltaions of Transtromer's poetry, look for The Great Enigma (2006 New Directions 9780811216722).
Ashley Wilbourn Pinciaro - Ashley Pinciaro received a M.A. in journalism from Emerson College in 2009 and has since worked for media platforms throughout New ...
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