Austrian Novelist Jelinek Wins Nobel Prize

STOCKHOLM, Sweden – Austrian novelist and poet Elfriede Jelinek, 57, won the Nobel Prize in literature, the Swedish Academy said Thursday, citing her ability to reveal “the absurdity of society’s cliches and their subjugating power.”

The decision to award the prize to a woman – and a poet – was the first since 1996, when Polish poet Wislawa Szymborska won.

Since the prize was first handed out in 1901, only nine women have won it.

The 18 lifetime members of the 218-year-old Swedish Academy, of whom only four are women, made the annual selection in deep secrecy last week.

For any writer, there could hardly be any greater honor than winning the Nobel Prize. But for an author whose work isn’t widely translated, it opens doors to new markets, and sales.

The prize also brings a financial safety net, too: A check of $1.3 million.

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