Chinese author Mo Yan today won the Nobel Literature Prize for writing that mixes folk tales, history and the contemporary, the Swedish Academy announced.

Nobel Literature Prize:諾貝爾文學獎(Nobel Prize in Literature)

"Through a mixture of fantasy and reality, historical and social perspectives, Mo Yan has created a world reminiscent in its complexity of those in the writings of William Faulkner and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, at the same time finding a departure point in old Chinese literature and in oral tradition," the Swedish Academy said.

Yan was born in 1955, "with hallucinatory realism merges folk tales, history and the contemporary," the jury said.

Mo Yan has published novels, short stories and essays on various topics, and despite his social criticism is seen in his homeland as one of the foremost contemporary authors, the Nobel committee noted.

social criticism:社會批判

The 57-year-old, whose real name is Guan Moye, is perhaps best-known abroad for his 1987 novella "Red Sorghum", a tale of the brutal violence that plagued the eastern China countryside - where he grew up - during the 1920s and 30s.

Red Sorghum:《紅高粱》(點此下載電子書>>

The story was later made into an acclaimed film by leading Chinese director Zhang Yimou.

In a style that has been compared to the magical realism of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Mo Yan authored other acclaimed works including "Big Breasts and Wide Hips", "Republic of Wine" and "Life and Death are Wearing Me Out".

Gabriel Garcia Marquez:加夫列爾·加西亞·馬爾克斯(哥倫比亞作家,1982年諾獎得主)

Big Breasts and Wide Hips:《豐乳肥臀》

Republic of Wine:《酒國》

Life and Death are Wearing Me Out:《生死疲勞》(三本都是莫言的代表作)

His latest novel, 2009's "Frog", is considered his most daring yet, due to its searing depiction of China's "one child" population control policy and the local officials who ruthlessly implement it with forced abortions and sterilisations.

Frog:《蛙》(莫言代表作)

The heroine of the novel is a midwife who is an enthusiastic advocate of such practices.

But she later breaks down in remorse after a drunken hallucination in which she is attacked by thousands of frogs whose croaks are the wails of the babies she has aborted.

break down:失敗

Despite such content, Mo Yan has so far deftly managed to avoid running into serious trouble with Communist authorities.

This has been aided by his position as vice chairman of the state-sanctioned Chinese Writers Association.

state-sanctioned:國家批準的

Chinese Writers Association:中國作家協(xié)會

Though Mo is the first Chinese national to win the Nobel literature prize, he's not the first Chinese.

Chinese national:中國公民

A Chinese emigre to France, Gao Xingjian, won in 2000 for his absurdist dramas and inventive fiction, especially the novel Soul Mountain. His works are laced with criticisms of China's communist government and have been banned in China.

Gao Xingjian:高行?。ǚA裔劇作家,2000年諾貝爾文學獎得主)

Soul Mountain:《靈山》(高行健代表作)

be laced with:含有

Yan as quoted saying by the official China News Service as saying today: "On hearing the news that I won the award, I was very happy. I will focus on creating new works. I will strive harder to thank everyone."

Last year, the literature prize went to Swedish poet Tomas Transtroemer.

Tomas Transtroemer:托馬斯·特蘭斯特勒默(瑞典詩人,2011年諾貝爾文學獎得主)

The literature prize is the fourth and one of the most watched announcements this Nobel season, following the prizes for medicine, physics and chemistry earlier this week.

The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced tomorrow, wrapping up the Nobel season.

wrap up:結束

As tradition dictates, the laureates will receive their prizes at formal ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo on December 10, the anniversary of the death of prize creator Alfred Nobel in 1896.

回顧:【讀報筆記】系列>>

點擊查看口譯備考專題,閱讀更多相關文章!