Showing posts with label literature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label literature. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Achebe, no father of African literature — Soyinka




As celebrated author, Chinua Achebe’s final burial rites hold this week, Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka in this exclusive interview with Sahara Reporters paid tribute to the famous author but says he(Achebe) is not the father of African literature. Soyinka, who won the 1986 Nobel Prize for literature, also spoke on his personal relationship with Achebe and other Nigerian writers; his regrets about Achebe’s last book, There Was A Country: A Personal History of Biafra; and his attempt to talk the late Biafran leader, Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, out of fighting a war
Do you recall where or how you first learned about the death of Professor Chinua Achebe? And what was your first reaction?

Where I heard the news? I was on the road between Abeokuta and Lagos. Who called first – BBC or a Nigerian journalist? Can’t recall now, since other calls followed fast and furious, while I was still trying to digest the news. My first reaction? Well, you know the boa constrictor – when it has just swallowed an abnormal morsel, it goes comatose, takes time off to digest. Today’s global media appears indifferent to such a natural entitlement. You are expected to supply that instant response. So, if – as was the case – my first response was to be stunned, that swiftly changed to anger.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

No frontrunners for Peace, Literature prizes as Nobel panel to announce winners next week



The winners of the 2012 Nobel Prizes are to be announced next week, with no clear frontrunners yet seen for the much-talked about Peace and Literature prizes and suspense and speculation mount.

Betting sites have become a popular feature of the Nobel guessing game in recent years, with gamers sometimes surprisingly accurate, even suspiciously so.

Chinese author Mo Yan and Japan’s Haruki Murakami share the top spots on two Swedish betting sites a week ahead of the expected announcement of the Nobel Literature Prize, while Coptic Christian Maggie Gobran of Egypt who helps the poor in Cairo’s slums tops the one Swedish site taking bets for the Peace Prize.

Here are the dates for this year’s prize announcements:

- Monday, October 8, 0930 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Medicine Prize

- Tuesday, October 9, 0945 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Physics Prize

- Wednesday, October 10, 0945 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Chemistry Prize

- Thursday, October 11: Possible date for the Nobel Literature Prize. The Swedish Academy only announces the date of the announcement a few days in advance, but it is traditionally on a Thursday at 1100 GMT.

- Friday, October 12, 0900 GMT: Nobel Peace Prize

- Monday, October 15, 1100 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Economics Prize.

More Stories in News


Source : punchng[dot]com

No frontrunners for Peace, Literature prizes as Nobel panel to announce winners next week



The winners of the 2012 Nobel Prizes are to be announced next week, with no clear frontrunners yet seen for the much-talked about Peace and Literature prizes and suspense and speculation mount.

Betting sites have become a popular feature of the Nobel guessing game in recent years, with gamers sometimes surprisingly accurate, even suspiciously so.

Chinese author Mo Yan and Japan’s Haruki Murakami share the top spots on two Swedish betting sites a week ahead of the expected announcement of the Nobel Literature Prize, while Coptic Christian Maggie Gobran of Egypt who helps the poor in Cairo’s slums tops the one Swedish site taking bets for the Peace Prize.

Here are the dates for this year’s prize announcements:

- Monday, October 8, 0930 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Medicine Prize

- Tuesday, October 9, 0945 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Physics Prize

- Wednesday, October 10, 0945 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Chemistry Prize

- Thursday, October 11: Possible date for the Nobel Literature Prize. The Swedish Academy only announces the date of the announcement a few days in advance, but it is traditionally on a Thursday at 1100 GMT.

- Friday, October 12, 0900 GMT: Nobel Peace Prize

- Monday, October 15, 1100 GMT at the earliest: Nobel Economics Prize.

More Stories in Business


Source : punchng[dot]com

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