So Bob Dylan is not rebel of 1960s and it is good for
everyone - for Dylan, for Nobel, naturally for his fans and for people who
think that Nobel should go beyond its 'sometimes absurd, sometimes puritan,
sometimes illogical and sometimes political' nuances to actually serve
creativity, especially in case of the Literature Nobel.
He respects the Nobel Committee's decision. He, in fact,
felt speechless when the award was announced for him.
Following is the press-release on the website of the Nobel
Prize regarding this conversation:
Bob Dylan: “If I
accept the prize? Of course.”
On 13 October, 2016, the Swedish Academy announced that
this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature is awarded to Bob Dylan "for having
created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition".
This week Bob Dylan called the Swedish Academy. “The news
about the Nobel Prize left me speechless”, he told Sara Danius, Permanent
Secretary of the Swedish Academy. “I appreciate the honor so much.”
It has not yet been decided if Bob Dylan will attend any
events during the Nobel Week in Stockholm in December. The Nobel Foundation
will share information as soon as it is available.
Since the Newsroom Home section of the Nobel Prize website
doesn't mention any date for the release or for the conversation, except 'this
week', we can assume it as a recent development.
Probably Dylan was left so speechless that it took three
weeks for him to react on the news that makes for global headlines as soon as
it broke. And it was that Dylan was in some isolation. He was getting regular
inflow of greetings and admiration for his Literature Nobel. His website even
acknowledged it (though the Nobel mention was later removed). Even the Nobel
Committee had felt so frustrated on a restrained (or a controlled or a
speechless Bob Dylan) that it had to formally announce through its website that
it was abandoning its efforts to contact Bob Dylan for his Literature Nobel.
But all's well that ends well. Now that Dylan has
acknowledged his Nobel (in his trademark style) - the controversy should end
there. Yes, the hangover of certain things remain in our lives - throughout.
And with Bob Dylan, it may be his 1960-70s Counterculture years when he was one
of the main rebel voices who shaped the Counterculture movement in some way.
So, again in his trademark style (of being rarely available),
according to a 'The Telegraph' world exclusive, Dylan again puts it as 'if he
can' - Yes, he is planning to turn up to the awards ceremony in Stockholm.
“Absolutely,” he says. “If it’s at all possible.”
