The Nobel Prize for literature is given to the person who shall have produced the most outstanding work in the field of literature. Here are four winners, along with the reasons.
Peter Handke
He is an Austrian novelist, playwright, translator, poet, film director and screenwriter. He is most famous for his novel about his mother’s act of killing herself deliberately, A Sorrow Beyond Dreams. He was awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize for literature.
Kazuo Ishiguro
He is a British novelist, screenwriter and short-story writer. He was born in Japan, but his family moved to the UK in 1960 when he was five. He is known for The Remains of the Day, Never Let Me Go and The Saddest Music in the World. He was awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize for literature.
Bob Dylan
He is one of the most influential singer-songwriters of the 20th century. In 2016, he was named the winner of the 2016 Nobel Prize for literature and it was the first time that the honor had been given to a musician. He was praised for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.
Svetlana Alexievich
She was awarded the 2015 Nobel Prize for literature. Her works reflected the suffering and courage in her time. She is known for her works about the women involved in World War II and the description of the Soviet Union’s war in Afghanistan.
1. Which of the following is Peter Handke’s famous book?A.Never Let Me Go. | B.The Remains of the Day. |
C.A Sorrow Beyond Dreams. | D.The Saddest Music in the World. |
A.He was the first musician to receive the Nobel Prize. |
B.He tried to explore the human nature. |
C.He wrote a lot of Japanese songs. |
D.He helped the women in need. |
A.Peter Handke’s. | B.Kazuo Ishiguro’s. |
C.Bob Dylan’s. | D.Svetlana Alexievich’s. |
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【推荐1】It’s hard to ignore the importance of sleep for our well-being. This is especially true for our children, says Rafael Pelayo, a sleep expert at the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center. Children who get insufficient sleep can become forgetful, have problems concentrating in school and studying, and have poorer immune function. They may even experience delayed growth. “Bone growth occurs when you’re sleeping,” says Pelayo. “From birth, sleep affects children’s bodies and brains.”
It’s probably not surprising, then, that sleep also affects mental health. “There is no mental health problem that doesn’t have a sleep element,” says Pelayo. For example, it’s well known that one of the signs of depression involves changes in sleep. Luckily, returning to a normal sleep pattern can help relieve depressive symptoms (症状), he says, stressing why treating sleep seriously could improve mental health. “Mental health and sleep impact each other,” says Pelayo.
While there are many benefits of having healthy sleep patterns, most kids don’t get enough sleep. As an example, Pelayo points to a time when his own child was in kindergarten, and the teacher assigned regular homework for her, which his daughter felt she needed to stay up late to finish. The same is true for older children — like teenagers — who are often assigned several hours of homework that keeps them up late studying. They may be unaware of how much sleep loss they are experiencing or how negatively it’s affecting them. But no one can sustain a loss of sleep over time, he adds.
What can we do to protect children’s sleep? Pelayo says that while sleep is a biological necessity, sleep habits are learned. That’s where parents can play an important role. First, they need to understand the necessity of sleep and pay attention when their kids seem sleepy or have trouble getting up in the morning. Also, parents should try to role-model good sleep habits themselves, he says. Role modeling is much more effective than punishment, he suggests. “You can’t be smoking a cigarette and telling your kids not to smoke, right? Parents have to model healthy behavior themselves,” he says.
1. What can be a possible consequence of children’s lack of sleep?A.The forgetfulness of everything. | B.The stop of growth. |
C.The collapse of immune system. | D.The decline of school performance. |
A.To state people’s ignorance of sleep loss. |
B.To stress the importance of mental health. |
C.To display the consequences of mental problems. |
D.To show the connection between sleep and mental health. |
A.It affected his daughter’s sleep negatively. |
B.It wasn’t beneficial to the studies of his daughter. |
C.It helped his daughter form healthy sleep patterns. |
D.It wasn’t helpful for his daughter to develop good learning habits. |
A.Good sleep habits are inborn for children. |
B.Kids will definitely follow the example of their parents. |
C.Parents can do much to help their kids form good sleep habits. |
D.Punishment is an effective way to make kids get up early in the morning. |
【推荐2】A
Insects (昆虫) are a very healthy food. They have almost as much protein (蛋白质) as meat from a pig or cow and are low in fat. Eating insects is also very good for the environment since they need less land and water than larger animals.
Marcel Dicke, who studies insects, explained in a talk how insects also produce more meat from the food they eat. For example, imagine a farmer feeds a cow 10 pounds of food. Those 10 pounds of food produce about 1 pound of meat for people to eat. However, imagine the farmer gives a certain number of insects 10 pounds of food. Those 10 pounds of food produce 9 pounds of meat for people to eat!
Eating more insects can also help people in poor areas. Many people can raise and sell insects, which can provide jobs and food.
But insects will not replace (替代) animal meat very quickly. First, people in some countries would have to change how they think about eating insects. Many people in North America and Europe eat a lot of meat like beef and pork. But they do not traditionally eat insects. In fact, for many people in the west, eating insects sounds crazy! They believe insects are dirty and dangerous. Insects make them feel uncomfortable.
Some people are trying to deal with this problem. For example, David George Gordon wrote a book named “The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook”, which tries to show people that insects can be delicious. Other insect experts travel around telling people about the benefits (好处) of eating insects. But they still have a lot of work to do.
1. Eating insects _____.A.is not healthy |
B.makes people put on fat |
C.helps protect large animals |
D.is environmentally friendly |
A.the high cost of food production |
B.it’s quite easy for farmers to raise insects |
C.raising insects is a good choice for farmers |
D.the different ways of feeding cows and insects |
A.their terrible taste | B.people’s old beliefs |
C.family traditions | D.eating methods |
A.people can make a lot of money from insects |
B.insects should be better protected |
C.people should eat more insects |
D.it’s dangerous to eat insects |
【推荐3】Some psychologists say that community art — art made to be displayed free of charge in a particular community — can make a big difference.
Unlike the random graffiti (涂鸦)that many people consider an eyesore, community art can bring people together and encourage respect. In the U.S. city of Philadelphia, for example, psychologists are doing a citywide project where mental health patients work with average people to paint murals(壁画). The aim of this project is to reduce the mental illness and promote a new dialogue about people who struggle with these issues.
Art also makes neighborhoods more attractive and has a unique ability to open people up. Neighbors can share comments with one another about a recently painted mural, which can challenge their prejudices and open their eyes to the world.
Businesses can also be promoted by community art. In Fort Smith, a town in the U.S. state of Arkansas, artists from around the globe came together to paint murals. One of the goals of the project was to expand the town's cultural offerings in order to attract more visitors. Not only locals but also tourists were drawn to see the murals. The money they spent while visiting the town benefited local businesses.
Generous financial support is provided for community art projects in many cities and towns. In the UK, the Arts Council England has invested nearly half a million dollars in community art. Some of it, for example, has paid for a new exhibition space created inside an old mill in the town of Brierfield. In the U.S., an organization called the Knight Foundation has invested millions of dollars in community projects, including many that focus on art.
1. What is the purpose of the community art project in Philadelphia?A.To replace random graffiti. |
B.To deal with the issues about mental illnesses. |
C.To promote dialogues about art issues. |
D.To encourage respect for psychologists and fine arts. |
A.By changing people' s views on prejudices. |
B.By giving new life to traditional murals. |
C.By providing a subject for conversation. |
D.By making neighborhoods more attractive. |
A.They can profit from art economically. |
B.They provide inexpensive courses in art. |
C.They've placed some restrictions on art. |
D.They borrow art from other communities. |
A.It is limited to rich communities. |
B.It has the support of the government. |
C.It started from a mill in Brierfield. |
D.It is paid for by the Knight Foundation. |
【推荐1】Norwegian playwright and author Jon Fosse has just been awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Literature for his “innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable”.
The Swedish Academy credits Fosse as “one of the most widely performed playwrights in the world”, although the 64-year-old originally made his name as a novelist, beginning with Red, Black in 1983. He has since written many works of prose and poetry. “His literary works, spanning a variety of genres(体裁), comprises about 40 plays and a wealth of novels, poetry collections, essays, children’s books and translations,” said Anders Olsson, chairman of the Nobel Committee for Literature.
Jon Fosse draws inspiration from his rural living environment and personal struggles, which have deeply influenced his distinctive writing style. Growing up in a small coastal village, Fosse was immersed in the beauty of nature and the vastness of the sea, which filled him with a sense of solitude and introspection(内省) that is reflected in his works. Fosse’s writing discussed themes of desolateness(孤独,苍凉), longing, and the search for meaning in life. Additionally, his battles with depression have enabled him to explore the depths of human emotions and existential des-pair.
“He touches you so deeply when you read his works,” said Anders Olsson. “What is special about him is the closeness in his writing. It touches your deepest feelings-anxieties, insecurities, questions of life and death-which are things that every human being actually faces from the very beginning. In that sense I think he reaches very far and there is a sort of a universal impact of every-thing that he writes-it has appeal to this basic humanity.”
Fosse is the first-ever laureate writing in Nynorsk, one of the two official languages of Norwegian, but only used by just 10% of the population. As The Guardian writes, “Many Nynorsk speakers see Fosse ‘as a kind of national hero’ for his championing of the language.” Fosse’s recognition on a global stage promotes the visibility and importance of Nynorsk as a written standard. It will attract more attention to Nynorsk literature, inspire and encourage Nynorsk speakers to continue preserving and promoting their linguistic(语言的) heritage.
1. What do we know about Jon Fosse from paragraph 2?A.His most popular work is the play Red, Black. |
B.He accomplished various genres of literature works. |
C.Many famous plays are the inspiration for his writing. |
D.His language skills earned him the Nobel Prize in Literature. |
A.Jon Fosse’s tough experiences. |
B.Jon Fosse’s motivation for writing. |
C.The major themes of Jon Fosse’s works. |
D.The effect of Jon Fosse’s life on his writing style. |
A.They explore the meaning of life. |
B.They touch human’s deepest emotions. |
C.They show the bond between humans and nature. |
D.They appeal to readers to focus on personal feelings. |
A.He explains the importance of linguistic diversity. |
B.He has improved the international status of Norway. |
C.He promotes the development and preservation of Nynorsk. |
D.He shapes the basic writing standard of Norwegian literature. |
【推荐2】French writer Annie Ernaux won the 2022 Nobel Prize in literature on Oct 6. She is the first French female to win the prize. In the words of the Nobel committee, Ernaux was given the award for the courage and sharp insight of her writing.
Having spent over five decades as a writer, the 82-year-old winner has published more than 20 books to her name, including Cleaned Out, Shame, a 2008 memoir called The Years and A Girl’s Story. Rather than consider herself a writer of fiction, Ernaux has used the term “an ethnologist (民族学家) of herself” to describe herself.
Born in 1940 in a rural village in Normandy, France, Ernaux grew up in a working-class environment as her parents ran a combined grocery store and cafe. She worked as a teacher before becoming a full-time writer.
According to CNN her “upbringing and experiences navigating adolescence and adulthood” inspire many of her works. For example the book Shame explores the theme of childhood trauma while A Girl’s Story follows a young woman’s coming of age in the 1950s.
Though the matters Ernaux describes in her books are serious and even sometimes heavy, they are always written in plain language. Ernaux described her style as “flat writing” through which she aims to tell her stories objectively, “unshaped by florid description or overwhelming emotions.” noted Fox News.
“She writes about things that no one else writes about, for instance her jealousy, her experiences as an abandoned lover and so forth, I mean, really hard experiences,” Anders Olsson, chairman of the Nobel Committee for Literature said after the award announcement in Stockholm. He went on to say, “She gives words for these experiences that are very simple and striking. They are short books, but they are really moving.”
1. What can we learn about Annie Ernaux from the text?A.She is the first French person to win the Nobel Prize. |
B.The Nobel committee described her as “an ethnologist of herself”. |
C.She was awarded for the bravery and observations shown in her writing. |
D.She started working as a full-time writer in 1974. |
A.Her students’ lives. | B.The stories of guests to her cafe. |
C.The history of her hometown. | D.Her personal experiences. |
A.Objective and easy to understand. | B.Plain and relaxing. |
C.Descriptive and serious. | D.Emotional and touching. |
A.She shares painful feelings through her writing. | B.She suffered a lot of hardships. |
C.Her works are about unexplored subjects. | D.Her works are short and moving. |
【推荐3】J.K.Rowling turned another year older this week.Born Joanne Rowling,J.K.Rowling is,of course,her adopted pen name.Concerned that young boys might not go for a book written by a woman,her publisher suggested she come up with a pseudonym.So,upon combining her first initial with the initial of her paternal grandmother,Kathleen,the moniker J.K.Rowling was born.
Interesting fact about Rowling:apparently,she can only fool some of the people some of the time.
Back in April of this year,a crime novel appeared on the shelves.It was entitled The Cuckoo's Calling,and it was written by Robert Galbraith.According to Galbraith’s bio,he spent“several years with the Royal Military Police”and the leading character of his novel,a fellow by the name of Cormoran Strike,“grew directly out of his own experiences and those of his military friends.”Only,upon further review,he didn’t!The book was actually penned by J.K.Rowling,who apparently wanted to try and sell a novel based on complete craftsmanship rather than on her name.
Unfortunately,however,the wife of a partner in the media firm in whom she placed he trust,shared the secret on Twitter.Rowling was angry and disappointed concerning the betraying of trust.
I'm not sure whether I would be terribly upset for too long,if I were her.Previous to her being known as the author,Rowling saw her book listed 4,709th on Amazon.After the big reveal,her book jumped all the way to No.1!
More importantly,I think she got what she wanted.The novel has received nearly universal critical acclaim.Rowling passed her own test with flying colors.Clearly,she’s pretty good at her craft!
In any case,I personally look forward to reading her newest writing endeavor.
1. Why was Joanne Rowling advised to use a male pen name?A.It was a common practice. |
B.Her grandmother didn’t like her name. |
C.The publisher wanted to give readers a surprise. |
D.Women writers might not be popular with boy readers. |
A.She thought her name was out of date. |
B.Readers didn’t like her books any longer. |
C.She intended to prove her writing ability. |
D.She thought a new name could make her more popular. |
A.Severe criticism. | B.Great respect. |
C.High praise. | D.Much sympathy. |
A.The Secret is Out | B.Her Door is Open |
C.The Book is Off Sale | D.Her Effort is in Vain |