Louise Gluck has been no stranger to awards over her long and storied career, since her first publication in 1968. In 1993, she won the Pulitzer Prize for her collection of poems, The Wild Iris. And on Oct 8 she became the 16th woman to win the Nobel Prize in literature with the Nobel prizes first awarded in 1901.
Gluck was honored for her unmistakable poetic voice that, with simple beauty, makes individual existence universal. Often said to be an autobiographical poet, drawing from the inner parts of her life, "Gluck is not to be regarded as a confessional(忏悔) poet. She seeks the universal,” Nobel Committee Chair Anders Olsson said in a statement.
Gluck, 77, the author of 12 poetry collections, has been able to turn her life experiences into universal themes covering life, loss and isolation(孤独). Because of this, readers have often found her poetry to be "dark”. However, there is much more than darkness in her voice, as noted by Olsson. "It is direct and ... also a voice full of humor,” he said.
For example, in her poem Snowdrops, she uses the coming of spring after winter to show rebirth of life after death. She leads readers down a depressing path only to reconnect with the light at the near end. At the conclusion of the poem, readers are left to feel the "cool wind of the new world” as they watch a new spring. This is often the case in Gluck's poetry, being able to feel joy even after not having done so for a long time.
Although she's already a well-known writer, experienced in exploring pain and healing(愈合), Gluck did feel honored to be given the famed Nobel award. However, when asked what the prize means to her, the lyric poet responded by saying, "It's too new… I don't know really what it means.” Her only hope is that she can preserve her daily life.
