Turkish author Orhan Pamuk, who risks a jail sentence for his remarks about the massacre of Armenians during the Ottoman empire defended his political outspokenness as he received the German book trade's prestigious peace prize.
The acclaimed author of novels including Snow and My Name is Red said in his acceptance speech that political engagement was a natural part of being a novelist.
"When a writer expresses his political opinions it does not mean support for one party or another, but it is natural to use his voice, his force to make you aware of the problems of society," he said, speaking in Turkish on Sunday, in Frankfurt.
He said the political aspects of good novels helped reflect the inner life of a particular culture, and cited the work of Russian writer Dostoyevsky as an example.
Dieter Schormann, the head of the association of German booksellers, said Pamuk had managed to build a bridge between the east and the west, as he handed him the prize on the sidelines of the Frankfurt book fair.
"Orhan Pamuk traces the imprints of the East on the West and those of the West on the East," he said.
Snow, an international best-seller, tells of the surreal homecoming of a Turk, inspired by the hero of Franz Kafka's The Trial, who has lived in Frankfurt for a decade. The book has been read by many as a critique of Islamic culture.
Pamuk reiterated his support for Turkey's bid to join the European Union, saying it was essential for peace in the region and an understanding between cultures.
"I believe peace is the founding bloc of the EU and I think at this juncture the union must decide between peace and naturalism," he said, referring to strong opposition from some member countries to the mainly Muslim nation's quest for membership.
"Just like I cannot imagine a Turkey that does not dream of being part of Europe, I cannot imagine a Europe that defines itself without Turkey."
In his citation for the prize German writer Joachim Sartorius said Pamuk's work was "a blessing" because he shed light on Turkey in a way nobody else did.
"He is the only writer who really allows us to know this country."
Pamuk triggered a public outcry in February when he said in an interview with a Swiss newspaper that "a million Armenians were killed in these lands and nobody but me dares to talk about it."
A prosecutor in Istanbul indicted the 53-year-old writer on the grounds that his remarks amounted to "public denigration of the Turkish identity" and has demanded a prison term of between six months and three years.
Pamuk, who has lived in Istanbul for most of his life, is expected to go on trial in Turkey on Dec. 16.
The massacre of Armenians during World War I is one of the most controversial episodes in Turkish history.
Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen died in orchestrated killings nine decades ago during the last years of the Ottoman Empire, the precursor of modern Turkey.
The peace prize is the highest honor of the German literary world and the 55 past recipients include feminist author Susan Sontag, Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe and Hungary's Peter Esterhazy, who won last year.
The prize money was increased this year to 25,000 euros (US$29,800) from 15,000 euros.
The Frankfurt book fair, the biggest in the world, ended on Sunday.
May 6 to May 12 Those who follow the Chinese-language news may have noticed the usage of the term zhuge (豬哥, literally ‘pig brother,’ a male pig raised for breeding purposes) in reports concerning the ongoing #Metoo scandal in the entertainment industry. The term’s modern connotations can range from womanizer or lecher to sexual predator, but it once referred to an important rural trade. Until the 1970s, it was a common sight to see a breeder herding a single “zhuge” down a rustic path with a bamboo whip, often traveling large distances over rugged terrain to service local families. Not only
Ahead of incoming president William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20 there appear to be signs that he is signaling to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that the Chinese side is also signaling to the Taiwan side. This raises a lot of questions, including what is the CCP up to, who are they signaling to, what are they signaling, how with the various actors in Taiwan respond and where this could ultimately go. In the last column, published on May 2, we examined the curious case of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight Tseng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) — currently vice premier
The last time Mrs Hsieh came to Cihu Park in Taoyuan was almost 50 years ago, on a school trip to the grave of Taiwan’s recently deceased dictator. Busloads of children were brought in to pay their respects to Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正), known as Generalissimo, who had died at 87, after decades ruling Taiwan under brutal martial law. “There were a lot of buses, and there was a long queue,” Hsieh recalled. “It was a school rule. We had to bow, and then we went home.” Chiang’s body is still there, under guard in a mausoleum at the end of a path
Last week the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) released a set of very strange numbers on Taiwan’s wealth distribution. Duly quoted in the Taipei Times, the report said that “The Gini coefficient for Taiwanese households… was 0.606 at the end of 2021, lower than Australia’s 0.611, the UK’s 0.620, Japan’s 0.678, France’s 0.676 and Germany’s 0.727, the agency said in a report.” The Gini coefficient is a measure of relative inequality, usually of wealth or income, though it can be used to evaluate other forms of inequality. However, for most nations it is a number from .25 to .50