Malibu, California's own Bob Dylan may reject Nobel Prize for Literature

Truth, particularly for the Nobel Peace PrizeTerrorists like Arafat and PeresDo nothings like Obama

Blah Blah. wrote:

Nobel Prizes aren't what they used to be.

Correct, he is Hibbing, Minnesota's own. At his creative peak he lived in NYC, and Woodstock, New York. He also did many of his best recordings in Nashville. He really hasn't broken much artistic ground in the 40 years he's lived in California.

FarOutMan wrote:

Sheesh, I'm still trying to get over him being described as "Malibu, California's own."

When did he sell out and move to La-La Land?

At his home in L.A., Bob can make 10s of millions from the surge of the Nobel Prize alone. If he goes to filthy Europe he might catch a disease or get killed by refugees. It's his call.

FarOutMan wrote:

Sheesh, I'm still trying to get over him being described as "Malibu, California's own."

When did he sell out and move to La-La Land?

1973. Malibu is relatively secluded,

lol lol lol lol wrote:

FarOutMan wrote:

Sheesh, I'm still trying to get over him being described as "Malibu, California's own."

When did he sell out and move to La-La Land?

1973. Malibu is relatively secluded,

You know you've made it once you make it to L.A. Just Ask Juan Gabriel, Jose Montana, Tomas Cruz, Carlos Rey, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, ...

I agree, the lyrics from "Blood on the Tracks" are pretty damn good, to quote Isabelle's dad.

In fact, "Blood on the Tracks," "Time Out of Mind" and "Love and Theft" are three of my favorite Dylan albums, but the lyrics aren't nearly as impressive as those 6 great albums from the 60's.

How do you top:

"Disillusioned words like bullets bark

As human gods aim for their mark

Make everything from toy guns that spark

To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark

It's easy to see without looking too far

That not much

Is really sacred."

old guy 70 wrote:

I agree, the lyrics from "Blood on the Tracks" are pretty damn good, to quote Isabelle's dad.

In fact, "Blood on the Tracks," "Time Out of Mind" and "Love and Theft" are three of my favorite Dylan albums, but the lyrics aren't nearly as impressive as those 6 great albums from the 60's.

How do you top:

"Disillusioned words like bullets bark

As human gods aim for their mark

Make everything from toy guns that spark

To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark

It's easy to see without looking too far

That not much

Is really sacred."

Lyrically, one of my favorite songs from the Blood On The Tracks sessions is one which did not make the album--the sister song to Shelter From The Storm--Up To Me:

Everything went from bad to worse, money never changed a thing

Death kept followin’, trackin’ us down, at least I heard your bluebird sing

Now somebody’s got to show their hand, time is an enemy

I know you’re long gone, I guess it must be up to me

If I’d thought about it I never would’ve done it, I guess I would’ve let it slide

If I’d lived my life by what others were thinkin’, the heart inside me would’ve died

I was just too stubborn to ever be governed by enforced insanity

Someone had to reach for the risin’ star, I guess it was up to me

Oh, the Union Central is pullin’ out and the orchids are in bloom

I’ve only got me one good shirt left and it smells of stale perfume

In fourteen months I’ve only smiled once and I didn’t do it consciously

Somebody’s got to find your trail, I guess it must be up to me

It was like a revelation when you betrayed me with your touch

I’d just about convinced myself that nothin’ had changed that much

The old Rounder in the iron mask slipped me the master key

Somebody had to unlock your heart, he said it was up to me

Well, I watched you slowly disappear down into the officers’ club

I would’ve followed you in the door but I didn’t have a ticket stub

So I waited all night ’til the break of day, hopin’ one of us could get free

When the dawn came over the river bridge, I knew it was up to me

Oh, the only decent thing I did when I worked as a postal clerk

Was to haul your picture down off the wall near the cage where I used to work

Was I a fool or not to try to protect your identity?

You looked a little burned out, my friend, I thought it might be up to me

Well, I met somebody face to face and I had to remove my hat

She’s everything I need and love but I can’t be swayed by that

It frightens me, the awful truth of how sweet life can be

But she ain’t a-gonna make me move, I guess it must be up to me

We heard the Sermon on the Mount and I knew it was too complex

It didn’t amount to anything more than what the broken glass reflects

When you bite off more than you can chew you pay the penalty

Somebody’s got to tell the tale, I guess it must be up to me

Well, Dupree came in pimpin’ tonight to the Thunderbird Café

Crystal wanted to talk to him, I had to look the other way

Well, I just can’t rest without you, love, I need your company

But you ain’t a-gonna cross the line, I guess it must be up to me

There’s a note left in the bottle, you can give it to Estelle

She’s the one you been wond’rin’ about, but there’s really nothin’ much to tell

We both heard voices for a while, now the rest is history

Somebody’s got to cry some tears, I guess it must be up to me

So go on, boys, and play your hands, life is a pantomime

The ringleaders from the county seat say you don’t have all that much time

And the girl with me behind the shades, she ain’t my property

One of us has got to hit the road, I guess it must be up to me

And if we never meet again, baby, remember me

How my lone guitar played sweet for you that old-time melody

And the harmonica around my neck, I blew it for you, free

No one else could play that tune, you know it was up to me

It's not an insult. wrote:

It's not an insult, just a different discipline.

Is a poem a novel?

Is a 100 meter sprint a marathon?

Actually, the more I think about it, the more I agree with y'all.

If you can win the prize for poetry, you should obviously be able to win for lyrics as they are one and the same. Poetry is literature, so song lyrics are literature as well. Especially with a body of work like Dylan's.

But if we are going with lyrics, wouldn't the obvious winner be Neil Peart? Why was he overlooked for Dylan?

back to Dostoyevsky wrote:

Knausgaard for Nobel prize? Aside from Nobel being a joke/political trophy these days, the guy is far from being a good candidate for the literature prize. If someone didn't read his books, go and check his twitter, it's packed with cheesy and banal aphorisms a la Paul Coelho, who at some point was another fad writer.

Check his Twitter? What is Twitter if not 100% "cheesy and banal aphorisms." Have you ever found a Twitter account that offers anything of value other than stock trading tips? C'mon my good friend, get with the program. Twitter is for whining, online bullying and advertising. That is it. My guess is that Knausgaard has some publisher's intern running his account. One intern for every language.

...and I did not get the same feeling reading The Alchemist as I did reading My Struggle, so I don't compare the two. Did Paulo Coelho get the same critical acclaim? I know he sold a lot of books, but was he a critical darling?

...but I do have to agree that #four of My Struggle was far, far from Nobel territory. It almost ruined the entire book for me. It was almost like a pornographic tween novel. If you just picked that up without reading anything prior, you'd almost laugh at how bad it was. Terrible and the ending of that particular section(?) was embarrassing and juvenile.

lol lol lol lol wrote:

John Prine wrote:

Even as a HUGE Dylan fan, I have to admit that I do not think he should get the NPL. I don't think song lyrics are literature.

Question: For those who argue that song lyrics are not (or cannot be) literature, could you please explain why you believe this is the case?

Sure. I enjoy his music and used to love it, but I believe the music made him famous, not the 'poetry'. Have a friend print out the lyrics of 50 songs each by Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Cat Stevens that you've never heard. Have that friend mix up the songs and let you try and arrange them according to who wrote each 'poem'. Do you think you can distinguish between the three without hearing their music? Better yet, keep them in order and submit each to the major publisher as poetry anthologies under a pseudonym. If they are even published, do you think Dylan's poetry anthology would win the Nobel Prize?

Outside of the numerous foreign authors who've penned great works, here's a list of living American authors who write fiction and have not won a Nobel Prize for literature: Cormac McCarthy, Don DeLilllo, Philip Roth, Thomas Pynchon and Joyce Carol Oates. Read three works by each along with Dylan's lyrics from his 5 best albums (read, not listen to the music) then report back on who has contributed more to the 'art' of literature. Of course this is all subjective, but I do not believe Dylan would 'win' the award for best literature among that group for most people. Heck, read the best Tom Wolfe or Elmore Leonard novels and report back.

Elite Liberal Arts College wrote:

We all know he wrote great lyrics and great songs. Some of the best ever written. Is it literature? That is the question.

Homer is literature. Poe is literature. Dylan is literature. Story telling in verse style (Homer), poetry (Poe), and poetry with musical rhythm (Dylan).

"The Iliad" is in dactylic hexameter. To read order to read it properly, you need to differentiate between long and short syllables. "The Iliad" is rhythmical.

How about Poe's "The Bells" done in song form?

So, yes, Dylan is Literature.

It's not an insult. wrote:

Is a poem a novel?

Literature is not limited to novels.

Literature is a term used to describe written and sometimes spoken material. Derived from the Latin litteratura meaning "writing formed with letters," literature most commonly refers to works of the creative imagination, including poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, journalism, and in some instances, song.

Why do we read literature?

Simply put, literature represents the culture and tradition of a language or a people. It's difficult to precisely define, though many have tried, but it's clear that the accepted definition of literature is constantly changing and evolving.

For many, the word literature suggests a higher art form, merely putting words on a page doesn't necessarily mean creating literature. A canon is the accepted body of works for a given author. Some works of literature are considered canonical, that is culturally representative of a particular genre.

Americans of Asian ancestry should be proud. Zimmerman is Polish.

Do you mean wrote:

Do you mean the same Knausgaard who wrote "Getting the Nobel Prize for literature is te greatest dishonor of all for a writer." ?

Accepting any award named after that arms-dealing pig Nobel is a sign of shameful ignorance.

Norway was part of the AXIS in WWII and Zim is a Jew.

To receive the $1M Nobel Prize, BD is required to present a lecture, and then he would be given the money. What a crock of bull. Why should BD kow-tow to those apes of Europe? Hell, our ancestors got the eff out of smelly, fascist Europe because Europeans never wipe after #2.

FarOutMan wrote:

Sheesh, I'm still trying to get over him being described as "Malibu, California's own."

When did he sell out and move to La-La Land?

Exactly. I think Hibbings, Minnesota might be offended.

Jonathan Franzen, the author, said: "It’s a bitter disappointment to those of us who hoped that Morrissey would win this year. But it gives us hope for next year."

In what way is it political? The have given the prize to guys like Fo and Pinter (left) and Llosa (right). Hertha Muller (anti communist). Mo Yan (communist).