MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

South Korean woman granted 2024 Nobel Literature Prize

“I’d like to have tea with my son,” said Han when told about her being granted the € 970,000 cheque

South Korean author Han Kang has been granted this year's Nobel Prize for Literature, Sweden's Royal Academy of Sciences announced Thursday. She was chosen for her novel The Vegetarian, which has already been awarded the prestigious Man Booker International Prize in 2016, which was also a first for a Korean.

The winner, who will receive € 970,000, became only the 18th woman to earn this accolade. The first Asian female winner, Han is also the first woman among this year's picks. Han's win marks a historic moment for South Korea, 24 years after then-President Kim Dae-jung was given the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000.

According to Literature experts, the committee's decision came as a surprise since the 53-year-old Han had not been among the favorites. Since the first prize was awarded in 1901, a total of 121 authors have been awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, including Ernest Hemingway, Jean-Paul Sartre, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and US musician Bob Dylan.

Other notable works by Han include Human Acts, The White Book, and I Do Not Bid Farewell. When told about the distinction, Han replied: “I’d like to have tea with my son. I’ll celebrate it quietly.”

”Written in three parts, the book portrays the violent consequences that ensue when its protagonist Yeong-hye refuses to submit to the norms of food intake, explained Anders Olsson of the Nobel Committee.