For those who are interested in cultural and academic awards/events, the past few weeks have been very interesting. For those who are unaware, the winners of the Nobel Prize in their respective categories have been announced. The Nobel Prize, according to "Wikipedia", “...is a set of annual international awards bestowed in a number of categories by Swedish and Norwegian in recognition of academic, cultural and/or scientific advancements.” The Nobel Prize has a few categories; physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, economic sciences, the peace prize and literature. This Wednesday (10/13/16) the Nobel prize announced the winner of the literature prize, which was a very controversial decision. The winner this year is the American folk legend Bob Dylan. The reason behind the controversy around Dylan’s award is the fact that Dylan, in the 100 years the Nobel Prize has been around is the first musician to ever win the award in literature. The press statement released by the Nobel Prize state's, Dylan won the award “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.”
For fans of Bob Dylan it is quite obvious that his lyrics are quite poetic. Just take a look at these lines from his song “Mr. Tamborine Man.”
Just looking at this line, completely ignoring the fact that it is a song lyric, and analyzing it as a line of poetry, it is a line that one could easily see being written by a poet. But when you add music to it and Dylan’s unique voice (whether you like or dislike his singing ability), it turns into something really amazing.
Bob Dylan and his guitar.
Just to move away from analyzing Dylan’s song lyrics, it is important to look at how Dylan revolutionized the world of music and art. Besides the popularity of Dylan playing his own songs, it is amazing to see the popularity of covers of his songs. Unknown to some, Jimi Hendrix’s hit “All Along the Watchtower” was a song originally penned and performed by Dylan. So is the Guns N’ Roses hit of “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door.” Dylan’s classic “Blowin’ In the Wind” was covered twice, with both covers in the top 10 of the “Billboard’s Hot 100" in their respective year. Peter, Paul & Mary brought it to number two in 1963; and Stevie Wonder brought it to number nine two years later.
It is also important to look at the revolutionary year of 1965. Without Bob Dylan, one of the primary causes of this revolution, who knows if it would have happened. Dylan caused this revolution with his album “Highway 61 Revisited”, more specifically the opening track “Like a Rolling Stone”. This song and album is considered so important because it is the marking point of when the folk singer transitioned into rock music. According to “Rolling Stone Magazine’s” list of “500 Greatest Songs of All Time”, where “Like a Rolling Stone” ranks number one, “No other pop song has so thoroughly challenged and transformed the commercial laws and artistic convention of its time, for all time.” Five days after the single “Like a Rolling Stone” was released another major moment in music history was made; Dylan going electric. This happened at the Newport Folk Festival, where Dylan played a year before in 1964. During most of Dylan’s set the audience booed, in anger and betrayal at Dylan's leaving folk music. Besides the Woodstock Music Festival, this is one live event that every music fan wishes they were at (including myself).
Bob Dylan at a typewriter.
Besides music, Dylan was extremely important to the American way of life. Dylan’s songs are a depiction of Dylan’s America, they are stories of all the interesting and strange sights he has seen across his country. Dylan, similar to the avant-garde poets of the cubism movement, combined and juxtaposed strong images of American life to show his own view. Just listen to the song “Tombstone Blues”. Throughout the song Dylan jumps line by line between strange, unrelated images, but in doing this creates something beautiful. According to Bruce Springsteen, who is also a very American songwriter, “Bob Dylan is the father of my country. Highway 61 Revisited and Bring It All Back Home were not only great records, but they were the first time I can remember being exposed to a truthful vision of the place I lived.”
It is truly amazing to think of Dylan winning the Nobel Prize. Dylan now finds himself among the ranks of literary greats, such as the novelists Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck, the playwrights Samuel Beckett and Eugene O’Neill, the poets William Butler Yeats and Pablo Neruda, even amongst the rank of the famous British prime minister Winston Churchill, who is also a recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature. Personally, the only reason why there may be hard feelings in Dylan winning this award is the fact that many literary greats were snubbed by the Nobel Prize. George Orwell, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller and Henrik Ibsen are all worthy of this honor, but were never awarded. You also have to think if songwriters are now able to win this award, why does Paul McCartney not have one? His work with the late John Lennon, writing much of the Beatles discography as the duo Lennon and McCartney, is easily as important and revolutionary as Dylan’s songwriting. Still, no matter what, being a big Bob Dylan fan it is amazing to see him win this award. Congratulations Mr. Dylan!
