7 months ago
Nobel Laureate Krasznahorkai Explores Apocalyptic and Absurd in Central European Fiction
In 2025, Hungarian writer László Krasznahorkai, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature, gave a speech in Stockholm.
He talked about angels without wings or messages, and how people are like these angels in a world full of war.
He also mentioned a homeless man being chased by the police for urinating on train tracks.
This story is part of a Central European tradition that mixes sadness, doom, and funny, strange things.
The article also talks about Hungary's history and how it's different from Western and Eastern Europe.
It mentions a museum in Budapest that shows the horrors of Nazi and Communist times.
The article also talks about a book by David Szalay called Flesh, which won the Booker Prize, and a movie called Werckmeister Harmonies by Béla Tarr, which is based on Krasznahorkai's book.
Both the book and the movie show how life can be sad and funny at the same time.
László Krasznahorkai, the 2025 Nobel laureate in literature, delivered a speech in Stockholm, discussing angels without messages and the absurdity of human existence.
Krasznahorkai's work is part of a Central European tradition that blends pessimism, apocalypse, humour, and unpredictability.
The article explores Hungary's unique position in Central Europe, highlighting its history and culture through the House of Terror museum in Budapest.
David Szalay's novel Flesh, which won the Booker Prize, and Béla Tarr's film Werckmeister Harmonies, based on Krasznahorkai's novel, both depict the absurdity and tragedy of life.
The article suggests that the identity-driven politics of Central Europe push writers and filmmakers to imagine a world where anonymity and uncertainty become forms of political resistance.
- Who
- László Krasznahorkai, David Szalay, Béla Tarr, István, Valuska
- What
- Exploration of apocalyptic and absurd themes in Central European fiction
- Where
- Central Europe, primarily Hungary
- When
- 2025
- Why
- To highlight the unique blend of pessimism, apocalypse, humour, and unpredictability in Central European literature and culture
Key facts
- Nobel Laureate
- László Krasznahorkai
- Nobel Week Lecture
- December 7, 2025
- Central European Tradition
- Pessimism, Apocalypse, Humour, Unpredictability
- House of Terror
- 60 Andrássy Avenue, Budapest
- Booker Prize Winner
- David Szalay
- Notable Film
- Werckmeister Harmonies
- Notable Novel
- Flesh
- Notable Character
- Valuska
Quotes
László Krasznahorkai
2025 Nobel laureate in literature
“the new angels just stand there before us, looking at us, and we too just stand there looking at them, and if they understand anything from this whole thing, we certainly do not understand what is going on, the mute to the deaf, the deaf to the mute, how could there be any conversation from this, how could there be any understanding, not even to speak of the divine presence, when suddenly it will occur to every lonely, weary, sorrowful and sensitive person, as is happening right now.”
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“They just stand there and look at us, they are searching for our gaze, and in this search there is a plea for us, to look into their eyes, so that we ourselves can transmit a message to them, only that unfortunately, we have no message to give”
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Vendel Endrédy
Cistercian Abbot of Zirc, held for six years in solitary confinement
“When they led me to the basement of 60 Andrássy út to my first major interrogation, I prayed for the Lord to erase from my memory the names of my friends.”
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