For a while there last year, it seemed like Bob Dylan’s reaction to the surprising news that he had won the Nobel Prize in Literature was ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. The musician wasn’t answering the Swedish Academy’s calls, and a brief acknowledgment of the award on his website vanished almost as quickly as it had appeared. Later, he would present a charming written acceptance speech (in which he compared himself to Shakespeare) at the Nobel Banquet—albeit through U.S. Ambassador Azita Raji, who read it in his absence.
Now, according to Sara Danius, the Swedish Academy’s permanent secretary, there is “good news” to be shared: Dylan and Nobel will finally be united, in the flesh! Via her blog, she wrote,
In a few days Bob Dylan will visit Stockholm and give two concerts. The Swedish Academy is very much looking forward to the weekend and will show up at one of the performances. Please note that no Nobel Lecture will be held. The Academy has reason to believe that a taped version will be sent at a later point. (Taped Nobel lectures are presented now and then, the latest of which was that of Nobel Laureate Alice Munro in 2013.) At this point no further details are known.
The good news is that the Swedish Academy and Bob Dylan have decided to meet this weekend. The Academy will then hand over Dylan’s Nobel diploma and the Nobel medal, and congratulate him on the Nobel Prize in Literature. The setting will be small and intimate, and no media will be present; only Bob Dylan and members of the Academy will attend, all according to Dylan’s wishes.
Maybe he wasn’t so apathetic about winning after all—he just really didn’t feel like traveling all the way to Sweden for the sole purpose of accepting one of the most prestigious international awards anyone could ever receive. He probably had these Stockholm performances planned for months and figured, Hey, I’ll be in town for work next spring promoting my new album anyway, so I’ll just pick it up then. As ever, Dylan does things his way.
