Discussing
The Downside of Dylan Winning the Nobel Prize

When we reduce Bob Dylan to a lyricist, we miss out on the incarnational aspect of his music.

This is the most eloquently persuasive argument against the compromise of awarding a Noblel Prize haphazardly! My fear is that the Nobel Award have lost their authenticity in recent years.

I was pleasantly surprised -- make that thrilled -- to learn that Bob Dylan was being recognized by the Nobel Committee as worthy of the Nobel Prize in Literature!

After reading John J. Thompson's lament above, I remain thrilled and fully comfortable with the Nobel Committee's choice for 2016.

The Nobel Committee awarded the Prize in Literature to Dylan for his "having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition." I find nothing about that which makes me feel (as John J. Thompson feels) that "such an honor takes away from the holistic beauty of the songs themselves." Nor do I find any reason to think Bob Dylan's Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded "haphazardly" (which Harry Preston thinks).

Of course everyone is freely entitled to their own opinions about this, and I want to go on record with my (so far widely varying) opinion here on this.

I have long enjoyed Bob Dylan's songs as songs, and also much appreciated his lyrics as superbly articulated literature which I find to so splendidly capture and express the pathos, angst, and joys that characterize the sociopolitical experiences of my generation.

I am not expecting the Nobel Committee to now make a habit of including songwriters as candidates for the Prize in Literature, and I recognize, understand and accept that not everyone will feel as I do about this particular occasion -- but I am gratified (as I should think will be a great many others who over the last 5 decades have found inspiration, wisdom, and guidance in Dylan's lyrics just as many find in "orthodox" poetry and literature) that this time (for one) so too did the Nobel Committee feel this way.