The Nobel Foundation has shared Bob Dylan's 2016 Nobel Lecture in Literature. The songwriter discusses his inspirations, including Buddy Holly, and the books Moby Dick, The Odyssey, and All Quiet on the Western Front. In October 2016, Dylan became the first musician awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The lecture concludes Dylan's strange, at times contentious relationship with his Nobel Prize. He did not acknowledge the award at first, with only a brief mention appearing on his website for a short period of time before it was scrubbed entirely. He did not address the prize until weeks later, when during an interview with The Telegraph he described receiving the award as "hard to believe," and said that "pre-existing commitments" prevented him from attending the ceremony in Stockholm.
Patti Smith attended the award ceremony in his place, and gave a moving, widely acclaimed performance of "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall.") She also read a statement from Dylan: "I'm sorry I can't be with you in person, but please know that I am most definitely with you in spirit and honored to be receiving such a prestigious prize," he wrote.
In April 2017, Dylan accepted his award during a small ceremony in Stockholm.
Thumbnail photo by Kevin Winter for Getty Images
