Novelist, Orhan Pamuk wins the Nobel Prize for Literature

Orhan Pamuk, the Turkish novelist who is currently a Fellow with Columbia University's Committee on Global Thought, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature on Thursday, October 12th 2006. I know they are rewarding the individuals not the university but this still gives quite the publicity to the school.

I actually found out about Pamuk's win this morning in between classes when I was checking my e-mails and when I learnt they were holding the press conference at Low Memorial Library, I looked at my watch, saw I had time and made my way to the event.

If you see any videos of the press conference, you might catch a glimpse of me sitting among all the reporters in the second row, scribbling on my note-pad and holding a New York Times pen.

There were some tense moments during the conference, especially when reporters touched on political questions but overall the mood was celebratory.

At one point, Pamuk was asked about how he felt about the notion that his work bridges East and West, he responded by saying, "The metaphor of the bridge is so old-fashioned. My job is to find new metaphors. My culture is made of two worlds. I explore the two. That's my history." Great quote.

Pamuk left the campus, flanked by photographers, but during a quiet moment I had a chance to personally congratulate him on his award before he got into his car.

So, I had quite the unexpected and surprising day - though obviously not as surprising as when Mr. Pamuk received his phone call from the Royal Swedish Academy.

Read some articles on Orhan Pamuk's win:

Nobel website

Columbia University

MSN