Abdulrazak Gurnah Bags This Years Nobel Prize in Literature Becomes The 5th African to Become a Winner

Nobel prize has been controversial for the past two-three years owing to its lack of inclusivity. The list of Nobel Prize winners mostly includes white men, which caused a huge public outcry. Thankfully this year they decided to laud the Tanzanian author, Abdulrazak Gurnah. Gurnah is 72 years old and has written a bunch of critically acclaimed novels. His books provide an empathetic take on the African Arab refugees who are trying to come to terms with their identity and their cultures. This was the reason cited by the Nobel Prize committee for awarding Gurnah. 

At times like this when the topic of illegal immigrants is controversial and many world leaders have taken a strong stand on it, Gurnah's writings become all the more poignant. He allows his characters to be symbolic of a whole section of people who live and breathe in oppression and yet Gurnah never makes them feel hopeless or powerless. He gives them powerful character traits. Abdulrazak Gurnah, being an immigrant himself knows how difficult it is to go from one culture to a completely different culture at an early age.