On Galma Stan, the small island that contains the Old Town, there’s a museum dedicated to Alfred Nobel and his prizes. It didn’t sound particularly sexy, but hey, I had the Stockholm City Card, didn’t I? So I popped in, and boy was I glad I did. It turned out to be a very interesting place.
I took a tour with a tiny and slightly smarmy Swede who was very articulate and informative. I learned all sort of interesting things about Mr. Nobel, including:
He never married or had any children.
He was born in Sweden, but lived most of his life in other countries (including twenty years in Russia).
95% of his fortune was left to create the foundation for his prizes. His extended family members were not amused.
The awards, given in Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature, and Peace, were to be given to people whose work in those fields in the past year had provided the greatest benefit to the world.
Each prize is given by a different organization. Four of these are in Sweden, and as everyone knows, the Peace Prize is given in Norway and chosen by a Norwegian organization. Why is this? I had always wondered, and I thought, finally I’ll find out why!
Are you ready for the answer? It’s kind of awesome:
We have no idea. Seriously. Nobel offered not a syllable of explanation in the will. He simply ordered that the Peace Prize be given by Norway.
Of course, there are many theories, perhaps the most important being that Norway was more prominent in the international peace movement at that time than Sweden was. But still: We don’t know. I like that little bit of mystery.
By the way, Nobel did not provide for the Economics Prize. It was created later by the central bank of Sweden, given out “in memory” of Nobel, and the prize money comes from Swedish taxes, rather than the Nobel endowment.
When the tour was over, I approached our Pocket Viking tour guide with my particular pet peeve: The Literary Prize. That prize is given by the Swedish Academy, which happens to meet in quarters on the second floor of the very building the museum was in.
“SO, ” I asked, “What do the folks upstairs have against writers who have actually moved a few books? I’ll waive the requirement that it be given to a work created in the year before prize; science and even literature don’t really work that way. BUT. Didn’t Nobel’s will specifically state that it was to be given to the person whose work had benefited the world the most? Wouldn’t that by definition mean the winner would be a popular writer? Why, instead, does the Academy use the prize as an affirmative action program for obscure writers from exotic places who haven’t sold twenty books, but whose politics the Academy likes and whose work they’d like to promote?”
P.V. Tour Guide was sympathetic to my point. I continued, “Vonnegut and Bradbury clearly did more good in the world with their work than the people the Academy hands out the prize to. It’s clearly in violation of Nobel’s will.”
Turns out that, regarding Alfred Nobel’s will, I’m a Strict Constructionist.
NOTE: The image at the top of this post is of a very sweet crowd that had gathered to greet me as I left the Nobel Museet, which is the background. After a taxing three hours signing autographs, handing out advice, and kissing babies and boyfriends, I had to beg off. One does need one’s rest and a modicum of privacy.
