Claudio Magris Prince of Asturias Award for Literature 2004

At its meeting in Oviedo the Jury for the 2004 Prince of Asturias Award for Letters, made up of Mr. Andrés Amorós, Mr. Luis María Anson, Mr. J. J. Armas Marcelo, Ms. Blanca Berasátegui, Ms. María Luisa Blanco, Mr. Rogelio Blanco, Mr. Pedro Casals, Mr. Antonio Colinas, Mr. Francisco Javier Fernández Vallina, Mr. José Luis García Martín, Ms. Pilar García Mouton, Mr. Emilio González Ferrín, Ms. Rosa Navarro Durán, Mr. Fernando Rodríguez Lafuente, Mr. Fernando Sánchez Dragó, chaired by Mr. Víctor García de la Concha with Mr. José María Martínez Cachero as secretary, confers the award on Claudio Magris. Claudio Magris epitomises the finest humanistic tradition and the pluralism of early twenty-first century European literature in his work - a multifaceted Europe without frontiers, supportive of others and open to dialogue between cultures. Magris employs a powerful narrative voice in his books to highlight certain niches that constitute a land of freedom within which a yearning takes form: European unity within its historical diversity.

Oviedo, 11th June 2004