Ideal and idealistic

[Ya Sam]

The Nobel Prize in Literature is awarded annually to an author from any 
country who has, in the words of Alfred Nobel, produced "the most 
outstanding work of an idealistic tendency". The "work" in this case 
generally refers to an author's work as a whole, not to any individual work, 
though individual works are sometimes cited in the awards. The Swedish 
Academy decides who, if anyone, will receive the prize in any given year and 
announces the name of the chosen laureate in early October.

The original citation of this Nobel Prize has led to much controversy. In 
the original Swedish, the word idealisk can be translated as either 
"idealistic" or "ideal". In earlier years the Nobel Committee stuck closely 
to the intent of the will, and left out certain world-renowned writers such 
as Leo Tolstoy and Henrik Ibsen for the Prize, probably because their works 
were not "idealistic" enough. In later years the wording is interpreted much 
more liberally, and the Prize is awarded, as is often argued that it should 
be, for lasting literary merit. The choice of the Academy can still generate 
controversy in their selection of lesser known writers, such as Dario Fo in 
1997.

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Eligible writers
The following writers have yet to win the Nobel Prize in literature. Since 
this list could, in principle, be limitless, and since it is impossible to 
determine whose work is more deserving of recognition, two simple rules have 
been used in assembling this list: First, only those writers are included 
who have achieved significant literary (as opposed to popular) recognition 
in their own country or language are eligible. And two, only writers whose 
achievement has been undisputed for at least twenty years are included. To 
determine this second rule, the year of publication of the defining work is 
listed. In cases where a writer's reputation accreted over time, the year 
and work listed are those by which time it was generally agreed that the 
writer was established and/or important.

Miguel Delibes - La sombra del ciprés es alargada (1947)
Nicanor Parra — Poemas y Antipoemas (1954)
Mario Vargas Llosa — Conversación en la Catedral (1969)
Phillip Roth — Portnoy's Complaint (1969)
Joyce Carol Oates — them (1970)
John Updike — Rabbit Redux (1971)
Thomas Pynchon — Gravity's Rainbow (1973)
E. L. Doctorow — Ragtime (1975)
Umberto Eco — The Name of the Rose (1980)
Norman Mailer — The Executioner's Song (1980)
Salman Rushdie — Midnight's Children (1981)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nobel_Prize_in_Literature

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