Austrian novelist and playwright, Elfriede Jelinek, wins the Nobel Prize in literature and becomes the first woman in eight years to be given the award.

Elfriede Jelenik was born in a small town in Austria in 1946. Her mother was from a prosperous Vienna family and Elfriede grew up in that city. She was especially inclined towards music, played several instruments and studied composition at the Vienna Conservatory. At the University of Vienna, she graduated in 1971 with a degree in music and took classes in art history and theater.

Jelinek's university years were critical in that they introduced her to the student movement that would imbue her writing with a social consciousness for years to come. In her initial novels, Jelinek was mostly concerned with female sexuality and its abuse. Two of her popular novels, 'Die Liebhaberinnen' (Lovers) or 'Die Klavierspielerin' (The Piano Teacher), emphasize her belief that power and aggression are the driving forces of relationships. Her prose is especially known for its unemotional depiction of brutality, sexuality, and power play. The autobiographically based Die Klavierspielerin (1983; The Piano Teacher, 1988), was made into an acclaimed film by Michael Haneke in 2001.

	South Asians in Literature
	Reviews of Jelinek's Books

In recent years, Jelinek has become more interested in social criticism in general and has attacked the fascist past and anti-semitic trends in Austria and Germany. This has earned her a fair amount of criticism in Austria where she is now seen as a very controversial writer. In 1980, she was quoted as saying "Austria is a criminal nation", referring to her country's participation in the crimes of the Third Reich earning her the wrath of many Austrians. Regardless, Jelinek is seen in Europe as one of the most influential writers of contemporary times.

The Nobel Prize committee remained undeterred by the controversy and gushed that the prize was awarded to Jelinek "for her musical flow of voices and counter-voices in novels and plays that with extraordinary linguistic zeal reveal the absurdity of society's clichés and their subjugating power." Many consider this nod of affirmation for the fearless, experimental Jelinek a bold choice by the Nobel committee.