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Annie Ernaux: ‘Uncompromising’ French author wins Nobel Literature Prize

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The Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to French author Annie Ernaux for her “uncompromising” 50-year body of work that examines “a life marked by vast discrepancies regarding gender, language, and class.”

The coveted award, which is worth 10 million Swedish kronor (£807,000), is given out by the Swedish Academy. It was “a huge honour,” she remarked.

The committee’s leader, Professor Carl-Henrik Heldin, praised the 82-year-work old’s as “admirable and enduring.”

In her semi-autobiographical works, he claimed she employed “courage and clinical clarity” to expose “the inconsistencies of social experience [and] convey shame, humiliation, jealousy, or the inability to know who you are.”

Her books, including A Man’s Place and A Woman’s Story, are considered to be contemporary classics in France.

Ernaux is the first French woman to win the literature prize, and told Swedish broadcaster SVT it was “a responsibility”.

“I was very surprised… I never thought it would be on my landscape as a writer,” she said. “It is a great responsibility… to testify, not necessarily in terms of my writing, but to testify with accuracy and justice in relation to the world.”

Over the course of her 20 novels, “she has been devoted to a single task: the excavation of her own life,” The New Yorker stated in 2020.

Since 1901, the Nobel Prizes have recognised excellence in literature, science, peace, and, more recently, economics. Abdulrazak Gurnah, a novelist from Tanzania, received the literary award the previous year.

Other winners have included playwrights Harold Pinter and Eugene O’Neill, as well as novelists Ernest Hemingway, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Toni Morrison, poets Louise Gluck, Pablo Neruda, Joseph Brodsky, and Rabindranath Tagore, and novelists Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Toni Morrison.

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Jean-Luc Godard: Legendary film director dies at 91 by assisted suicide

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The revolutionary French New Wave filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard has passed away at the age of 91. With 1960’s bout de souffle (Breathless), Godard made his debut and launched a string of critically acclaimed films that changed the norms of cinema and influenced filmmakers from Martin Scorsese to Quentin Tarantino.

According to a family member, he committed assisted suicide in Switzerland. Godard, according to French President Emmanuel Macron, “has the vision of a genius.” Mr. Macron described him as “like an apparition in French cinema” in a tribute on Twitter. He eventually mastered it.

“The most iconoclastic of the New Wave filmmakers, Jean-Luc Godard, created a resolutely contemporary, passionately free work. A guy with the vision of a genius has been lost to us; he was a national treasure.”

According to the AFP news agency, Godard’s legal counsel Patrick Jeanneret stated that the Franco-Swiss filmmaker “had recourse to legal assistance in Switzerland for a voluntary departure as he was plagued with’multiple invalidating illnesses,’ according to the medical report.”

In rare cases, assisted suicide is permitted in Switzerland.

Before taking the helm of the elegant and edgy Breathless, Godard worked as a cinema reviewer. The film’s actors, Jean Seberg and Jean-Paul Belmondo, were glamorous in a fresh, laid-back way, and the editing and dialogue were both semi-improvised.

“It was a film that took everything that cinema had done — girls, gangsters, cars — exploded all this and put an end, once and for all, to the old manner,” the filmmaker once said.

Jack Lang, a former minister of culture in France, stated to the news agency Reuters: “He crammed philosophy and poetry into the movies. We were able to notice the undetectable because to his keen eye.”

Actor Antonio Banderas was among many who paid tribute, writing: “Thank you monsieur Godard for extending the horizons of the film.”

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Europe storms: Children among dead in France, Austria and Italy

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Areas of central and southern Europe have been blasted by strong storms that have killed at least 12 people, including three children. In Italy, Austria, and on the French island of Corsica, there were documented deaths, the majority of which were caused by fallen trees.

Campsites on the island were destroyed by strong winds and rain, while in Venice, Italy, stone was blown from the belltower of St. Mark’s Basilica. Following weeks of scorching and drought across much of the continent, the storms hit. Wind gusts of up to 224 km/h (140 mph) in Corsica destroyed trees and harmed mobile homes.

Authorities there said that a 13-year-old girl was murdered on a camping by a tree that fell.

Due to human-induced climate change, extreme weather events, such as heatwaves and storms, have gotten worse and more common in recent years.

Since the start of the industrial age, the world has already warmed by around 1.1C, and temperatures will continue to rise unless governments drastically reduce emissions.

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France firefighters battle ‘monster’ wildfire near Bordeaux

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Almost 7,000 hectares (17,300 acres) of woodland have already been burnt by a “monster” wildfire in southwest France, according to officials. A number of homes have been destroyed by the raging fire nearby Bordeaux, which has also compelled 10,000 locals to escape.

Gregory Allione, a firefighter spokesperson, told France’s RTL Radio that “it’s an ogre, it’s a monster.” The firefighting effort is being hampered by strong winds and hot heat. Austria, Germany, Greece, Poland, and Romania, according to President Emmanuel Macron, “are coming to aid” France in putting out the fire. He tweeted, “European solidarity at work!”

Several other European nations, including France, have experienced a wave of catastrophic wildfires this summer as a result of the continent-wide drought and high heat. In Portugal and Spain, the heat has been blamed for more than 1,000 fatalities.

With temperatures expected to reach 37C (99F) in some regions over the next four days, the UK has now issued an amber extreme heat warning. The officials warn that the heatwave would likely have an impact on transportation, working conditions, and health. About 30 kilometres (19 miles) south-east of Bordeaux, in the Gironde region of France, a sizable wildfire has been burning for the past two days close to the community of Landiras.

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Europe heatwave: Thousands escape wildfires in France, Spain and Greece

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As fires are driven up by strong winds and tinder-dry conditions in various nations in Europe, residents and vacationers have left towns and villages in France.

In the past few days, more than 10,000 people have been compelled to leave the south-western Gironde region. In Portugal and Spain, where temperatures have soared beyond 40C, dozens of flames are currently raging.

The heatwave was responsible for at least 281 fatalities in the two nations. In western Spain, several towns have been evacuated.

The leader of the French Firefighters Federation has issued a warning about the effect that climate change is having on civil defence. Grégory Allione stated that “firefighters and civil security are the ones who deal with the impacts on a daily basis – and these effects aren’t in 2030, they’re right now.”

Due to human-induced climate change, heatwaves are now more common, more powerful, and stay longer. Since the start of the industrial age, the world has already warmed by around 1.1C, and temperatures will continue to rise unless governments drastically reduce emissions.

Fires broke out further south in the Monfragüe national park, which is home to endangered bird species. Firefighters in Spain battled to defend the town of Monsagro. When a forest fire got close to the main N-5 road in Cáceres, it closed off access to the park to the east.
On Friday, temperatures were predicted to reach 40C in many parts of western Spain and Portugal. A record high temperature for July in mainland Portugal was reached on Thursday at Pinho in the north, where it was 47C.

However, Spanish meteorologists predicted that temperatures will start to drop on Friday.

The Carlos III Health Institute said on Thursday that the latest heatwave’s first two days, on Sunday and Monday, saw at least 43 fatalities as a result of heat. Since July 7, there have been 238 more deaths than usual in Portugal, which health experts attribute to the extremely hot and dry weather. The elderly, kids, and persons with chronic illnesses are those who are most negatively impacted.

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At the Brussels conference, EU leaders will support Ukraine as a candidate

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At a session in Brussels on Thursday, the European Commission is expected to accept Ukraine as a candidate for membership in the EU. Days after the Russian invasion in February, Ukraine submitted an application, and the procedure has since advanced at a record pace. According to its envoy to the EU, it would provide Ukrainians a psychological lift.

However, Vsevolod Chentsov acknowledged that “true integration” couldn’t begin until the conflict was done. The first official step toward EU membership is candidate status, and France stated last week that there was “complete accord” on Ukraine. However, joining can take a long time, and success is not guaranteed.

Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia are Western Balkan nations that have been candidate nations for years—in some cases, for more than a decade. Bosnia and Herzegovina submitted a candidacy application in 2016, but has yet to be accepted.

Edi Rama, the prime minister of Albania, said it was good that Ukraine was granted candidate status as he arrived for an EU summit with Western Balkan leaders, but Kyiv should not be deceived: “North Macedonia is a candidate [for] 17 years if I have not lost count, Albania eight, so welcome to Ukraine.” Although it is not anticipated, several member states are lobbying for Bosnia to receive candidate status.

In exchange for prerequisites being met before accession talks can start, including as judicial and anti-corruption reforms, some EU member states have agreed to support Ukraine’s candidacy.

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France’s 18-Year-Olds Given Culture Pass

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The new culture pass for France’s 18-year-old earlier had a trial run in 14 areas of France and now is given national recognition.

Around 800,000 teenagers a year can look forward to downloading an app and get around 300 euros. As per the sources, it’s stated that the pass can be used for tickets to the cinema, museum, and theatre, or to buy books, art materials, dance courses, and instruments or an online subscription.

The cinemas and museums have reopened this week but the pass is not linked in any way to recovery from the Covid pandemic. Emmanuel Macron, who had made the culture pass one of the promises of his 2017 presidential campaign, had announced the move in a 30-second TikTok and Instagram video.

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Covid 19 Updates: France to reopen bars as the lockdown ceases

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As France starts lifting restrictions aimed at preventing the spread of Coronavirus bars, shops and cultural spaces across France are set to reopen.


As decides on Wednesday, groups of up to six people will be allowed to eat together at outdoor restaurant terraces. France’s nationwide curfew is also being pushed back.

Some medical expertise in the country had raised concerns about the number of new daily Covid-19 infections, which now average about 13,000.

But that figure is far lower than the peaks of more than 40,000 daily cases recorded as recently as last month.


France’s vaccination campaign has also been accelerating in recent weeks, with more than 20 million people now having received at least one dose, and almost nine million having received both.

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France not to issue apology to Algeria

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French President Emanuel Macron has dismissed the report which suggests that the country would issue an official apology to Algeria for the war crimes committed in the former French colony by the then Colonial France.

During the eight-year-old war – which actually ended in the expel of the colonial master form the colony territory, the Colonial France committed several human rights violations in Algeria.

The decision has received serious criticism. Several people have expressed their criticism loudly.

Many have used the social media platforms to express their disagreement.

Algeria is a former colony of France.

Mr. Macron has however agreed to take initiative to improve the relation between France and Algeria.

At present, France shares a cordial relation with Algeria. In the coming days, the relation between Algeria and France is expected to be improved.

France is a very powerful country in the continent of Europe. Unfortunately, the depressing colonial part of France is still haunting the country.    

It is unfortunate that the French President has not showed the courage to express his country’s apology.

Had the French President extended the apology, he could have improved his global image and acceptance immensely.

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Navalny to remain in Russian prison for ten days

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Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is likely to remain in the Russian custody for at least thirty days.

The Russian government has not yet responded to the appeal made by the International community demanding the release of the opposition leader.

Last day, several western countries particularly France demanded the immediate release of Mr. Navalny, who is a fearless critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Mr. Navalny was arrested by the Russian police after he had returned to his country.

Last year, the Russian opposition leader was poisoned while he was travelling towards Moscow in a domestic flight.

He was shifted to Germany immediately, as his supporters accused the Russian leader for the incident.

The Russian government recently filed several charges against the opposition leader allegedly to prevent his return to the country.

It is alleged that Vladimir Putin does not wish to allow the return of the opposition leader, who is capable to threaten the domination of the Russian president over the country.

Anyway, the Russian government faces serious pression from the global community to release the opposition leader.

In the coming days, the community is expected to step up its pressure over the country.    

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