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Eudora Welty
1909 – 2001
“My wish, indeed my continuing passion,
would be to part a curtain, that invisible shadow that falls between
people, the veil of indifference to each other’s presence, each
other’s wonder, each other’s human plight.”
One Time, One Place
1971
Major Awards
- In 1998 Eudora Welty became the only living writer to be included
in the prestigious Library of America, a publishing house devoted to
preserving the works of America’s literary giants (Hawthorne,
Melville, Twain, Faulkner among them).
- William Dean Howells Gold Medal for Fiction 1955
– Awarded every five years to an outstanding work of American
fiction. Begun in 1925 the award is conferred by the American Academy
and Institute of Arts and Letters.
- Pulitzer Prize for Literature – awarded
annually for fiction in literature
- American Book Award 1983 (known as the National
Book Award from 1950-79) – awarded annually to one author for
the best fiction in the United States (Welty additionally a finalist
in 1956, 1971,1973,1981, and 1984)
- O. Henry Award 1939, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947,
1951, 1968 – annually selects the best short stories published
by American writers in American magazines over the course of a year.
Welty received the O. Henry award 8 times including three first place
prizes. Only 9 American authors have received more since the award
was instituted in 1918.
- American Academy of Arts and Letters 1972 - honorary
academy of notable American artists, writers, and composers. The National
Institute of Arts and Letters, founded in 1898, served as the parent
body for the American Academy of Arts and Letters, founded in 1904,
until the two were amalgamated in 1976. Membership is limited to 250
native or naturalized U.S. citizens, of which 50 are elected to the
Academy for notable achievements in art, literature, or music.
- Presidential Medal of Freedom 1980 The Presidential
Medal of Freedom is America's highest civilian award and, among all
American honors, it ranks second to only the Congressional Medal of
Honor, the nation's highest military award. This great honor is reserved
for individuals the President deems to have made especially meritorious
contributions to the security or national interests of the United
States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public
or private endeavors. Though it may be awarded for singular acts of
momentous import, it is generally conferred only for a lifetime of
service or at the conclusion of a distinguished career.
- National Medal of Arts 1986 - Established by Congress
in 1984 for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts.
- Edward MacDowell Award 1970 - The MacDowell colony
is the oldest and largest artist colony in the United States. It has
conferred since 1960 an annual award which recognizes someone who
has made an outstanding contribution to the arts.
- French Legion of Honor 1996 – France’s
highest civilian honor
- Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres
1987 – France’s Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters
medal
- Guggenheim Fellowship 1942, 1949 – awarded
to selected individuals made for a minimum of six months and a maximum
of twelve months. The purpose of the Guggenheim Fellowship program
is to help provide Fellows with blocks of time in which they can work
with as much creative freedom as possible.
- Portrait selected for the National Portrait Gallery
1988 - The National Portrait Gallery was established with the criteria
that the Gallery was to be about history, not about art, and about
the status of the sitter, rather than the quality or character of
a particular image considered as a work of art.
Honorary Doctorates and Degrees Welty received honorary degrees and
doctorates from over 35 colleges and universities including Harvard,
Princeton, Yale, Rutgers, Smith, Virginia, Illinois, Millsaps, Wake
Forest, Brandeis, and Wisconsin.
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