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Sunday, December 11, 2016 2:00pm ET by  
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Bob Dylan's Nobel Prize speech: 'I never had the time to ask myself, 'Are my songs literature?''

The legendary Bob Dylan recently wrote an acceptance speech for his Nobel Prize for Literature win and he revealed that he is "honoured to be receiving such a prestigious prize". 

In the speech, which can now be read online in full, he explains that he never saw this kind of celebration of his work coming and can't believe he was awarded such an accolade:

"Being awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature is something I never could have imagined or seen coming. From an early age, I've been familiar with and reading and absorbing the works of those who were deemed worthy of such a distinction: Kipling, Shaw, Thomas Mann, Pearl Buck, Albert Camus, Hemingway. These giants of literature whose works are taught in the schoolroom, housed in libraries around the world and spoken of in reverent tones have always made a deep impression. That I now join the names on such a list is truly beyond words."

He continued: "There's one thing I must say. As a performer I've played for 50,000 people and I've played for 50 people and I can tell you that it is harder to play for 50 people. 50,000 people have a singular persona, not so with 50. Each person has an individual, separate identity, a world unto themselves. They can perceive things more clearly. Your honesty and how it relates to the depth of your talent is tried. The fact that the Nobel committee is so small is not lost on me."

Bob Dylan concluded the speech with the following message: "Not once have I ever had the time to ask myself, "Are my songs literature?" So, I do thank the Swedish Academy, both for taking the time to consider that very question, and, ultimately, for providing such a wonderful answer."

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Watch footage from the Nobel Prize ceremony here:

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