Wendell Berry, Kentucky-born author who advocated a simpler life, has died at 92
- Wendell Berry, a Kentucky-born author and agrarian, died at age 92 at his home in Port Royal, Kentucky.
- Berry published more than 40 books including novels and poetry collections, advocating for farming communities and warning against industrial and commercialized society.
- His work influenced prominent figures including food writer Michael Pollan and chef Alice Waters, with his essay 'Eating is an agricultural act' becoming widely cited.
- Berry received a National Humanities Medal and membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters, though he never won a Pulitzer Prize or National Book Award.
- In his 1977 manifesto 'The Unsettling of America,' Berry criticized the consolidation and mechanization of agriculture as violations of natural and spiritual order.
Wendell Berry, the Kentucky-born author and agrarian who celebrated farming communities through poems, stories, novels and essays while warning against industrial excess, has died at 92. His daughter Mary Berry confirmed his death on Monday at his home in Port Royal, Kentucky.
Berry was a prolific writer who published more than 40 books and became known as an intellectual heir to Henry David Thoreau and Southern agrarians. His work challenged modern assumptions about prosperity and happiness, drawing from his own experience growing up in a farming town during the Great Depression. He witnessed the decline of traditional agricultural communities and became a prominent voice advocating for self-sustaining communities where people understood the true cost and origin of their food.
Berry's influence extended far beyond Kentucky. Food writer Michael Pollan credited Berry's declaration that "Eating is an agricultural act" with changing his life, while chef Alice Waters cited him as a favorite author. Though he never won a Pulitzer Prize or National Book Award, Berry received a National Humanities Medal, membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and a lifetime achievement award from the National Book Critics Circle in 2016.
肯塔基州作家温德尔·贝里去世，享年92岁，曾倡导简朴生活
肯塔基州作家温德尔·贝里通过诗歌、故事、小说和散文颂扬农业社区，同时警告工业化社会的弊端，他已于92岁去世。其女儿玛丽·贝里周一证实了他在肯塔基州皇家港家中的去世。
贝里是一位多产作家，出版了40多部著作，被视为亨利·戴维·梭罗和南方农业主义者的精神继承人。他的作品挑战了现代社会对繁荣和幸福的假设，这源于他在大萧条时期在农业小镇的成长经历。他见证了传统农业社区的衰落，并成为倡导自给自足社区的杰出声音，在这样的社区中，人们了解食物的真实成本和来源。
贝里的影响远超肯塔基州范围。食品作家迈克尔·波伦将其人生改变归功于贝里的论述"进食是一种农业行为"，而厨师艾丽丝·沃特斯将他列为最喜爱的作家。虽然贝里从未获得普利策奖或美国国家图书奖，但他获得了国家人文奖章、美国文艺学院院士身份，以及2016年全美书评人圈颁发的终身成就奖。