José Saramago (born November 16, 1922, Azinhaga, Portugal) is a writer, playwright, and journalist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1998. Saramago has been a member of the Communist Party of Portugal since 1969, as well as an atheist and self-described pessimist - his positions have aroused considerable controversy in Portugal, especially after the publication of
The Gospel According to Jesus Christ.