Being one of the selectors of Nobel Prize winners for literature, Malmqvist is always asked why no Chinese has ever won the much-coveted award.
作為執有諾貝爾文學獎選票的唯一漢學家，加上日本、拉丁美洲、非洲等非歐美作家相繼得獎，馬教授自然不斷被問起「中國作家為什麼一直沒有得獎？」