The citation reads: "For more than 50 years, defying categorization in a culture beguiled by categories, Bob Dylan has probed and prodded our psyches, recording and then changing our world and our lives through poetry made manifest in song - creating relationships that we never imagined could exist between words, emotions and ideas."

Virginia Dejani, executive director of the Academy, said the legendary singer was designated an honorary member because the Academy couldn't decide which category � art, literature or music � he best fit into. Dylan was unable to attend the ceremony, which took place in Manhattan, but he did issue a statement.