born Aug. 5, 1889, Savannah, Ga., U.S.
died Aug. 17, 1973, Savannah
U.S. writer.
Aiken was traumatized as a child when his father killed Aiken's mother and then himself. Educated at Harvard University, Aiken wrote most of his fiction in the 1920s and '30s. His works are influenced by early psychoanalytic theory. Generally more successful than his novels were his short stories, notably "Strange Moonlight" from Bring! Bring! (1925) and "Silent Snow, Secret Snow" and "Mr. Arcularis" from Among the Lost People (1934). His best poetry, including "Preludes to Definition," is in his Collected Poems (1953).