Nin, Anaïs

Nin (nēn, nĭn), Anaïs. 1903-1977.

French-born American writer and diarist known for her novels, including Winter of Artifice (1939), and The Diary of Anaïs Nin 1931-1966 (published 1966-1980).

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born Feb. 21, 1903, Neuilly, France

died Jan. 14, 1977, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.

French-born U.S. author.

Daughter of the Cuban composer Joaquín Nin (1878–1949), she began her literary career in Paris in 1932. In the 1940s she moved to New York, where she published novels and short stories at her own expense. Her writing, including the novel Cities of the Interior, 5 vol. (1959), shows the influence of Surrealism and psychoanalysis. She won late recognition in 1966 with the publication of the first volume of her personal diaries; seven more volumes followed. Her account of her long incestuous relationship with her father was published posthumously.

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▪ French author

born Feb. 21, 1903, Neuilly, France

died Jan. 14, 1977, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.

      French-born author of novels and short stories whose literary reputation rests on the eight published volumes of her personal diaries. Her writing shows the influence of the Surrealist movement (Surrealism) and her study of psychoanalysis under Otto Rank (Rank, Otto).

      Brought to New York City by her mother in 1914, Nin was educated there but later returned to Europe. She launched her literary career with the publication of D.H. Lawrence: An Unprofessional Study (1932); the book led to a lifelong friendship with the American author Henry Miller (Miller, Henry).

      At the beginning of World War II Nin returned to New York City. There she continued—at her own expense—to print and publish her novels and short stories, and, although no critical acclaim was forthcoming, her works were admired by many leading literary figures of the time. Not until 1966, with the appearance of the first volume of her diaries, did she win recognition as a writer of significance. The success of the diary provoked interest in her earlier work Cities of the Interior (1959), a five-volume roman-fleuve, or continuous novel, which consists of Ladders to Fire (1946), Children of the Albatross (1947), The Four-Chambered Heart (1950), A Spy in the House of Love (1954), and Solar Barque (1958).

      Nin's literary contribution was a subject of controversy in her lifetime and remained so after her death. Many critics admired her unique expression of femininity, her lyrical style, and her psychological insight. Some dismissed her concern with her own fulfillment as self-indulgent and narcissistic. Opinion was further divided by the posthumous Delta of Venus: Erotica (1977) and later collections of previously unpublished erotic stories written on commission during the financially lean years of the early 1940s. Her other works of fiction include a collection of short stories, Under a Glass Bell (1944); the novels House of Incest (1936), Seduction of the Minotaur (1961), and Collages (1964); and three novelettes collected in Winter of Artifice (1939).

Additional Reading

Nin's life and writings are discussed in Nancy Scholar, Anaïs Nin (1984); and Deirdre Bair, Anaïs Nin (1995), written with access to previously unpublished papers. Other works on her life are Benjamin Franklin V (ed.), Recollections of Anaïs Nin (1996); and Noël Riley Fitch, Anaïs: The Erotic Life of Anaïs Nin (1993). Critical analyses of her work are found in Sharon Spencer, Collage of Dreams: The Writings of Anaïs Nin, expanded ed. (1981); Bettina L. Knapp, Anaïs Nin (1978); Benjamin Franklin V and Duane Schneider, Anaïs Nin: An Introduction (1979); Philip K. Jason, Anaïs Nin and Her Critics (1993); and Philip K. Jason (ed.), The Critical Response to Anais Nin (1996).

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