Few contemporary American writers have received the high praise accorded Aiken by many leading critics. Almost from the beginning, his writings showed a deep interest in analysis, the insights of which occur in much of his work. Rein, however, finds many of Aiken's analytic references, allusions, and probings unconvincing in the form in which they are offered in the poems and novels. Aiken has recounted his maladjustments with an extraordinary passion for understanding himself, and with some exceptional insights, but on the whole Rein rates the work as a considerable effort rather than a substantial achievement.