James Lafayette Dickey, an American poet and novelist, was born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1923. He is perhaps best known for Deliverance, his novel about four suburban men struggling to survive a canoe trip gone awry, which was made into a popular movie of the same title, starring Burt Reynolds. Dickey also published several volumes of poetry that are marked by his portrayal of a world in conflict. His collected poems (1942-1992) were published under the title The Whole Motion in 1992.
After serving as a pilot during World War II, Dickey earned bachelor's and master's degrees from Vanderbilt University. He taught at several universities and worked as poetry consultant to the Library of Congress from 1966 to 1968. He died in 1996.
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