Haiku
Examples of haiku poems date from 9th century Japan to the present day. Haiku is more than a type of poem; it is a way of looking at the physical world and seeing something deeper, like the very nature of existence.
History of Haiku Poems
A haiku poem consists of three lines, with the first and last line having 5 moras, and the middle line having 7. A mora is a sound unit, much like a syllable, but is not identical to it. Since the moras do not translate well into English, it has been adapted and syllables are used as moras.
Haiku started out as a popular activity during the 9th to 12th centuries in Japan called “tanka”. It was a progressive poem, where one person would write the first three lines with a 5-7-5 structure, and the next person would add to it a section with a 7-7 structure. The chain would continue in this fashion. So if you wanted some old examples of haiku poems, you could read the first verse of a “tanka” from the 9th century.
The first verse was called a “hokku” and set the mood for the rest of the verses. Sometimes there were hundreds of verses and authors of the “hokku” were often admired for their skill. In the 19th century, the “hokku” took on a life of its own and began to be written and read as an individual poem. The word “haiku” is derived from “hokku”.
The three masters of “hokku” from the 17th century were Basho, Issa, and Buson. Their work is still the model of haiku writing today. They were poets who wandered the countryside, experiencing life and observing nature, and spent years perfecting their craft.
Examples of Haiku Poems
Basho Matsuo is known as the first great poet of Haiku. Remember that in translation, the moras won’t be the same as syllables. In Japanese, there are 5 moras in the first and third line, and 7 in the second, following the 5-7-5 structure of haiku. Here are three examples of his haiku poems:
(1) (2) (3)
An old silent pond... Autumn moonlight— Lightning flash—
A frog jumps into the pond, a worm digs silently what I thought were faces
splash! Silence again. into the chestnut. are plumes of pampas grass.
Here are three haiku from Kobayashi Issa:
(1) (2) (3)
O snail Trusting the Buddha, good and bad, Everything I touch
Climb Mount Fuji, I bid farewell with tenderness, alas,
But slowly, slowly! To the departing year. pricks like a bramble.
Three examples of the haiku of Yosa Buson are offered here:
(1) (2) (3)
A summer river being crossed Light of the moon In the moonlight
how pleasing Moves west, flowers' shadows The color and scent of the wisteria
with sandals in my hands! Creep eastward. Seems far away.
Natsume Soseki lived from 1867 - 1916. He was a novelist and master of the haiku. Here are a couple of examples of his poems:
(1) (2)
Over the wintry The crow has flown away:
forest, winds howl in rage swaying in the evening sun,
with no leaves to blow. a leafless tree
Recent Poems: Following are some recent examples of haiku poems:
(1) (2) (3)
Falling to the ground, A cricket disturbed I'm turning over
I watch a leaf settle down the sleeping child; on the porch look out and give me room there
In a bed of brown. a man smoked and smiled. you cricket, you.
High School Haikus
Sep29'02
The Bottom Line Just random haikus I wrote about a day in school....
I wake up early,
Crawl downstairs and eat breakfast,
I don't do mornings.
I get in my car,
Get stuck in morning traffic,
Alas, I am late.
I rush to Spanish,
Barely in the nick of time,
Lock-out is Satan.
The halls are crowded,
Like cattle being herded,
GET OUT OF MY WAY!!!!
Freshman block the halls,
Chattering incessantly,
I just knock them down.
AP Bio is
a head scratcher, what the heck
is reticula?
Now it is time to
feast upon lunch. I need to
do my dern homework.
Soon English is next,
A welcome break in my day,
For it is nap time.
At 3:10 the bell
rings, Oh sweet freedom at last!
Time to go home now.
But tomorrow it
will be the same routine, geez
Is it Friday yet?
Assignment:
Write three different Haiku poems based on your reading of Huck Finn. These “Huck-u” poems should reflect what you see as some of the important characters, events, or comments in this novel. For each poem, write a reflection about what you were attempting to accomplish with the poem. In other words, think about why you chose the topic, what you were trying to say about it, and why you chose the words you did. Here is an example:
Poem:
Huck learns Jim’s secret,
But promises to keep mum.
-Abolitionist!
Reflection:
For this poem I selected the scene on Jackson’s Island where Huck learns that Jim has “run off,” but promises to keep it a secret. This is one of the first dramatic moments in the novel as it establishes the connection between Huck and Jim and sets up the conflict that Huck will feel about that relationship throughout the story. I used the words “keep mum” in the second line because I think they capture the way Huck talked about keeping the secret, so it brings out his personality and point of view. The major emphasis of my poem comes in the final line. Luckily, Abolitionist has five syllables, so it fit perfectly. But more importantly, it captures the conflict perfectly. To Huck, Abolitionist was a dirty word – or so he had been taught. By capitalizing the word, giving it its own line, and following it with an exclamation point (!), I tried to capture the horror and confusion that Huck must have felt when he realized the impact of the promise he had made, and which had seemed so easy and so natural. I used a dash right before the word Abolitionist to make the statement almost like a gasp as it goes through Huck’s mind.