Much of Asian poetry focuses on the beauty of nature.  For thousands of years, Chinese, Japanese and people groups from the Pacific Rim have used poetry as an intregal part of their lives.  As a matter of fact, in many Asian cultures art (including poetry) is not something that people “do” as a hobby, but art is viewed as the process of life.  There is little separation between art, beauty and life. We will look at 7 forms of poetry that pay attention to syllables rather than rhyme.  The first 6 are types of poetry that come from the Asian cultures.  The last, Cinquains, are a western form of syllabic poetry.

 Haiku

o         Haiku is the most popular form of Asian poetry in the Western world.  It originated over a thousand years ago in Japan.  It actually started as the first stanza of Renga poetry which was a long form of poetry written by two or more people.  The first stanza, called a Hokku, was so important to the Renga poetry that it began to get special attention, and then poets started writing just the Hokku by itself.  A hokku standing by itself is called “Haiku.”

o         Haikus are like a verbal snapshot.  They create a picture in the mind of the reader.  So, they must include vibrant vivid images and they stay away from articles like a, an, the, etc. 

o         These poems consist of 17 syllables—5 in the first line, 7 in the second line and 5 in the last line.

o         Haiku focuses on nature and is almost always written in present tense about the present moment.

o         Examples:

November evening—

the wind from a passing truck

ripples a roadside puddle

by Cor van den Heuvel

 

from the tar papered

            tenement roof, pigeons

                        hot-foot into flight

by Anita Wintz

 

Senryu

o         This Japanese form of poetry is often termed as “Haiku with attitude.”  It is similar to Haiku in that it uses the 5 – 7 – 5 line syllable form.  However, it is different because in Senryu the poet looks at people or human nature.

o         Each line deals with a different idea.  The first line always looks at “who?”  The second line deals with “where.”  The last line is always “what or why.”

o         Examples:

O, unlucky man

while eating shiny apple

you find half a worm

by Paul B. Janeczko

 

A cloud of fat flies

hove near my locker. . .

old tuna sandwich

by Paul B. Janczko

 

Tanka:

o         When you first look at Tanka poetry it looks like a Haiku that simply has two more lines, but Tanka poetry is much more loose than that.  Tanka poetry provides the poet with a place for contemplation and meditation.  This poem is totally about the senses and comparisons.  Tanka likes to take a scene and compare it to something else, often unexpected—like love and meatloaf, strawberries and dynamite.  It also deals with sight, sound, taste, touch and smell.

o         Tanka poetry has 31 syllables. They usually have 5 in the first.  Seven in the second.  Five in the third. Seven in lines 4 and 5. (5 – 7 – 5 – 7 – 7)

o         Tanka is not a strict form like Renga, Soji, Dodoistu, or Haiku.  Many Tanka poems will have one or two more syllables in a line that the norm, and this is perfectly acceptable because it’s Tanka!  The rules are very flexible.

o         Some ideas for writing Tanks is to choose a scene that you would like to write about.  Think about comparisons you could make as you describe the scene (i.e. butterflies like jeweled buttons scattering the garden, or strawberries exploding sweet red juice on your tastebuds).  Make sure you carry this idea into your poem.

o         Examples:

Lightning splits the sky

and for a moment we see

an empty playhouse

And just as suddenly

the back yard is black again

by Paul B. Janeczko

 

The chestnut vendor

must shout to be heard above

the October winds

his words rise, sail away

like the think smoke from his stove.

by Paul B. Janeczko

Early October

a sugar maple ablaze

at the end of the pon

its fire reflected

in the still water.

by Paul B. Janeczko

 Renga

o         Renga is poetry that is written by at least 2 people.  The poets who write a Renga take turns writing stanzas. There have been Renga poems that have been written by 50 or more poets with each poet writing a stanza. Renga poetry looks at change and is usually about seasons, but it is not limited to nature.  Any change could be a great source of Renga poetry—changing schools, divorce, sports seasons, etc.

o         The form for Renga is as follows: The first stanza written in hokku (a loose 5 – 7 – 5 like haiku). The second stanza, written by another person, has two lines of 7 syllables each.  These lines connect, but not too obviously, with the first stanza.  The third stanza is another Hokku written by either a third person or the first person that connects to the second stanza, but not the first. The poem must have a third stanza, and after the third stanza the poem can end, or it can add another two line stanza and hokku.  The poem always starts and ends with a hokku, but there is no limit to the number of stanzas.

o         Some last notes—no punctuation or capitalization.

o         Examples:

 Seasons of Change

winter

 wafting pine tickles

noses with Christmas tidings

gilded adornment

 

glistening flakes softly floating from above

evidence of yesterday fading

 

carolers sway to

tidings of old, huddled

against white serenity

  

spring

 preparing black earth

tenderly tucking seedlings

in springtime bedding

 

bird songs sweetly growing

slumbering beasts awake anew

 

                        radiant sun bursts

                        through moving dappled shadows

                        against green carpets 
 

summer

 school bells clamor for

keen summer sabbatical

long awaited rest

 

            distant heat waves to me from afar

            noisy window box breathes brief sanity

 

                        anticipation

                        sand and surf--paints hot refuge

                        from school day despair

  

autumn

 green is leaving me

crackling feet chase me around

red yellow brown sleep

 

            crisp pumpkin shaped faces

            golden illumination

 

revealing hidden fear

                        slimy seeds from the inner bowels

                        makes a wonderful pie

by Marc Babin and Elisabeth Denisar-Babin

Dodoistu:

o         Dodoistu is a Japanese form of poetry that is sometimes performed as a folk song. The Dodoitsu comes from the old agricultural roots of the Gombei, the people of Japan's back-country. The majority of Dodoistu poetry was handed down through oral tradition and was performed to the accompaniment of shamisen, a three- stringed instrument.  

o         A lot of Dodoistu poetry focuses on love, humor or the unexpected, though there are many Dodoistu poems that also look at nature and beauty.

o         It has 26 syllables: 7 in the first, second and third lines, and 5 in the last line. (7-7-7-5).

o         Example:

 On my fiftieth birthday
green seed ripens on the pine,
a feast for those squirrels tossing
cone-cob confetti.

by Debra Woolard Bender

by Debra Woolard Bender

http://members.tripod.com/~Startag/dodoistuBender.html

 

Sijo:

o         Sijo is a Korean form of poetry that is similar to a Haiku in that it has three lines.  However, each line has 14 to 16 syllables (the poem must have 44 to 46 syllables in all).

o         The first line presents a problem or situation that needs to be solved

o         The second line is a development line (called the turn) which further explains the problem

o         The last line is the conclusion, which usually involves a twist or humor.

o         Examples:

 high above a mousy bank feathers ruffle in the wind
unblinking in a winter oak keen eyes watch for little rodents
the eagle swoops with fanned white tail--close behind trail jealous crows

by Kristi Karkow

by Elizabeth St Jacques

http://members.tripod.com/~Startag/Sijo.html

Cinquain:

o         The Cinquain was developed by a poet named Adelaide Crapsey in 1911.  She died at 36 from tuberculosis and didn’t not live to see her own Cinquains published.

o         Cinquains are poems of 5 lines.  Like Haikus and Tankas they follow a pattern based on syllable count.  There are 22 syllables total: 2 in the first line, 4 in the second line, 6 in the third line, 8 in the fourth line and 2 in the last line.  Cinquains must flow smoothly from beginning to end.  It should not sound like 5 independent thoughts.  If they do, then the poet has missed the point.  In cinquains the poet is creating a powerful image or feeling in one complete thought.  The poem builds towards the last line conclusion.  Like the Tanka poem, these syllables are not rigid.

o         While writing Cinquains it is helpful to use a clustering brainstorm to get your images organized.  You want your Cinquain to flow around one central idea.  A cluster will help your poem stay on target.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 o         Examples: