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Part 1: Can You Haiku?
Used with permission: http://edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?ID=250
A giant firefly:
that way, this way, that way, this --
and it passes by.
--Issa (1762-1826)
Introduction
Haiku show us the world in a water drop, providing a
tiny lens through which to glimpse the miracle and mystery of life. Combining
close observation with a moment of reflection, this simple yet highly
sophisticated form of poetry can help sharpen students' response to language and
enhance their powers of self-expression. In this lesson, learn the
rules and conventions of haiku, study examples by Japanese masters, and create
haiku of your own.
Learning Objectives
After completing this lesson, you will be able to:
- Describe the traditional rules and conventions of haiku.
- Interpret examples of haiku.
- Characterize the image-evoking power of haiku.
- Develop a vocabulary and ideas for writing haiku.
- Compose a haiku based on a personal experience.
Question:
How are haiku poems composed? How do they differ from
other forms of poetry? How does a haiku paint a picture or create an image with
just a few words? What makes this form of poetry seem so personal, intimate, and
appealing?
Activities
Lesson 1: Reading Haiku
Lesson 2: The Rules of Haiku
Lesson 3: Haiku Warm-Up
Lesson 4: Writing Haiku
Lesson 1 Reading Haiku
Read a selection of haiku from those available through
the AskAsia website at
Haiku by Basho and
Haiku for People. Read both classic and contemporary examples. Members of
the class read each poem aloud and comment on similarities they notice among
them. Through this discussion, recognize that haiku are:
- Very short: just three lines usually fewer than twenty syllables
long.
- Descriptive: most haiku focus sharply on a detail of nature or
everyday life.
- Personal: most haiku express a reaction to or reflection on what is
described.
- Divided into two parts: as they read haiku aloud, students should
find that each includes a turning point, often marked by a dash or colon,
where the poet shifts from description to reflection, or shifts from close-up
to a broader perspective.
Lesson 2 The Rules of Haiku
Drawing on the your observations, lets look at an
outline of the main rules for writing haiku, as explained at
Haiku by Basho and
Haiku for People:
- Form: Traditional Japanese haiku have seventeen syllables divided
into three lines of five syllables, seven syllables, and five syllables
respectively. These syllable counts are often ignored when haiku are written
in other languages, but the basic form of three short lines, with the middle
line slightly longer than the other two, is usually observed.
- Structure: Haiku divide into two parts, with a break coming after
the first or second line, so that the poem seems to make two separate
statements that are related in some unexpected or indirect way. In Japanese,
this break is marked by what haiku poets call a "cutting word." In English and
other languages, the break is often marked by punctuation. This two-part
structure is important to the poetic effect of a haiku, prompting a sense of
discovery as one reads or a feeling of sudden insight.
- Language: Haiku should include what Japanese poets call a kigo
-- a word that gives the reader a clue to the season being described. The kigo
can be the name of a season (autumn, winter) or a subtler clue, such as a
reference to the harvest or new fallen snow. Through the years, certain signs
of the seasons have become conventional in Japanese haiku: cherry blossoms are
a kigo for spring, mosquitoes a kigo for summer. Sometimes, too, the kigo will
refer to an individual moment in the natural cycle, such as dawn or moonrise,
without reference to a particular season. The kigo is also important to the
haiku's effect, anchoring the experience it describes in a poetic here and now
that helps sharpen the imaginative focus.
- Subject: Haiku present a snapshot of everyday experience, revealing
an unsuspected significance in a detail of nature or human life. Haiku poets
find their subject matter in the world around them, not in ancient legends or
exotic fantasies. They write for a popular audience and give their audience a
new way to look at things they have probably overlooked in the past.
This same point of view can be found in traditional Japanese woodblock
prints (called "ukiyo-e"), which distill a timeless beauty from the constantly
shifting scene of daily life. For examples of woodblock prints that can help
you visualize the world of haiku, visit the
Ukiyo-e
Museum of the Nagoya Broadcast Network, accessible through the
Teaching (and Learning) About Japan website on EDSITEment, and browse the
galleries called "Rain
and Snow" and "A
Sense of Journey." In each gallery, click on the small image to view a
larger version with an interpretative caption, then click the larger version
to view the image at maximum size.
Lesson 3 Haiku Warm-Up
As preparation for writing your own
haiku, brainstorm a glossary of words you might use, based on the rules and
conventions of this form of poetry. Begin with the kigo, to consider words that
would give a clue to the season in your haiku (e.g., robin, crocus, Final Four
for spring; heatwave, fireworks, grasshopper for summer; jack-o-lantern,
harvest, kickoff for autumn; icicle, hibernate, holly for winter). Then, for
each season, choose an occurrence that might be the subject of a haiku and
brainstorm descriptive language that would help a reader visualize that scene.
List your suggestions in your notebook to help generate ideas for your
haiku. Can you see the range of possibilities beyond a description of nature?
Lesson 4: Writing Haiku
Write a haiku based on
some personal or imagined experience, using at least one of the words you have brainstormed
in class. Pair-up to edit and suggest improvements to one another's work. We
will then
hold an in-class haiku festival, each student reading his or her poem
aloud.
Save your haiku to your English 11 folder, naming the file: haiku
Part 2: The Photo Haiku
For this activity, we will venture out into the wilds of Lake Andes in order
to find and capture an image of something: 1) natural, or 2) common/overlooked.
As we've learned haiku is a two-step process, the definition followed by the
"Oh!" factor, something unexpected or a fresh insight.
- Take a photo of a subject of your choice. It can be:
- A natural object or setting
- A common or overlooked object object or setting
- Think about what you're photographing because when we return to the
classroom, you will create another haiku based on this frozen image.
- Describe it
- Reflect on it (don't forget that "Oh!" factor
- This haiku will be the traditional Japanese seventeen syllables
- Line 1 = 5 syllables
- Line 2 = 7 syllables
- Line 3 = 5 syllables
- Insert the image somewhere in your Word document. Mr. Janes will help you
if needed.
-
Save your haiku to your English 11 folder, naming the file:
photohaiku
Having trouble with the "Oh!" factor? As you've been advised, you can get a
much better grasp over the idea by reading what others have done. Here are some
helpful links:
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