Jane Hirshfield
In seventeenth-century Japan, the wandering poet Basho developed haiku, a seventeen-syllable poetic form now perhaps the most widely written type of poetry in the world. Haiku are practiced by poets, lovers, and schoolchildren, by â€œpolitical haikuâ€ twitterers, by anyone who has the desire to pin preception and experience into a few quick phrases. This essay offers readers unparalleled insight into the living heart of haikuâ€”how haiku work and what they hold, and how to read through and into their images to find a full expression of human life and perceptions, sometimes profound, sometimes playful.
Poetry,Nonfiction,Cultural,Japan,Biography,History,Writing,Essays,Cultural,Asia,Criticism,Language,Writing,Philosophy
The Heart of Haiku