
Poetstrain Homepage Poetry Forms Handbook: Introduction Glossary of Poetry Terms Meter Iamb Iambic Pentameter Rhyme scheme Couplet Stanza Alliteration Pun Sensory Language Imagery Simile Metaphor Types of Poetry Acrostic Ballad Blank verse Cinquain Diamante Epic poem Free Verse Haiku Limerick Ode Pantoum Quatrain Senryu Shape poetry Sonnet Tanka Villanelle Conclusion Practice: Try Out What You've Learned At The Poetry Forum!	Haiku Poetry Haiku This form of poetry originated in Japan during the 16th century, when poets collectively worked on non-rhyming poems (called haikai-rengas) by adding stanzas of 17 (three lines of five, seven, and five) syllables, or 14 (two lines of seven) syllables. Its first great poet was Matsuo Basho, who developed the contemplative nature that often characterizes haiku by basing his material on the writings of ancient philosophers. The word “haiku” comes from “hokku”, the first verse of a haikai-renga poem. A traditional haiku is composed of three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables, and does not use poetic devices such as metaphor. All haiku is theme-specific, always referring to some aspect of nature such as a season, an animal, or the weather, attempting to capture the beauty of a moment with vivid imagery. Haiku is written in present tense, and has a detached, objective tone. Many poets over the centuries have written in this format. Leaning out over The dreadful precipice, One contemptuous tree. --W.H. Auden The only problem with writing haiku and other Japanese form poetry (such as senryu and tanka) in English is that the flow of the English language is different from that of Japanese, and often the form doesn’t work nearly as well in English. For this reason, in the 1970s many English-speaking poets began writing “free-form haiku” which does not rigidly follow the 5-7-5 rule, but still tries to follow the “inspired” and imagistic quality of the Japanese poetry (one image on each line of the poem). The lines of the poem must follow natural breaks in the language; in other words, a sentence should not be broken into two lines at an unnatural place (such as the middle of a phrase)– which is why English haikus often work better when they deviate from the strict Japanese form. Japanese haikus that are translated into English are often recognizable as haikus because they are short, three line poems that capture a moment. Furuike ya Kawazu tobikomu Mizu no oto Murky pond . . . A frog leaps in Water’s sound -- Matsuo Basho

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Poetry Forms
Handbook:

forms of poetry book

Introduction

Glossary of Poetry Terms

Meter
Iamb
Iambic Pentameter
Rhyme scheme
Couplet
Stanza
Alliteration
Pun
Sensory Language
Imagery
Simile
Metaphor

Types of Poetry

Acrostic
Ballad
Blank verse
Cinquain
Diamante
Epic poem
Free Verse
Haiku
Limerick
Ode
Pantoum
Quatrain
Senryu
Shape poetry
Sonnet
Tanka
Villanelle

Conclusion

Practice:

Try Out What
You've Learned
At The Poetry Forum!

Haiku Poetry

Haiku

This form of poetry originated in Japan during the 16th century, when poets collectively worked on non-rhyming poems (called haikai-rengas) by adding stanzas of 17 (three lines of five, seven, and five) syllables, or 14 (two lines of seven) syllables. Its first great poet was Matsuo Basho, who developed the contemplative nature that often characterizes haiku by basing his material on the writings of ancient philosophers. The word “haiku” comes from “hokku”, the first verse of a haikai-renga poem.

A traditional haiku is composed of three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five syllables, and does not use poetic devices such as metaphor. All haiku is theme-specific, always referring to some aspect of nature such as a season, an animal, or the weather, attempting to capture the beauty of a moment with vivid imagery. Haiku is written in present tense, and has a detached, objective tone. Many poets over the centuries have written in this format.

Leaning out over
The dreadful precipice,
One contemptuous tree.
--W.H. Auden

The only problem with writing haiku and other Japanese form poetry (such as senryu and tanka) in English is that the flow of the English language is different from that of Japanese, and often the form doesn’t work nearly as well in English. For this reason, in the 1970s many English-speaking poets began writing “free-form haiku” which does not rigidly follow the 5-7-5 rule, but still tries to follow the “inspired” and imagistic quality of the Japanese poetry (one image on each line of the poem). The lines of the poem must follow natural breaks in the language; in other words, a sentence should not be broken into two lines at an unnatural place (such as the middle of a phrase)– which is why English haikus often work better when they deviate from the strict Japanese form. Japanese haikus that are translated into English are often recognizable as haikus because they are short, three line poems that capture a moment.

Furuike ya
Kawazu tobikomu
Mizu no oto

Murky pond . . .
A frog leaps in
Water’s sound

-- Matsuo Basho