Haiku Poetry
Simple Noticings
What is Haiku?
• Haiku is a poem commonly made in 3 lines.
– 5 syllables in the first line
– 7 in the next line
– 5 in the last line
• As with any type of writing, rules are just there to
be broken (if it’s done well).
• The basic format for our class could probably be:
– One shorter line
– One longer line
– One shorter line
What are Haiku About?
• Usually, in Japan, where Haiku poetry started,
there was a reference to nature, or a certain
season.
Sick and feverish
Glimpse of cherry blossoms
Still shivering.
• This poem would have something to do with
spring, because cherry blossoms usually come
out in the spring.
What are Haiku About?
• For our purposes in this class, let’s say the
Haiku should be about any small detail or
event.
• Don’t try to write about big, general ideas.
Instead focus on small, specific details,
actions or brief moments in time.
What are Haiku About?
• Focus on describing topics that can be
experienced with the senses. Use words
that relate to a readers sense of sight,
touch, taste, smell or sound.
Green frog,
Is your body also
freshly painted?
The Tricky Part…The Twist
• In every haiku poem, there should be some sort
of surprise, something unexpected.
• It could be the way you describe something
using a metaphor.
– Think about bantu poems.
• It could be a statement that is open for many
interpretations
– Think about 6 word memoirs
• Or, you could use the last line to offer up a
specific contrast, or surprising perspective, on
the ideas in the first two lines.
The Tricky Part…The Twist
• It could be the way you describe
something using a metaphor.
Tree’s hollow carcass
Peels, splits, contorts skinny limbs
Claw the building’s edge
• Compared the tree’s limbs to claws
against a building
The Tricky Part…The Twist
• It could be a statement that is open for many
interpretations.
Green frog,
Is your body also
freshly painted?
• Also painted? Who else is freshly painted? Why
would someone be freshly painted and then
stare at frogs and write poems about them?
The Tricky Part…The Twist
• Or, you could use the last line to offer a specific contrast,
or surprising perspective, on the ideas in the first two
lines.
Poverty's child -
he starts to grind the rice,
and gazes at the moon.
• In the first two lines, we think of a hungry, poor child. The
last line reminds us of the child as a human who can
look at the moon like anyone else.
The Tricky Part…The Twist
• It could be the way you describe something using a
metaphor. (Comparison of two things that don’t seem similar
at first)
Tree’s hollow carcass
Peels, splits, contorts skinny limbs
Claw the building’s edge
• It could be a statement that is open for many interpretations
Green frog,
Is your body also
freshly painted?
• Or, you could use the last line to offer up a specific contrast,
or surprising perspective, on the ideas in the first two lines.
Poverty's child -
he starts to grind the rice,
and gazes at the moon.
Your Job…
• Write a few haiku poems that focus
on specific details, events or
emotions.
• Make sure to include specific images
that relate to the senses.
• Try your best to include some sort of
‘twist’. (Comparison, a statement
open for many interpretations, or a
different perspective)