[stylist] Information about Tanka and its writing
KajunCutie926 at aol.com
KajunCutie926 at aol.com
Thu Jun 9 13:43:22 UTC 2011
I always ask.. and what is a true tanka anymore? I use 'modern' tanka
quite a bit and I would say that's what this piece is... Poetry, in my very
humble opinion, will evolve as times and experiences do. So I would call
this a tanka.. some purists likely would not but I never claimed to be a
purist...lol
I can remember way back in the day helping the deacon count the offertory
for youth mass... so this brought back some fun memories as we all drew
straws to see who would have to do the penny count..)
In a message dated 6/9/2011 7:39:34 A.M. Central Daylight Time,
Shawn.D.Jacobson at hud.gov writes:
I'm not sure that this is a true tanka, but here goes. This was inspired
by my deacon experiences of which on of the duties was to count the
offertory.
Counter's tanka
In the sacristy
Count the bills, tally the checks
Out numbers must match
Neat columns tell the legend
Of order and true balance.
Shawn
-----Original Message-----
From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Donna Hill
Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2011 4:49 PM
To: 'Writer's Division Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [stylist] Information about Tanka and its writing
Myrna,
I would like to read examples of your Haibuns. I meant to mention it in my
last post, but minds are on the fritz all over the place *grin* And, please
post to the list; I'm sure I'm not the only one interested.
Donna
-----Original Message-----
From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of KajunCutie926 at aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2011 4:09 PM
To: stylist at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [stylist] Information about Tanka and its writing
Donna,
To be honest I am not sure what 'kana' is... I'll look it up to find out
as I had never heard of it before.. I don't remember those instructions
including that before .. or has my mind finally gone and lost it...LOL
The thing about haiku and tanka is that they have modernized... also you
could be writing what is called a senryu.. that's more about emotions
than
nature.. I would love to read some! I have written quite a few haibun
too..
different animal but a lot of fun.. several have to do with blindness.. I
can share them off list or on list if you'd like.
In a message dated 6/8/2011 2:53:59 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
penatwork at epix.net writes:
Hi Myrna,
You remembered! Guess Grandma isn't as frazzled by youthful exuberance as
she thought!
This is intriguing, but what, pray tell, is "kana?"
I'm going to post a couple haiku I just wrote, but my guess in reading
this
is that they fall short of adhering to the rules. I didn't realize that
juxtaposition was necessary. For me, they're a little slice of life and
always about nature. I do, of course, use the 5,7,5 syllables in three
lines
construction, and I don't think I use metaphor or simile, but I'll have to
re read with that in mind.
I'm going to keep the Tanga form in mind. I've often thought I had
something
else to say after the 17 syllables. I wrote a song a couple of years ago
in
which the verses and bridge were all Haiku. Guess that's another kettle of
fish entirely.
Donna
-----Original Message-----
From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of KajunCutie926 at aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2011 2:42 PM
To: stylist at nfbnet.org
Subject: [stylist] Information about Tanka and its writing
As promised, Donna, here is the information on Tanka writing. It is a
very traditional form .... however, it has been modernized and some
elements
have been changed or at least made not so strict once the English began
writing them. As this article says it is because of the difference in
syllabication between the Japanese and English languages. This
information
is from
ShadowPoetry.com. It is a source I've have used extensively over the
years. I will share more Tanka and as you will see even I strayed from
the
traditional syllable count. As I side note, my tanka collaborator and I
developed a form which we call the Haibun's cousin, the Tankabun. It
includes
one tanka and a prose edition. If you are interested in it do let me
know.
I can also share an example of that form too.
For those who are not familiar with Haibuns they are Haiku and prose
combined in one piece. Here is the article on Tanka...
Definition of Tanka
An unrhymed Japanese poem consisting of five lines of 5/7/5/7/7 (5 kana
in
the first line, 7 kana in the second line, 5 kana in the third line, 7
kana in the fourth line, and 7 kana in the fifth line) totaling 31 kana.
General thoughts on Tanka
Tanka is generally written in two parts. The first three lines is one
part, and the last two lines is the second part.
Tanka in English is relatively new, so there are not as many guidelines
as
with haiku and senryu. You may include kigo (season words), but it is
not
necessary.
One exercise for beginners is to write a haiku and add two more lines.
However, tanka is not really a longer haiku, and should not be thought
of
as such. While tanka does use many of the same elements such as
juxtaposition, concrete imagery, and is usually centered around nature,
tanka is less
constrictive.
You may use metaphor, simile, and many of the other devices generally
not
used in haiku or senryu. You may show a more personal and emotional
viewpoint.
If tanka were seen in a book that contains only Japanese poetic forms,
they would be easily recognizable. However, if the same poems were seen
in
a
freestyle poetry book, they may be confused with any other five line
poem.
English tanka has not totally found its voice.
Three ways to write tanka
There are three basic ways to write tanka.
1) Write 5 lines of 5/7/5/7/7. Just replace one syllable for one kana.
Most English speaking writers do not do this, as there are too many vast
differences between the Japanese and English language.
You are certainly free to do this, however, your tanka will be about
one-third longer than the Japanese tanka. There are some Japanese who
think
this
is the only real way to write tanka, but there are others who feel that
making English writers adhere to the form serves no purpose.
2) Write 5 lines of 31 syllables or LESS, following the
short/long/short/long/long form. This way, your tanka will achieve the
same
basic effect as
the Japanese tanka.
3) Write 5 lines of 31 syllables or LESS, letting the poem dictate the
line length. You are free to experiment more with this last option.
Everyone who writes tanka must make their own personal decision on which
form they want to use. Some experiment with all three forms and find
their
own paths.
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