Reddit reviews The Essential Haiku: Versions of Basho, Buson, & Issa (Essential Poets)

Wow, people really have had bad exposure to haikus based on these comments. 5-7-5, or what have you (there are a few different forms in Japanese), just doesn't work for the English language, so generally is discarded when writing or translating into English. Traditionally they related to nature in some way, but not exclusively. The point is to make a very short poem that is evocative of some sort of emotion, scene, or sensation. Non-haiku poetry often has the same goal, but without any restrictions on length, and it may use other devices like meter, rhyme, etc. The haiku masters were really good; some of these little poems can really take you to another place with just a few words. It's like the distilled essence of poetry. I'd highly recommend picking up a book of them, I bought this one a while back, his translations are really good.

Edit: Found some decent translations of some of Buson's poems here too. He was always my favorite.

One can choose to write haiku with 5-7-5 syllables, but it's not at all necessary, and quite liberating to find out what words can do with less.

• "...haiku in English should not stick to the 5-7-5 pattern of syllables. That's because they don't even count syllables in Japanese, but sounds. The word "haiku" is two syllables in English, but counts as THREE sounds in Japanese. And that's just one of many reasons why 5-7-5 is problematic and even inaccurate for haiku in English. The vast majority of serious literary writers of haiku do NOT write 5-7-5, as demonstrated in the leading anthologies and journals for haiku in English."
  
  
• Bought this book by Robert Hass, a beautiful writer and translator from Philadelphia, soon after its publication. You can get an old one for 5 bucks if you're interested. 329 pages.

You might want to look into Robert Hass's translations of haiku by Basho, Buson, and Issa.

Nimenoz, nice first attempt. You should read this if you're interested in the historical basis for haiku and why certain elements are included and other elements not included in traditional haiku. I guarantee your haiku writing will improve dramatically in a small amount of time.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Essential-Haiku-Versions-Basho/dp/0880013516

Here's a sneak peak: http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/g_l/haas/haiku.htm

I've run a certain Haiku exercise with great success. You may need to alter the exercise to make it more accessible for your non-native speakers, but maybe you can find a way to make some or all of it work:

Start with a brief, accessible description of Haikai no Renga. Have the students pass a piece of paper around and create their own version that captures the spirit of the exercise.

Next, give a brief history on Basho and the way he morphed Linked Verse into Haiku. Go over the subtle intricacies of traditional Haiku, everything beyond the simple syllabic rules--cutting (kiru), seasonal references (kigo), etc. Have the students create their own classical haikus.

Finally, using Haiku as a base, give the students some insight into the incredible formative power of translation. The introduction to Hass' Essential Haiku is a goldmine of eloquent insight.

A highly effective professor once had my class read different translations of Rilke's [Archiac Torso of Apollo] (https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/archaic-torso-apollo) and discuss the differences, something else you might want to try.

Good luck, hope this suggestion helps!