{"product_id":"9780231527064","title":"Haiku Before Haiku: From the Renga Masters to Basho","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhile the rise of the charmingly simple, brilliantly evocative haiku is often associated with the seventeenth-century Japanese poet Matsuo Basho, the form had already flourished for three hundred years before Basho even began to write. These early poems, known as  \u003ci\u003ehokku\u003c\/i\u003e, are identical to haiku in syllable count and structure but function differently as a genre. Whereas each haiku is its own constellation of image and meaning,  \u003ci\u003ehokku\u003c\/i\u003e opens a a series of linked, collaborative stanzas in a sequence called  \u003ci\u003erenga\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eUnder the mastery of Basho,  \u003ci\u003ehokku\u003c\/i\u003e first gained its modern independence. His talents evolved the style into the haiku beloved by so many poets today\u0026amp; mdash;Richard Wright, Jack Kerouac, and Billy Collins being notable devotees. This anthology reproduces 300 Japanese  \u003ci\u003ehokku\u003c\/i\u003e poems composed between the thirteenth and early eighteenth centuries, from the work of the courtier Nijo Yoshimoto to the genre's first \"professional\" master, Sogi, and his subsequent disciples. It also features twenty masterpieces by Basho himself. Steven Carter, a renowned scholar of Japanese poetry and prominent translator, includes an introduction covering the history of haiku and the form's aesthetics and classifies these poems according to style and context\u0026amp; mdash;distinguishing early  \u003ci\u003erenga\u003c\/i\u003e from  \u003ci\u003eHaikai renga\u003c\/i\u003e and  \u003ci\u003erenga\u003c\/i\u003e from the Edo period, for example. His rich commentary and analysis illuminates each work, and he adds their romanized versions and notes on composition and setting, as well as brief descriptions of the poets and the times in which they wrote.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Columbia University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47080343109872,"sku":"9780231527064","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780231527064_p0.jpg?v=1763678026","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780231527064","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}