7/26/2019 Haibun Bonus

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Bonus Paper: Haibun

OverviewThe haibun is a literary form that combines prose and haiku. Given its history, the haibun is oftenassociated with travelogues or autobiographical anecdotes and reflections, but leaves itself open to a

breadth of subjects, including landscapes, character sketces or descriptions of objects.

The form is not particularly strict on the ordering of prose and haiku, particularly in modern

interpretations. The prose piecethe length of which is bound by no strict rulesmay be followedby a concluding haiku, or the haiku may be interspersed among sections of prose.

While the haibun can focus on a variety of subjects, it should maintain the Buddhist aesthetic that

pries transcience, incompleteness and the suggestion, rather than denotation, of objects and ideas.

This aesthetic, or perhaps mindset, which is characteristic of !apan may be e"plored in the ideas of

wabi sabi, mono no aware, and shibui, should you wish to read further on it.

#ncluded below are two e"amples of haibun, one a classic by $atsuo Basho, and the other a modern

one by %atricia Tompkins

InstructionsWrite a haibun. &ou may break from the typical meter of the haiku, but must retain the three line

format and the conventions of imagery. 'imilarly, the entire piece should strive for a semblance ofthe aesthetic described earlier.

#n terms of subjects of reflection, you need look no further than what is at hand. #f you are goingsomewhere for the holidays, then a travelogue may be your subject of choice( but if not, you can no

doubt find people, objects and places to contemplate nearby. The metropolis is )uite an interesting

place, even without the influence of syncretic religious traditions.

*ormat+ - sie with / margins, any aesthetically pleasing typeface in sie or 0, single or .1line spacing.

#nclude the following information in your submission+

2ame'tudent 2umber

3it - section

'ubmission+ 'ubmit on the first session after 4oly Week

7/26/2019 Haibun Bonus

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Introduction from Oku no Hosomichi(Journey to the Interior) by Basho

The months and days are the travellers of eternity. The years that come and go are also

voyagers. Those who float away their lives on ships or who grow old leading horses are forever

journeying, and their homes are wherever their travels take them. $any of the men of old died onthe road, and # too for years past have been stirred by the sight of a solitary cloud drifting with the

wind to ceaseless thoughts of roaming. 3ast year # spent wandering along the seacoast. #n autumn # returned to my cottage on the river

and swept away the cobwebs. Gradually the year drew to its close. When spring came and there was

mist in the air, # thought of crossing the Barrier of 'hirakawa into 5ku. # seemed to be possessed bythe spirits of wanderlust, and they all but deprived me of my senses. The guardian spirits of the road

beckoned, and # could not settle down to work. # patched my torn trousers and changed the cord on my bamboo hat. To strengthen my legs for

the journey # had mo"a burned on my shins. By then # could think of nothing but the moon at

$atsushima. When # sold my cottage and moved to 'amp67s villa, to stay until # started on myjourney, # hung this poem on a post in my hut+

8ven a thatched hut $ay change with a new owner

#nto a doll7s house.

This became the first of an eight9verse se)uence.

Angel Island by Patricia om!"ins

'o far to travel where she is wanted. 'he waits with other picture brides from the ship( she is not theprettiest but that doesn7t matter. 'he married by surrogate in !apan. 2ow her future home shimmers

across 'an *rancisco Bay+ a city as crowded as the one she sailed from. Before she can leave the

detention island, her merican husband must come to claim her and a :hristian minister must marrythem. Then she too can live in merica.

#f he has changed his mind, she will be deported. But why would he; 'he thinks of many reasons,

tries to dismiss them. 4e has spent money for her. #n his photograph, he looks thrifty. The other

brides are no help( their favorite topics+ their husbands and their new life.