I liked reading Basho's hokku, but as I was reading them, I noticed a pattern, that there are two lines within them that are related, and then the third line seems to come out of nowhere, whether it be at the beginning or the end. For example, the poem "Octopus traps- / fleeting dreams / under the summer moon." I was so confused as to why the line about the octopus trap was in there. Perhaps this is because I am not well versed in poetry or haiku, and therefore do not know its traditions. However, seeing his different methods of writing and drawing backed up by his backstory were illuminating. I wondered while reading how long he would stay in one place, and if his writers' spirit was what propelled him to wander Japan and never settle in one specific place. The reading said that for the last 10 years of his life he was going on trips with his students around Japan, and I wondered how they would fund that lifestyle, as well as how heavily it influenced Basho's poetry. Reading his early works, compared to the works from this time period would be very interesting.
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I really liked the poetry performed on the radio broadcast, written by Yosano Akiko. In particular, I liked the poem called "Oh My Little Brother" which discussed her opinions about war and her feelings toward her younger brother. I thought that it was interesting and surprising how the speakers indicated that she had upheld a pacifistic tradition while writing this, at odds with the government and the pro-war sentiment. But this perspective makes sense for a feminist poet to have, as often, feminists are also against war. Although, she ended up pivoting her perspective and becoming pro-war later in her life.
I also thought that the point the speaker brought up about how she was anti-forcing women into motherhood, and yet she herself have 13 children was very interesting. Though I did not agree with the implications of that statement, I think that it is an interesting point to discuss. She did indeed oppose women's identity being synonymous with motherhood, and yet she had her own children. This strikes me as similar to the modern argument concerning birth control, as it is every women's choice for themselves. Perhaps Yosano Akiko felt that she herself was meant for motherhood, and yet she did not want other women to be forced into that decision, she wanted women to have their own choices, no matter what her own personal opinion was. I was, however, shocked by how feminist leaning she was, fr it being so long ago that she lived and wrote. The speaker mentioned that she was pro-abortion as well, which surprised me.
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The afterword about "Salad Anniversary" was a very interesting read, and made me want to read the whole work to experience the poems they were talking about. I think that it is very touching that her poems were able to move so many people, and I think that it is beautiful that she was able to meld old and new styles seamlessly in this captivating way that drew people in. I don't agree with the translator's decision to translate for brevity and not try to mimic the style or the syllables in the poems, as I think it probably loses some of its beauty and overall impact, but perhaps it is actually better to spend less time on formatting and more time on getting the poems published in another language so they can become more widespread. I like this style of poetry, because it is not too long and the messages in this author's poems seem to be succinct and easily understandable. This kind of poetry appeals to a broader audience, because more people can understand the messages and relate, and that is perhaps why it became so popular and sparked so many people into a writing frenzy.
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