ASIA 315 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Hokku, Renga
Document Summary
A close contemporary of saikaku but a different cultural model. Saikaku sustained himself through the selling of the books. However, matsuo basho did not sell the poems or teach (students wanted him to correct their poems, but he hated teaching and grading) He got by using celebrity of a brilliant poet; go anywhere, get offered services in exchange for his poems. Born in a castle town, his father was a low-ranking samurai. Owing to his childhood friendship with the daimyo"s son, bash obtains training in poetry from the best masters of his age. Bash moves to edo in 1672, works for the public works department, starts his own school in 1677, and becomes a literary idol in his own age. Kareeda ni karasu no tomaritaru ya aki no kure. Note the eccentric syllabic count 5-10-5 instead of 5-7-5, and the alliteration of. Note the contrast between the now of the poem and eternity.
