Having 17 syllables is in the definition of Haiku, but does it have to have exactly 17 syllables, is this usually followed strictly, or it is only more as a guideline?
I am asking about Haiku written in English language not in Japanese.
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Haiku don't have to have 17 syllables. That "rule" is based on something that makes sense in Japanese, not so much in English. The "syllables" (onji) in Japanese are in a 5 - 7- 5 pattern, but Japanese is primarily polysyllabic...so creating Haiku in English based on the same pattern is likely to result in a poem that is often too long. Haiku is less a syllabic form than a kind of poetry. Traditional Haiku have three lines, the first and third lines are separated by a kind of interjection. Consider Buson's haiku:
The first two lines are connected by the middle line. I remember reading somewhere that Haiku are almost formed like jokes: there's a setup (first line) and a punch-line (third line). Good Haiku go beyond the form. The syllabic structure that many learn in elementary school is often the result of teaching about syllables rather than what Haiku really are. |
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In order for it to be a Haiku, it must have 17 syllables. Because a Haiku is strictly 3 un-rhymed lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, people usually are very strict about this. If it is over or under 17 syllables, I'm sorry, but they probably wouldn't classify it as a Haiku. Hope that helps! |
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