Haiku Theory

What if a haiku isn't just a poem—but a living concept? Come along as we dive into haiku as conceptual experience: a compact, electrified Now where language, memory, and experience collide. By reimagining haiku as dynamic conceptual events, we uncover how these tiny poems don't just describe moments—they create them.

What if a haiku isn't just a poem—but a living concept? Come along as we dive into haiku as conceptual experience: a compact, electrified Now where language, memory, and experience collide. By reimagining haiku as dynamic conceptual events, we uncover how these tiny poems don't just describe moments—they create them.   Deleuze and Guattari's What is Philosophy?   Richard Gilbert's Plausible deniab...

Think haiku is all about simple language? Come along as we unpack how the juxtaposition of poetic and common diction energizes haiku, and how 20th-century English-language poets got it wrong by mistaking the poetic for the prosaic. Contact the Haiku Theory Podcast by Emailing Us Here. This episode's soundscape was recorded by Graham on a subway car in Tokyo, Japan in June 2025.

Think haiku is all about simple language? Come along as we unpack how the juxtaposition of poetic and common diction energizes haiku, and how 20th-century English-language poets got it wrong by mistaking the poetic for the prosaic.   Contact the Haiku Theory Podcast by Emailing Us Here .     This episode's soundscape was recorded by Graham on a subway car in Tokyo, Japan in June 2025.    Hiroaki S...

Is haiku bound by the rules of everyday grammar, or does it operate on its own terms? In this episode, we explore how haiku breaks away from the structures of normal sentence-based language. From notions of spontaneous grammars to the disruptive grammars of the "Cut" in haiku, we question why readers and editors often impose standard grammatical expectations on a poetic form that may not want them...

Is haiku bound by the rules of everyday grammar, or does it operate on its own terms? In this episode, we explore how haiku breaks away from the structures of normal sentence-based language. From notions of spontaneous grammars to the disruptive grammars of the "Cut" in haiku, we question why readers and editors often impose standard grammatical expectations on a poetic form that may not want them...

Haiku expectations dictate what it is we think haiku should be doing. In this episode, we dive into the expectations surrounding haiku and how they shape our experience of the form. We explore the common belief that haiku should evoke profound moments of clarity or connection with nature, and why this expectation often leads to disappointment. From the historical influence of Western interpretatio...

Haiku expectations dictate what it is we think haiku should be doing. In this episode, we dive into the expectations surrounding haiku and how they shape our experience of the form. We explore the common belief that haiku should evoke profound moments of clarity or connection with nature, and why this expectation often leads to disappointment. From the historical influence of Western interpretatio...

A 'Careful Poetics: Caring Imagination, Caring Habits, and Haiku' can be read in its entirety by Clicking Here.

In a world that often feels disconnected, haiku offers a unique way to nurture our capacity for care. In this episode we read Ce Rosenow and Maurice Hamington's ' A Careful Poetics: Caring Imagination, Caring Habits, and Haiku,' which explores the intersection of care ethics and aesthetic theory, focusing on how haiku can enhance our capacity for care. We discuss how haiku, with its emphasis on em...

The interplay of meaning and experience in haiku both captivates and frustrates readers and writers alike. In this episode, we delve into Richard Gilbert's concept of Collocation and Roland Barthes' Narrative Codes, examining how these theories illuminate the structures of language—and what they reveal about the life and death of haiku.

Meaning and Experience   The interplay of meaning and experience in haiku both captivates and frustrates readers and writers alike. In this episode, we delve into Richard Gilbert's concept of Collocation and Roland Barthes' Narrative Codes, examining how these theories illuminate the structures of language—and what they reveal about the life and death of haiku.   Click Here for a link to an incred...

Within haiku is a tension between silence and expression that mirrors the complex relationship between desire and its unattainable fulfillment. In this episode, we delve into Ian Marshall's essay, Jouissance among the Kire: A Lacanian Approach to Haiku, to explore Jacques Lacan's concept of Jouissance and its connection to haiku's emphasis on the ineffable, the unsaid, and the fragmented.

Within haiku is a tension between silence and expression that mirrors the complex relationship between desire and its unattainable fulfillment.    In this episode, we delve into Ian Marshall's essay, Jouissance among the Kire: A Lacanian Approach to Haiku, to explore Jacques Lacan's concept of J ouissance  and its connection to haiku's emphasis on the ineffable, the unsaid, and the fragmented.   M...

Dwelling beneath the formal aspect of Juxtaposition is the force of Disjunction, a force that disrupts perception and challenges the very notion of what a haiku is. In today's episode, we explore Richard Gilbert's essay The Disjunctive Dragonfly, which shifts the conversation about haiku from what haiku is, to how haiku work. Gilbert argues that the true power of haiku lies in the concept of "disj...

Dwelling beneath the formal aspect of Juxtaposition is the force of Disjunction , a force that disrupts perception and challenges the very notion of what a haiku is.   In today's episode, we explore Richard Gilbert's essay The Disjunctive Dragonfly , which shifts the conversation about haiku from what haiku is, to how haiku work. Gilbert argues that the true power of haiku lies in the concept of "...

"Good artists copy, great artists steal." This quote is attributed to Picasso, but what does it actually mean for Haiku? Come along as we dig into a theory of crafting original haiku by copying the works of others. In this episode we'll be investigating the theory of copying put forth by Michele Root-Bernstein in her essay 'Copying to Create: The Role of Imitation and Emulation in Developing Haiku...

"Good artists copy, great artists steal." This quote is attributed to Picasso, but what does it actually mean for Haiku? Come along as we dig into a theory of crafting original haiku by copying the works of others. In this episode we'll be investigating the theory of copying put forth by Michele Root-Bernstein in her essay ' Copying to Create: The Role of Imitation and Emulation in Developing Haik...

Is Realism a false idol of haiku? Is the understanding of Haiku being "a nature poem" a false understanding? Come along as we explore how Realism interacts with haiku...or even if Realism interacts with haiku at all. In this episode we will be discussing Jim Kacian's essay "Realism is Dead (and Always Was)."

Is Realism a false idol of haiku? Is the understanding of Haiku being "a nature poem" a false understanding?   Come along as we explore how Realism interacts with haiku...or even if Realism interacts with haiku at all. In this episode we will be discussing Jim Kacian's essay " Realism is Dead (and Always Was)."   To read the essay in its entirety CLICK HERE   To contact the podcast CLICK HERE   Th...

Haruo Shirane. The ideas discussed in this episode can also be explored in Shirane's paper Matsuo Bashō and the Poetics of Scent. To download this paper CLICK HERE. Please note, the document is compilation of a bunch of haiku thinkers discussing Basho (which is highly interesting and informative). To find Shirane's paper scroll down. To contact the podcast email us HERE This episodes soundscape wa...

The linking of juxtaposed components is a formal aspect of haiku, so what are the rules of linking two components together, and what variety of linking methods are there?   Come along as we explore  The Art of Juxtaposition: cutting and joining , by Haruo Shirane.   The ideas discussed in this episode can also be explored in Shirane's paper Matsuo Bashō and the Poetics of Scent . To download this...

Come along as we take a closer look at three specific contemporary haiku offering commentary and interpretation.

Come along as we take a closer look at three specific contemporary haiku offering commentary and interpretation.   Ben Oliver's haiku was published by Presence , Britan's leading independent haiku journal.   Richard Tindall's haiku was published in the Heron's Nest.   Fay Aoyagi's collection of haiku, Chrysanthemum Love, can be found Here .   To contact the podcast email us Here .      The opening...

Can English-language haiku actually contain a Kigo? Come along in our exploration of the problems the concept of Kigo causes for English-language haiku as we discuss Charles Trumbull's essay "Seasonality: English-Language Haiku in Search of its Vertical." Charles Trumbull's essay "Seasonality: English-Language Haiku in Search of its Vertical" can be read by Clicking Here. Harou Shirane's essay "Be...