Contemporary senryu is eccentric! Senryu writer Mana Kuruta introduces its appeal and her favorite poems

The person who taught me: Mana Kuruta (senryu writer)

These poems are not obvious at first glance, but gradually become more and more interesting. "Just by reading one collection of poems, you can see that all sorts of strange events are happening in the senryu," says Kuruta Mana. When most people think of senryu, they probably think of salaryman senryu (commonly known as Sara-gawa (sen)), which are written with a melancholy tone about current topics. However, modern senryu is distinct from these.

"While Sara-gawa senryu writes about what is normal in society, modern senryu writes about ways of being that deviate from normal. Because the author's name remains, it is also characterized by a strong literary orientation. A truly diverse range of poems has been produced, from those that are like experiments with words to those that are visually elaborate."

Senryu is a short poem written in five-seven-five syllables, and unlike haiku, it has no detailed rules, such as seasonal words. This high degree of freedom has allowed playful expressions to flourish. Kureta himself was captivated by its "eccentricity" in a sense.

"I've never been able to get used to what is considered normal for everyone, and I don't really get it when it comes to things that place emphasis on empathy. I like modern senryu, which writes things that 'only this person would write' and affirms the idea of having a 'solo' perspective. Furthermore, I believe that modern senryu, which is not bound by semantics, is at its best precisely because what is written there is 'wrong.'

They also write about morally wrong and contradictory things, and at times they seem like absurdist manga. I also start writing with the thought, "I'm going to write about something I've never thought about," and I've never worried about whether it will get through to the reader. I find the depth of modern senryu, which quietly accepts words as they are, very comforting."

Collecting clues and pondering. Nowadays, finding some kind of answer is popular, but not knowing can be fun too. When you first pick up a collection of haiku, how can you enjoy it more?

"It's not a genre where you learn theory and build up knowledge, so there are no set rules for how to read it. At first, it's fine to take the stance of 'what is he talking about?', and I think that's what you'll probably end up doing (laughs). But beyond that, you'll come across a haiku that will make you burst out laughing, or a powerful haiku that will make you forget about even the most frustrating events. There are also many haiku that use proper nouns from anime and famous people, so I hope you'll start by casually enjoying the ones that interest you."

9 recommended haiku poems selected by Mana Kuruta

Photo courtesy of Aflo