Haiku Before Haiku: From the Renga Masters to Bashō is an anthology of translations of Japanese hokku, the 17-syllable verses that start a poetic sequence in medieval renga (courtly linked verse) and early modern haikai (nonstandard linked verse). In his introduction, Carter poses three questions: when did the hokku “break free” from renga; how do the hokku of renga differ from those of haikai and from modern haiku, and to what extent do readers require a knowledge of the conventions of renga composition in order to understand hokku?
To answer these questions, Professor Carter uses the familiarity of haiku to draw the reader in to the genre of renga and its initiating verses. He notes that during the lifetime of haikai's most famous poet, Matsuo Bashō (1644–94), verses in the 5-7-5 syllable pattern were called hokku (literally, initiating verses 発句) because they were originally conceived of...
