Many writers / poets / authors search the world wide web extensively for material that supports their work or gives credibility to what they write. In 'Poetry Discussions', you will find literature, discussions and debates that revolve around the various genres of poetry. The aim of this section is to support the poet in his /her search for a deeper understanding of this specialized literary field.
Image Credit: John Gast, artist, after J.G. Brown at Wikimedia Commons
Image Description: Print shows Maud Muller, John Greenleaf Whittier's heroine in the poem of the same name, leaning on her hay rake, gazing into the distance. Behind her, an ox cart, and in the distance, the village.
Tanka is not about counting syllables or lines, nor is it about following a specific image or theme. Quality makes a big difference to the outcome of your tanka. It is 'Quality' that makes a reader 'marvel' at what you've written. Here is a fast and sure way to discern if your tanka is 'quality-rich'.
It is common for haiku poets to claim that haiku are objective and tanka are subjective, but this is a mistake. Back in the medieval period in Japan, scholars and critics argued the difference between 'wet' (emotional, subjective) and 'dry' (objective) as the desired basis for tanka.
Ah, tanka definition! Welcome to the favorite quarrel of armchair poets in Tankatown! I have generally refrained from offering much in the way of definition as I prefer to observe what happens rather than presume to dictate what 'should' happen.
Some tanka are a 'rush of five lines down' and don't break into parts, some have two, or three, or four, or five parts.
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