Haiku as Form and Experiment in the Russian-Language Poetry of the Late 20th – Early 21st Centuries

Abstract

The popularity of haiku and its composition by authors in the Russian language, as well as reflection on the definition of boundaries and formal criteria for belonging to this category of texts formed the frame for poetry of “haiku masters,” or haijin, who adhered to the strict canons of the original tradition, and poets who applied it for the purpose of creative experimentation, or allowed its free interpretation. At the turn of the 20^th and 21st centuries, the first printed platform that provided space for haiku written in any of these keys was the almanac Triton, the publication of which continued over four issues. This feature makes it a representative source for the analysis of the perception of haiku by Russian-speaking authors.

This paper focuses on those poets published on its pages who allowed the possibility of free interpretation of the poetic tradition of haiku, its domestication, or use for other purposes of creative transformation. In addition to the original haiku, the works included by the almanac’s compilers in the section called “At Haiku’s Neighborhood” are also considered, in which Russian-language threeline poems are inscribed in the context of haibun and uta-monogatari. The paper analyzes the features of these works and their relationship to the original tradition.