How to Read a Japanese Poem offers a comprehensive approach to making
sense of traditional Japanese poetry of all genres and periods. Steven
D. Carter explains to Anglophone students the methods of composition and
literary interpretation used by Japanese poets, scholars, and critics
from ancient times to the present, and adds commentary that will assist
the modern reader.
How to Read a Japanese Poem presents readings of poems by major
figures such as Saigyō and Bashō as well as lesser known poets, with
nearly two hundred examples that encompass all genres of Japanese
poetry. The book gives attention to well-known forms such as haikai or
haiku, as well as ancient songs, comic poems, and linked verse. Each
chapter provides examples of a genre in chronological order, followed by
notes about authorship and other contextual details, including the time
of composition, physical setting, and social occasion. The commentaries
focus on a central feature of Japanese poetic discourse: that poems are
often occasional, written in specific situations, and are best read in
light of their milieu. Carter elucidates key concepts useful in
examining Japanese poetics as well as the technical vocabulary of
Japanese poetic discourse, familiarizing students with critical terms
and concepts. An appendix offers succinct definitions of technical terms
and essays on aesthetic ideals and devices.
