Humour in the Western Haiku

page 1 - Subjects: what do we laugh at?
page 2 - Ways: is the haiku noted or composed?
page 3 - Kinds: why do we write humour haiku?
page 4 - Methods: how do we write humour haiku?

Methods : how do we write humour haiku?

We use different methods but they all have in common the fact that they put two parts in touch with each other.

— Parallelism, we confront two unopposed things:

Here, the child's tooth and its substitute . . .

Pour que la fée vienne une dent sous l'oreiller celle de son chien	So the fairy comes a tooth under the pillow from the dog
Lisa Carducci (Canada, HFC p22)

There, the sound of the rain and of the chestnuts.

the rain is drumming
slowly - slowly are drumming
the ripe chestnuts too

Jasminka Djordjevic (Yugoslavia, HS)

Here the travelling . . .

Un nuage voyage sur le capot rutilant de l'automobile	A cloud travels on the gleaming bonnet of the car
Jean Marc Demabre (France, HSF p270)

Or, the double meaning of the zero.

The snow is falling
on the market scales —
absolute zero.

Clelia Ifrim (Romania, HSF p393)

— Opposition and contrast:

The big and the small.

Réal Berard sculpte un morceau de destin dans un dé de neige.	Réal Berard sculpts a piece of destiny in a dice of snow.
René Ammann (Canada, HFC p12)

Or as here, an inversion of reality.

Penché sur la flaque Ciel d'été, un oiseau passe Au dessous de moi.	Bent over the puddle Summer sky, a bird passes Under me.
Louis Raoul (France, FDC)

— Originality, a new vision:

Here the bringing together is more subtle. We bring together a common thing with a new way to see it.

En montant la côte la croix du cimetière plus grande à chaque pas.	Walking up the hill the cross of the graveyard every step greater.
Sylvie Langlois (Canada, HFC p55)

Une fille en bikini court et rit au-dessus de la neige sur un panneau réclame.	A girl in a bikini runs and laughs over the snow on the billboard.
Robert Melançon (Canada, HFC p66)

raking aside leaves
on the backyard pond
I release the moon

H.F. Noyes (Greece, HSF p281)

— Puns (mechanical):

The use of puns bring together different things, but generally with the same name.

Here, the "grain", the cereal and the squall (not translatable in English).

Sur le damier des plaines
le vieil élévateur
veille encore au grain

René Ammann (Canada, HFC p12)

Réveille-matin L'enfant saute Dans le lit des parents	Alarm clock The child jumping In the parents' bed
Raymond Guy Leblanc (Canada, HFC p58)

The "ciel", sky and ceiling of a room.

On martèle à coups de masse
La coupole du ciel
A la station service

Alain Kervern (Bretagne, France, TL)

In the following, "safe hands" — The woman tells about her pleasure of being in the steam bath in 'good' company (her lover) who has gentle hands for her . . .

Regnerischer Herbst. Im japanischen Dampfbad gut aufgeboden.	Rainy Autumn. In the Japanese steam bath I am in safe hands
Erika Schwalm (Germany HSF p41)

— Personification:

Here, behaviours are brought together.

Froide nuit d'hiver Nuage passant devant Lune à moustache.	Cold Winter night Cloud passing in front of Moon with moustache.
Louis Raoul (France, FDC)

— Presentation:

How are things presented? What is the structure of the speech?

Immediate effect, all is said. The reader doesn't have to add something. The haiku doesn't need reference to other things.

Samedi matin pluvieux — même le poisson dans son bocal n'a rien à faire	Rainy Saturday morning — even the fish in its bowl has nothing to do.
Yves Désy (Canada, HFC p37)

Delayed effect. The haiku needs some reflection, a context, an external link (delayed effect), an allusion (the most important part is unsaid).

revue de science oubliée sur le patio les fourmis s'instruisent	scientific review left behind in the patio learning from ants
Hugo Dufort (Canada, HFC p38)

l'univers est un grand mystère dit-il en regardant un carré de poireaux	the universe is a great mystery he says, watching a square of leeks
Jean Antonini (France)

Some questions to ponder: Is it possible to laugh at just about anything? Is humour more effective in a contrived or in a real situation?

page 1 - Subjects: what do we laugh at?
page 2 - Ways: is the haiku noted or composed?
page 3 - Kinds: why do we write humour haiku?
page 4 - Methods: how do we write humour haiku?

Bibliography

FDC : Flaques du chemin, Louis Raoul, Ed Traces, 2000
TL : tempslibres - free times web site
HFC : Haiku et Francophonie Canadienne, A. Duhaime, Ed David, 1999
HK-xx : Haiku, Zagreb
HS : Hasee web site
HSF : Haiku sans frontières, une anthologie mondiale, A. Duhaime, Ed. David, 1998
KNOTS : Knots, The Anthology of Southeastern European Haiku Poetry, D. Anakiev, Ed Prijatelj, 1999

Thanks to Billie Wilson who has revised my English translation.