Tanka Poems

Like an old, familiar song

Photo by Library of Congress on Unsplash

Japanese tanka’s
An old type of poetry.
The kanji for it
Means a short verse or short song,
So it should be lyrical.

Tankas use many
Literary devices,
Such as metaphors
And word association
And personification.

And similes, too.
Minimise punctuation.
(Unintentional).
A turn is a transition
Between the top and bottom.

In ancient Japan,
People would write and recite
Tankas at parties.
Lovers would exchange tankas
To demonstrate gratitude.

Just like a sonnet,
Tankas express emotion —
desires and pain.
Finally, personal thoughts
And feelings are important.

If you enjoyed learning about Tanka, you can read my guide on how to write one here: https://medium.com/tanka-town/what-is-a-tanka-2395d25c95d2