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Paper short abstract

In this talk, I document how applying this poetic tradition to Nagasaki’s harrowing atomic wasteland has generated a new lineage of haiku that both challenges and adds to traditional expectations.

Paper long abstract

Years after the devastating U.S. atomic bombing of Nagasaki in August 1945, Matsuo Atsuyuki wrote numerous “atomic-bomb haiku,” many of which were collected in a 2015 volume entitled Lamentation (dōkoku). Matsuo’s gruesome and disturbing haiku challenge traditional conventions of the genre, traditionally known for evoking the beauty of the natural word, seasonal changes, and the transience of life. In the context of 1945-Nagasaki, the transience of life must, obviously, be front and forward. However, the beauty and seasonal changes are replaced by horror and catastrophic change. Matsuo’s first-hand experience is presented through scenes of a sprawling scorched earth, flies swarming around his dead child’s face, makeshift grave markers, and the prosaic task of securing death certificates. Later poems express unbearable grief as birthdays of his dead children come and go. Such works challenge conventional haiku expectations of evoking awe, wonder, nostalgia, and joy. Still, the genre’s aim has long been to jolt readers out of their ordinary experience, and therefore Matsuo’s efforts to thrust his readers into the unimaginable and painful atomic hellscape can be viewed as an important contribution to the legacy of Japanese haiku. In this talk, I document how applying this poetic tradition to Nagasaki’s harrowing atomic wasteland has generated a new lineage of haiku that both challenges and adds to traditional expectations. Additionally, I critique attempts to make Nagasaki’s atomic experience a national experience, underscoring the distinctness of each atomic attack and how this is provocatively captured by Matsuo in a handful of syllables.