Basho

This is the essential English edition of the complete poems of the eminent Japanese master of the haiku, Matsuo Basho. Matsuo Basho (1644-1694) is arguably the greatest figure in the history of Japanese literature and the master of the haiku.Basho: The Complete Haiku of Matsuo Basho offers in English a full picture of the haiku of Basho, 980 poems in all. Andrew Fitzsimons’ translation is the first to adhere strictly to form: all of the poems are translated following the syllabic count of the originals.This book also translates a number of Basho’s headnotes to poems ignored by previous English-language translators. In Fitzsimons’ beautiful rendering, Basho is much more than a philosopher of the natural world and the leading exponent of a refined Japanese sensibility.He is also a poet of queer love and eroticism; of the city as well as the country, the indoors and the outdoors, travel and staying put; of lonesomeness as well as the desire to be alone. His poetry explores the full range