I liked this pair because it was about two corrupt children. The first child is corrupt from birth with what I understood to be a birth defect. Maybe they were born addicted to drugs, or maybe they just had a defect that corrupt them. The second child was raised into corruption, not having a stable family or place to live. It was a really sad pair, especially because I could imagine the child from the first haiku growing up to become the child in the second. Sophie Kibiger, Fall 2018
I was attracted to this match based on the innocence in both with the use of a child as the main focus. In both haikus, it isn't the child's fault that they are in the situation that they are. How could it be with how young they are? In the first, I appreciate the use of specific words to emphasize the youthfulness. Periwinkle is a very young color and the child still needs to be cradles. In the second, the visual effect of the first two lines is incredible. These two haiku together match up very well. Naomi Klingbeil, Fall 2018
I loved this matched set because it took the most innocent subject or theme, a child, and put a more pessimistic twist on it. I also enjoy that these two haiku seem to work in reverse. While the first haiku starts pleasant, sweet and innocent, and then reveals a darker twist, the second haiku starts with an unsettling image, and then focuses on the innocent nature of the poor child. For both children, however, you can’t really sense any source of hope for their future, which I think really coincides with Kuro’s pessimistic view of life. Alissa Kanturek, Fall 2018 |
These were two of the most powerful haiku of this matching contest, so I liked that they were matched together. They don't have too much in common other than I get a solid imagery from both but there is still an air of mystery to both. How did the uncle end up in the sea and what happened to the wearers of the shoes? Both are chilling questions that gives them a layer of suspense and anxiety that I like. Hannah Ottenfeld, Fall 2018 |
This was a solid match. The contexts were very similar, in that the dogs in each situation are awaiting their current or potential owners, of which they usually will never meet. In both of these haiku, what I seemed to imagine was the hopefulness of each group of dogs. In Mary’s haiku, the dog has been alone all day, perhaps, and the high point of the day is always when the owner comes home. The dog cannot wait to be let out of its cage and jump all over the owner in excitement and welcome. This is very similar for the dogs in the pet shop. They are all meeting every person that comes by with the hopefulness that they will be wanted by someone, but the fact remains that most of these dogs will not be fulfilled in their hope of an owner, ending in their euthanasian. Logan Bader, Fall 2018 |
I matched these two together because they’re almost the same, just opposite. In the first haiku, it’s the owner who doesn’t return – maybe the abandoned their dog, maybe they got in a car accident, or maybe it just feels like forever in the dog’s mind and their owner is away on vacation. Whatever the answer, the owner isn’t returning to its dog. And then, in the second haiku the scenario is reversed. But this haiku can be taken a little bit darker. Ultimately, the haiku is alluding to the fact that this dog has died, whether they owner had to put him down, or it got hit by a car, or maybe just died in its sleep, the dog is no longer there. Both haikus are representing the feeling of absence and the absolute of being alone at the end of the day. These haikus fit Kuro’s pessimistic view of the world and how at the end of the day, we’re left with nothing except pain because every joy we have in life is going to be taken away from us at some point, the question is just when. Hannah Haedike, Fall 2018
Gosh these two are sad! This pair wasn’t even initially matched but they were instead voted on together, which makes it more interesting. Mary’s haiku is about a dog missing its owner, while Rachel’s haiku is about the owner missing their dog. I’ve been trying to decide why the owner has abandoned their dog in the first haiku and each option is incredibly sad. I thought about the owner getting sick and dying and leaving the dog alone, or the owner is a vet and has died fighting, or the owner had to leave the dog somewhere because they couldn’t take care of it. Either way, it’s pretty terrible. For the second haiku, I am assuming that the dog died. The saddest part is that the owner hasn’t gotten used to not hearing their dog at the door meaning that the death was too recent. Isabella Loutfi, Fall 2018
I enjoyed how these two haiku were so similar, even though they ended up being about “polar opposites” (cats vs dogs). While they start off with the same first line, I enjoyed comparing the last lines more. Both are only one word, and, because of that, leave a hollow, empty impression—much like the emptiness felt at the loss of a pet. Daria Koon, Fall 2018
I think these two make a good match because they have the same general idea but are opposites. Both haikus illustrate the relationship between a dog and its owner and the sadness they feel when they are separated. They are both very sad haiku because portray loss. In the first one, the dog probably doesn’t understand why its owner isn’t coming home, but, in the second one, the owner knows the dog isn’t returning. Haley Vemmer, Fall 2018
I think these two poems make a perfect matched pair. For starters, they both start out with the same exact line. Also, they are based around subject matter dealing with animals and loss. However, one poem is based on visual imagery and the other is based on auditory imagery. In the first poem, the author is triggered by the view of an empty cat bed while the author is triggered by the lack of dog barking in the second one. Though different imagery is used, they are connected in the fact that the emotion is provoked by the lack of something. Isabella Spiritoso, Fall 2018
This pair was interesting to me because they both are about losing a pet. I also related to the one about dogs because my grandfather had three dogs, but they have all passed away. One time when I was at his house, I dropped a fruit snack on the floor and expected one of the dogs to come eat it, but forgot they had all passed. I had a moment of realization they were gone that made me really sad, and this pair brought back that whole memory. I also enjoyed the way they both have the same first line accidentally. Zachary McReynolds, Fall 2018 |
I chose the less intense haiku of the Kuro pairs because some of the others are tough to read, let alone talk about. This pair, though, makes me smile. I remember the days of elementary school when I had pet fish. I never flushed the fish myself; my parents did when they died. It was always a sad moment when one died, but I never grew too attached to them anyway. That's what I had my dog for! Honestly, I was just excited to buy another fish once the previous one died. My favorite part was going to the pet store to pick out the prettiest one I could find. The second haiku reminds me of my years growing up, too. Whenever I saw a fly in the kitchen, I ran to the pantry and grabbed the flyswatter. I would climb up on the kitchen counters if I had to until I got the pesky fly. Flies still drive me nuts, and it is funny to read this haiku and see myself. Emily Sullins, Fall 2018 |
For some reason this poem really just stuck out to me. Most people wrote their deep dark Kuro haiku about rejection from another person or maybe a death of a family member, but I would have never to think of the idea to capture this kind of sad thought through an animal that's not a pet. I thought it was a very creative idea and very well represented the thoughts and mindset of Kuro haiku. Sydney Rudny, Fall 2018 |
|
