Far Beyond the Field

by Makoto Ueda (editor)

Far Beyond the Field is a first-of-its-kind anthology of haiku by Japanese women, collecting translations of four hundred haiku written by twenty poets from the seventeenth century to the present. By arranging the poems chronologically, Makoto Ueda has created an overview of the way in which this enigmatic seventeen-syllable form has been used and experimented with during different eras. At the same time, the reader is admitted to the often marginalized world of female experience in Japan, revealing voices every bit as rich and colorful, and perhaps even more lyrical and erotic, than those found in male haiku.

Listen, for instance, to Chiyojo, who worked in what has been long thought of as the dark age of haiku during the eighteenth century, but who composed exquisitely fine poems tracing the smallest workings of nature. Or Katsuro Nobuko, who wrote powerfully erotic poems when she was widowed after only two years of marriage. And here, too, is a voice from today, Mayuzumi Madoka, whose meditations on romantic love represent a fresh new approach to haiku.

Genres: Poetry, Japan, Feminism, Asian Literature, Japanese Literature

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Makoto Ueda (上田 真 Ueda Makoto, born 1931) is a professor emeritus of Japanese literature at Stanford University.

He earned a Ph.D. in comparative literature in 1961.

In 2004-2005 he served as the honorary curator of the American Haiku Archives at the California State Library in Sacramento, California. He was given that honor "in recognition of Ueda’s many decades of academic writing about haiku and related genres and his leading translations of Japanese haiku." The library added that "Ueda has been our most consistently useful source for information on Japanese haiku, as well as our finest source for the poems in translation, from Bashô to the present day." His work on female poets and 20th century poets "had an enormous impact".

He is an author of numerous books about Japanese literature and in particular Haiku, Senryū, Tanka, and Japanese poetics.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[S.B. Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Haiku were traditionally the purview of men in Japanese culture. Educated women of court wrote the longer and more lyrical Tanka but Haiku developed from the starting stanza in longer linked poems that were composed at social gatherings held for that purpose. Generally speaking the women served and performed hostess duties at these gatherings rather than participating in the creation of poetry.

In Far Beyond the Field, far-beyond-the-fieldhowever, Mokoto Ueda demonstrates that Japanese women have been present from the very beginning of the form, writing contemporaneously with some of the noted Masters. In this collection Ueda has compiled 400 Haiku of some 20 poets in a selection that gives the reader a substantial survey of the field from the 1630’s to the present day.

Ueda also noted that in terms of gender, the field of contemporary Haiku poetry is dominated by women poets (some 70%) though men do still fill the majority of roles as critics and anthologists.

Having read a fair amount of Basho, Issa, Buson and Shiki the most striking difference I observed is in the content. Sure there are nature sketches, observations of the world and people’s general interaction with it but it doesn’t seem to matter what period the female poets are drawn from, there is a strong focus on women’s concerns and the oppression they feel. Read more at myblog

[Freyja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Baru tau ternyata haiku dulunya dianggap sebagai puisi yang 'maskulin' dan jarang sekali penyair perempuan diakui di kalangan mereka. Alasannya selain karena patriarki yang kental, juga karena perspektif yang tertanam sejak era Heian ketika bangsawan perempuan banyak menulis tanka sedangkan laki-laki baru menulis haiku beberapa abad kemudian (so you mean women invented poetry? /j). Selain itu, menulis haiku itu ternyata kegiatan sosial gais, jadi diadakan pertemuan-pertemuan di mana para penyair haiku bisa nulis bareng-bareng dan saling menunjukkan karya mereka. Jadi yang laki pada nulis nih kan, perempuan lah yang bertugas masak dan bersih-bersih dan menyiapkan mereka makan dan jagain anak dan ya gitu deh. Tapi, batasan sosial nggak menghentikan penyair perempuan untuk terus menulis. Suka sekali baca biografi pendek dan latar belakang perempuan yang berbeda-beda di sini; ada yang memutuskan jadi biarawati lalu berkelana keliling Jepang supaya bisa nulis haiku kayak Basho, ada yang seorang ibu rumah tangga, ada yang terang-terangan menolak peran gender yang dipaksakan ke mereka. Haiku karya mereka semua nggak cuma cantik aja, tapi juga terasa sangat personal dan punya karakteristik yang berbeda-beda.

[morbidflight · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is an essential book, and full of good historical context for the pilgrimage through haiku-land. The collection is a bit uneven, but all of the haiku are good. Some are even great. The biographical notes are interesting and add context to the askew observations (the haiku).

I always think of haiku as a hand slashing through the air. They're slanty in a crisp way. These haiku sometimes slash through the experience of being a woman (and that's valuable to read).

[M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the introduction a lot, for the overview on the historical context and the sensible manner used to talk about women's history without denying Japan's patriarchal leanings. I like the earlier poetry more than the new but that's a question of taste. I also particularly approve of the inclusion of Christian poets, being a minority in Japan (a Methodist and Catholic).

[Don Wentworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the finest collections of Japanese haiku in English, Far Beyond the Field:Haiku by Japanese is simply a must for students and fans of the world's most important diminutive poetic form.

Ranging from the late 17th century through the early 21st, this anthology serves not only a history of haiku but a cultural map of women in Japanes society. Here are a handful of examples:


a bush warbler -
my hands in the kitchen sink
rest for a while
- Kawai Chigetsu, 1634? - 1718



loneliness
lies within the listener -
a cuckoo's call
- Chiyojo, 1703-1775



haiku poet,
a caring mother -
this summer I'm a wreck
- Sugita Hisago, 1890-1946



evening cherry blossoms -
the faces looking up
grow dusky, too
- Katsura Nobuko, 1914 - 2004



a man enters
the room, disturbing the scent
of daffodils
- Yoshino Yoshiko, 1915 -



while the one
peels a white peach
the other weeps
- Kuroda Momoko, 1938 -



These few examples give a mere glimpse at the wealth of poetic splendor on display. Edited and translated by the renowned, esteemed Makoto Ueda, this is a collection you will return to through the years for equal parts enjoyment and wisdom.

- Don Wentworth

[Karla Deniss · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology is beautiful. It collects haiku by 20 different women from the seventeenth century to the present and I really liked seeing how their style and themes changed throughout those years. Every chapter starts with a short biographical note on each poet and the information Ueda included is pretty interesting, focusing on what kind of family they came from, if/how they struggled to write haiku, their career and published work.

I really enjoyed every page of this book, specially the last part dedicated to modern writers. I love how they still wrote about baskets full of flowers and fish, the sound of leaves during an autumn walk and the cherry blossoms, but they were also influenced by Western culture and included references to The Beatles, Coca-cola, McDonald's and luxury german cars.

A few favorites:

pine mushrooms
live a thousand years
in one autumn

Den Sutejo

short summer night
shall I throw away this baby
crying for milk?

seashells on the table
concealing the melodies
of the deep sea

Takeshita Shizunojo

fugu soup—
on the wall, a great big
John Lennon

Kuroda Momoko

like a dead
body, I try to stay afloat
in the pool

Mayuzumi Madoka

with a man
at Kentucky Fried Chicken
I grieve spring’s departure

Tsuji Momoko

[Xenia Tran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Makoto Ueda has compiled and translated this anthology of haiku by twenty Japanese women writers from the 17th century to the start of the 21st century and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this collection of work. As with the male haiku poets, the style of writing shifts over time and Ueda gives a helpful introduction at the beginning of each section, outlining the teachers and peers the poet was influenced by. For example, Kawai Chigetsu (1634-1718) was a student of Basho and also a close friend outside the teacher-student relationship. His influence in her haiku is present in the way that her influence may be present in Basho's haiku too.

I particularly enjoyed Tagami Kikusha's (1753-1826) poetry, who dedicated her life to poetry and traveled to Northeastern Japan, tracing Basho's itenerary from 'The Narrow Road to the Deep North' in reverse order.

This is a book I will continue to revisit whilst researching some of the female poets' work outside of this book too.

As with so many translated works, I do get the sense that something that was present in the originals has been lost, and something new has been added, with the best of intentions, in these interpretations. I would be interested to read more from these poets, especially when translated by a female interpreter.

[Jacob D. Salzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an exceptional anthology of haiku by Japanese women. In Japanese history, traditionally, Japanese women mostly wrote tanka and were often excluded from male-oriented haiku circles. This anthology reveals that Japanese women were also writing excellent haiku, and they continue to write excellent haiku today. Their haiku in this annthology show emotional depth, creativity, and vulnerability. Their haiku also reveal what life was like at home, which sometimes involved challenging social norms, as well as romantic moments. This is one of my favorite haiku anthologies. It is beautifully curated, and includes excellent footnotes that shed more light on the translations as well. I highly recommend this book.

Reviewed by Jacob D. Salzer, author of Sea Wind: Haiku (Lulu, 2025), My First Trip to Japan (Lulu, 2025), A Lost Prophet: Haiku & Tanka (Brooks Books, 2024), and Unplugged- Haiku & Tanka (Lulu, 2022)

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many incredibly beautiful and, more than that, important haiku collected in this anthology. And learning about these women, who are largely ignored when we think of the "great haiku poets" is essential to understanding the art form. All I can say is I was in awe of this masterful collection, and wish there could be 10 volumes of it, and that these haiku masters were more well-known by the mainstream.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of haiku by Japanese women translated into English. Each poet is highlighted with a biographical essay and selection of their poems.

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful collection of Haikus. I enjoyed the biographic information included about each poet as well.

[Ben Rasmussen · Rating 5 out of 5]

While there were several poets whose haiku didn't resonate with me, overall I thoroughly enjoyed this collection and am a bit sad that I have reached the end.

[Doug Ford · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the very best haiku books in English EVER!

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book to teach! This is an important and rare collection of haiku by women. I enjoyed Maketo’s scholarly introductions in particular; there is so much valuable information about these women and about the history of the haiku and other forms used at the time. Seifu and Hisajo were my favorite poets of this group.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating compilation of haiku by Japanese women from the 1600s to the present day. It is a book I shall return to, often! A book to savour!

[Agnieszka Mauch · Rating 5 out of 5]

All poetry lovers should make it their compulsory read. It is so beautiful. Plus, it has a historical outline and short biographies of each author at the begining of a haiku set. Some of the haiku made me cry, honest to god. You can learn so much from this book if you're a budding haiku writer.

[Patricia Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful anthology of haiku by Japanese women, collecting 400 haiku by 20 poets from the 17th century to the present (the book was published in 2003). Different voices and styles, but all beautiful and lyrical, thought-provoking and insightful. A lovely book!

[Ronaldo · Rating 5 out of 5]

"toward thin ice
my shadow moves, moves
till it’s drowned"

Beautiful collection with brief but informative profiles of the backgrounds and personalities of the featured women