Rhyming, Ramblings, and Road Runners

I've spent much of today working on my freshman writing seminar paper about Bob Dylan's song "With God on our Side." I had a little trouble getting started, but the first draft made me feel pride. One thing I discussed in this paper was Dylan's rhyming pattern, or at least I tried. Which brings me to the age-old topic of rhyming, now let me be your guide.

First off, let me answer a couple of frequently asked questions. Aren't poems supposed to rhyme? Aren't haikus a type of poem? And what's that random little area below your nose and above your lip?

Poems don't have to rhyme. Yes, it is true that rhyming makes them easier to read, and oftentimes more fun, but some of the greatest poets of all time did not use rhyme (for instance, William Carlos Williams and.... that's all I've got). And yes haikus are poetry. And I have no idea what that area is called, although at one point I did know.

So here's the best way to explain rhyming in haiku, as I see it:

Haikus need not rhyme
The beauty is in the lines
Though rhyme's fine sometimes


So as you can see, here is an example of a normal haiku without a rhyme pattern. See, the problem with having rhyming is that it divides the lines of the haiku into three separate entities, making each line stand alone rather than flowing together as one. It's a nice effect in some instances, but makes the haiku harder to write and is oftentimes debilitating for the poem.

This post is much lacking silliness, so I have decided to augment it with some random haikus that have nothing to do with rhyming, poetry, haikus, or anything else in this post.


You ever wonder
What life would be like without
Plastic coat hangers?

Frank Gehry's buildings
Are really innovative,
But what about rain?

Haikus are always
Five-seven-five syllables:
This is no exception

Verbal polka dots
Really make much more sense than
Mental polka dots
(This one was a commission. Don't question its nonsensicalness)

Alliteration
Always acts as an able,
Apt augmentation


That any better?..... No, I suppose not really. Oh well, I apologize. I shall make it up to you in tomorrow morning's post. Tell you what.... to show that I'm not kidding, I will give you a little teaser trailer of Wednesday's haiku:

The