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Saralyman Seryu ( Short poets of business people)
Japanese have a unique verse form
called “senryu”. It is very short and rhythmical like “haiku” having a
17-syllable verse form consisting of three metrical units of 5, 7, and 5
syllables. But senryu is very different from haiku in terms of its content in
that it is funny, cynical, and sarcastic. And “salaryman” is a Japanese-English
word referring to ordinary Japanese workers, who are generally struggling with
many concerns ? the downsizing of their companies, raising their children,
generation gaps, catching up with advanced information technologies, paying
mortgages, etc. So, as you see, in “salaryman senryu”,
Japan’s workers
express their true feelings and thoughts about their lives and their situations
with humor and wit. When they make fun of themselves and share their dismal
experiences by writing “senryu ”, they are able to let off steam or empathize
with each other at least. So, let me try to translate several senryu into
English. Even though the task of reproducing the original meanings and rhythms
in English is quite difficult, it seems very challenging and interesting to me.
Senryu often makes reference to various aspects of Japanese culture and history.
It also contains many puns and buzzwords. Please forgive me if I’m not able to
do well. (I avoided choosing the verses that convey things/concepts that are
uniquely Japanese; it seems impossible to covey the true meaning of these verses
to you without lengthy explanations.)
１.Every time, when stepping on a bath
scale, I constantly shift the position of my feet.
2. Awesome! I’ve
finally gotten a whole week off!
3. I have land and a house, but no room
in my home.
4. One day, I met an E-pal, and then, I found that he was my
husband!
5. I have no dreams even in my own dreams.
6. The boss,
who used to tell us to cut down on waste, was cut.
7. My son’s hairstyle
is like Beckham’s and mine is like Zidane’s.
8. Actually, we have another
meeting, in order to reduce the number of meetings.
9. My boss is the
only person that I can call my E-pal.
10.Why can’t you do your job as
fast as you type e-mail on your cell phone?
I quoted these senryu from this site:
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