Analysis of the Korean Poetry: Sijo - Case Study Example

Analysis of the Korean Poetry: Sijo Institution Date Introduction The Sijo is a form of Korean poetic literature that emerged during the Goryeo period and gained popularity during the Joseon (McCann, 1988). As such, traditionally, this poetic form formed the rhetoric mindset of the Korean nation throughout the Yi dynasty. The Sijo at its best portrays intense passion, devotion and loyalty during the Confucian impassivity: at its worst, it being out mechanical formalism of oriental poetry. One characteristic element of Sijo is that the meaning must be deeper. The Sijo is characteristically composed of only three lines; however, a lot is contained within those three lines. The contemporary poet Yi Un-sang once described Sijo as a “form without a form”, meaning that the poem does give the individual considerable freedom over the basic pattern. However, if there did not exist a formal discipline, Sijo would not have a verse at all. Instead, it would be a prose of some kind. Structure of the Sijo Generally, Sijo is agreed to have three verses in each stanza. Each of these verses consists of a major pause in both rhythm and sense approximately at the centre (McCann, 1988). As opposed to the English verse or a caesura in Latin, it is not possible to syncopate a verse in Sijo with metrical feet. When one analyses Sijo, it is realised that this poetic form has nothing that can be categorised as a metrical foot. Even though there is a secondary pause in each half of the verse, it varies in position; hence, some Korean literature ignores it when describing the basic metre scheme of the sijo. There is always a certain structural pause placed in the first half verse of the third and last verse alone. The Korean verse lacks both the syllable length and accentual stress as metrical units. Nevertheless, accentual stresses play a critical role in the lure of the sijo rhythms. This makes it differ greatly from classical western verse forms (McCann, 1988). Differences also exist between sijo and Japanese and Korean verse forms because it does not follow a strict syllable count; however, the metre can only be described in terms of syllable groupings that have approximate syllable counts. The Form of the Sijo Depending on the composer, sijo has varied pattern and syllables. Given that some writers ignore the secondary pauses, these variations are acceptable. A comparison of the various patterns shows that sijo writers have worked with different metrical limits. However, there is a predisposition for certain groups to retain some relations to one another or remain constant. For example: In the last verse, the first group always has three syllables, which serve a petal role. In the last verse, the fourth group usually has three syllables. The fourth group and the third group in the middle and last verse, respectively, usually have four syllables. The first group of the first line is normally shorter than the subsequent one. In the last line, the second group is always at least five syllables. The sijo accomplishes charm of rhythm through the comparative weights of individual groups of syllables. The normal distribution of the weight of each group in relation to each other is best described by the form below: Table 1: Sijo form Line ("Jang") 1 ku 2 ku 3 ku 4 ku 1st line (Cho-jang) 3 (2-4) 4 (4-6) 4, 3 (2-5) 4 (4-6) 2nd line (Jung-jang) 3 (1-4) 4 (3-6) 4, 3 (2-5) 4 (4-6) 3rd line (Jong-jang) 3 (3) 5 (5-9) 4 (4-5) 3 (3-4) As indicated above, the rhythm is the same in the first two verses (McCann, 1988). However, the first and the third quarters have a lighter tone than the second and the fourth. As one can see, the last verse takes an altered form. In fact, it is taken from the second quarter, although it is truncated in the last group throughout the poem. The effect this has is that of slowing the rhythm of the last verse in the second group, which is long. However, this also compensates for the extra weight and determining the entire composition of the last group, which is very short. Relating it to the western poems, this last group gives the rhyming effect in the couplet at the closing of a Shakespearean sonnet. An example is the poem below written by Yun Seondo. You ask how many friends I have? Water and stone, bamboo and pine. The moon rising over the eastern hill is a joyful comrade. Besides these five companions, what other pleasure should I ask? (Yun Seondo: 1587-1671) An examination of Table 1 above reveals the relative values of the pauses as seen by the punctuations. The half verses contain the lightest comma, resulting to the briefest pause. The colon placed in the half-verse connotes an interruption between complete conceptual phrases. The two halves do not normally form a complete idea, but need an ensuing half verse for the verse to make sense. Each verse has a semicolon, which indicates that there is a sense at that point. The last verse contains colons that indicate a pause comparable to those in the preceding two verses. When the sijo is sung using a traditional flow, the last group forming the syllables is normally dropped. Again, the central pause located in the last verse varies in character and can be analogous to either quarter or half verse pauses used in the preceding lines (McCann, 1988). The metrical form characteristic of the sijo is mostly supported by the structure of sense of the poem. When making a comparison with other genres, there is a close resemblance between this and the Chinese poems that are strictly ruled, particularly those that emerged after the T’ang dynasty (McCann, 1988). Similarly, this resemblance is seen with the Shakespearean sonnet forms as well. However, this structure is hardly seen in Korean forms, but in Chinese forms written by Koreans. The classical sijo strictly follows the syllabic pattern. However, it does not basically count the syllables, making it more musical (phrasal) than syllabic. The poem, however, has its catch in the other techniques such as tone, sound, or surprise of meaning. The sijo, therefore, tends to be more personal and subjective and often takes a deep, humorous or proverbial turn. The questions or the tensions raised in preceding lines are resolved in the succeeding ending lines and provides a notable conclusion. As seen in the poem below by Chung Chul, the first line presents the theme or a problem, creating the premise of the entire poem. The second line develops the theme or the idea further, and the third line is the conclusion, which offers a solution to the problem. As indicated in the first half of the last line of this poem, there is a “twist” that brings about a surprise in the meaning of the poem (McCann, 1988). The originality of wit is profound in the strong emotional end. From the begging, the writer seems to care about the pinewood, but at the ending, it leaves the reader wondering if the composer really cares. Snow is falling on pine woods, blossoming white and exquisite I'll send a branch to my lord, to share its beauty, in good spirit After he sees the snow flowers, who cares if they start to split (Chung Chul: 1536-1593) There is a pleasing musical quality that is woven throughout in a sijo because the poem is often chanted, if not sung. However, unlike most western poems, the sijo does not mandate the use of imagery techniques such as metaphor, simile, or pun, even though they are often employed. One major characteristic of sijo is that it is often thematic or narrative, giving it a personal and lyrical form than other poetic forms of the region. Characteristically, sijo is primarily a song, whose lyric pattern gained a reputation in royal courts among the upper class or nobles through its ability to express philosophical and religious ideas. The Sijo Style and Language Some scholars are of the opinion that sijo is not a literary form. This argument is based on the fact that sijo is primarily a lyrical form that is sung. The poem form is so interlaced with its melody that the two cannot exist apart. Indeed, this art form is sung, and there are various singing styles. Some of the melodies characteristic of the sijo are based on its form, while others refer to the mood. In the “North Wind” by Kim Chong-sŏ, the poem is sung by a solo performer accompanied by wind instruments and a drum (McCann, 1988). In fact, this is the manner in which most sijo poems are performed. The North Wind moans amid the bare boughs, the moon shines coldly on the snow. I stand, sword in hand, on the fort at the frontier. I whistle; the sound re-echoes: let any attack who dare! (Kim Chong-sŏ) Like in other sijos, the syllables in the “North Wind” are prolonged so much that they are difficult for the listener to understand. The performance of the sijo progresses with high-pitched breath on the sharply accented initials of most of the syllables. This technique can be described as “dynamic”. To the ears of a foreigner, this suggests an urgent yearning that produces a tone of voice soaked in tears. Thus, it tends to compress all emotion to a single limited range. However, in reality, this is brought about by a consonant that connotes the prevailing sad mood characteristic of so many sijos. The charge of emotional twist found in the sijo gives it such an intellectual pleasure. However, it is the mood rather than the storyline that leaves the listener so impressed. In the poem by Kim Sang-Yong (1561-1636), for example, the symbolism can be easily taken at face value. Like other sijos that allude to the [prevailing weather, this poem, talks of a cold spring, symbolising the loneliness of the writer. In most sijo, there is the allusion to the environment, which helps set the mood (McCann, 1988). The sijo is very much comparable with the Chinese verse, especially because they are both improvised. This quality of oriental poetry is not seen in modern western poems. However, they also differ sharply in character in that the sijo is written to appeal to the ear while the Chinese verse appeals more to the eye. However, sijo uses a lot of Chinese characters, which helps it compress a lot of information into a few syllables. This lends to some sijo being categorised as Chinese poems. An example of such a composition is the “autumn song” by Sukchong (1675-1721). Despite these differences and similarities, it is important to note that most sijo are virtually integrations of the deep expressions of Chinese derivation into the gracious chemistry of the charming pure Korean words from which they obtain their grace of diction. Verbs in these compositions are often formed by questions, giving many of sijo poems their gently soliloquizing impression, as if plain statements were too unsophisticated for poetry (McCann, 1988). However, these should be seen as plain statements because even Korean conversation uses a lot of reflective questions where there are plain statements in English. Sijo uses a lot of puns as well, and these can have deliberate and serious comic effect. However, the playing with various sounds, particularly in verbs, which come out so smoothly in an agglutinative speech, and enhances so much the intonation of the rhythm. The Sijo Subject Matter There is no particular subject that sijo seeks to address. In fact, the subject is as wide as the human experience. However, one important identifier is that lack of religious subjects in this type of poem. In most cases, the subject revolves around ordinary experiences. This is, perhaps, due to the social environment at the time which most sijo were written. This was a time at which Confucianism was the dominant practice even though the Koreans at this time were traditionally Buddhists. Thus, most sijo have a twist in them that seeks to offer enlightenment. For example, in the opening phrase of the Great Learning, No Su-sin (1515-1590) writes “This car of … virtue … may scale the peak of understanding … and reach the pass of perfect knowledge”. This poem is an expression of the poet’s views on Confucianism. However, not all sijo of this period are intertwined with Confucianism. The majority relate to the experiences of simple, ordinary life. When relating to the social joys of the village, Kim Yu-gi, wrote “This morning we will go fishing … hunting … have a picnic … set up a kye … have archery”. This poem generally talks about the social life and the activities people partake in. however, while most of these poems related to the social events, some took rather deep psychological connotations. Conclusion The sijo has an enjoyable musical quality that is entwined intricately in the poem. Thus, to the western ear, this poetic form sounds more like a song. The word sijo itself is believed to have originally meant the musical version rather than the literal version of the poem. Many contemporary writers tend to believe that the sijo, being an oriental poetic form, was a seasonal poem as many art forms of this period contained a seasonal correspondence. Certain sijo are distinctly musical in their context. However, there are certain qualities such as the use of syllables, the accompaniment of musical instruments such as the drum, and the organisation of the form into three lines that make it neither a sing nor a poem. Hence, the sijo is seen to be a combination of both, interlacing certain qualities of these two art forms. However, the above analysis of the sijo genre indicates that it is actually a poem that incorporates some musical aspects in its performance. References Read More