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Sijo is a three-line Korean poetry form with 14-16 syllables per line and a pause. It has a narrative and thematic style, often with an unexpected twist in the last line. Sijo is similar to Japanese tanka and haiku and is often performed as a song. The focus is on creating well-constructed pairs of phrases rather than strict syllable counting.
A sijo is a three-line work of Korean poetry that adheres to the specific guideline of having 14-16 syllables per line with a pause in between. The term “sijo” is a modern term that includes both the singular and plural forms of the noun and replaced the traditional Korean word “danga”, which means “short song”. In this respect, a sijo can be thought of as a lyrical song. The theme of most traditional poems in the genre is natural, often expounding darker topics of the time period such as metaphysics and astronomy. Ancient danga eventually became popular in the Korean royal courts, as well as in the life of the common person through knowledge-seeking groups and an artistic subculture, as a way to express religious or philosophical ideas and concepts.
Sijo is thought to share a common ancestry with similar forms of Japanese poetry such as tanka and haiku. Like the well-known haiku style, its Korean counterpart uses a narrative and thematic style, bringing a dramatic flair and dynamic storytelling to the art form. The narrative is usually introduced in the first line of the poem in the form of a problem or situation, developed further in the second line with more information on the theme, and finally resolved in the third line. Well-written sijo poetry often includes an unexpected literary “twist” or pun in the first half of the last line. The unsuspected element, which often adds humor or wit to prose, may be in the form of a simple word or phrase or may be found as an unexpected tone or other alliteration.
The 14-16 syllable guideline can be further broken down into half lines that contain 6-9 syllables each. The rule is sometimes broken in the last half of the last line; many sijo poets write it to be shorter. Due to sijo’s lyrical nature and penchant for being performed as a song, its reading often resembles poetic Biblical phrases that are often included in Christian hymns and verbal devotions. A sijo is sometimes repetitive in nature, echoing key phrases or words, further exemplifying its common use as a song or chant.
Although sijo strictly adheres to syllable restrictions in general, many such poets do not count syllables carefully. Instead, they focus on the phrasal quality of the line. Their focus is on creating seamless, well-constructed pairs of phrases that help create a recognizable rhythm that can be easily sung or played on an accompanying musical instrument. Most of the pieces have no title; those that are titled are endowed with such usually as a means by which to include extra syllables or an extra line not permitted by traditional guidelines.
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