“Desperation” by Senryū

Karai Senryū was born in 1718 in Edo. A town official and frequent judge of poetry contests, he was responsible for popularizing a more whimsical or humorous variation of haiku that now bears his name (senryū). Some of his work is darkly ironic, as in this piece.

her parents, left
with just well rope and necks,
take a son-in-law

—translated by David Bowles on March 5, 2021

Original Japanese:

親達は井戸と首とで婿をとり
oyatachi wa
ido to kubi to de
muko o tori