He was a famous Japanese poet, still the most famous Japanese poet today.
100
What is the purpose of folktales?
To teach Japanese youth useful lessons.
200
Where did the Japanese language come from?
No one knows for sure, but some say it came from Chinese, Korean, and Portuguese.
200
What type of characters did they adapt into Japanese?
Chinese characters.
200
How many lines does a Haiku have?
Three
200
What did young Matsuo turn down when recognized of his capabilities?
Life in the city. He preferred the countryside.
200
What type of characters were common in Japanese folktales?
Animals
300
When did Japan get shut off from foreign influence?
In the 1700's.
300
Which one of the types of characters is used to understand universally understood signs?
Hiragana
300
What is one topic that the Japanese loved to write Haikus about?
Nature
300
What was speaking ill of Matsuo Basho's poetry considered eventually?
Blasphemy
300
In the tale, why did the frogs see their own cities?
The frogs stood on hind legs, so their eyes faced backwards.
400
What does "Mao" mean?
Fur or hair.
400
Name two of the forms of Japanese characters.
Kanji, Hiragana, Katakana, Romaji.
400
What is key to writing a good Haiku?
Imagery and discription
400
What status did Matsuo originally have before he left his old life?
He had a Samurai status
400
How were the folktales originally passed, and how are they passed today?
They were passed down orally, and now they are written down.
500
The capital of Japan moved, and then the standard way of speaking in the new capital became the new language standard. What were they two names of the cities?
The name of the first city was Kyoto, the final city was Tokyo.
500
How many characters does Kanji have?
Over 2000
500
Who was the first to write a poem that is relatively similar to modern Haikus?
Masaoka Shiki
500
In what year did Matsuo's house burn down, and in what year did his mother die?