Can I have your thoughts on this haiku..

No...it's not mine just wondered how you would interpretate it if it was posted on here...

Setting on fire,

Smoke gives delight,

To a country fellow.

Hmm... that is interesting. Not sure if it should be taken literally? Because when I first read I thought of a villager being set on fire by his people or by the leaders in the town, from adultery, accusations of witchcraft or maybe treason?

OR
this country man has found comfort in the flames, and the control he can gain for setting things on fire... whether now he's keep warm, warming food, or burning objects/possessions.

I immediately thought of fall evenings up at my Dads house, because we have bon fires and he lives out in the country. Smoke doesn't exactly 'give delight', but it keeps the bugs away and that's really handy.

Thinking more on it, the obvious thing to me here would be talking about war. Country fellow meaning soldier, and obviously taking pride or liking the idea of war (I hope not lol).

Interesting, my take on it is perhaps a serial rapists, or child abuser, serial murder etc, has been let away with their crimes and so this person has took the law into his own hands and his thinking is that the town will be pleased he is dead?

SO the smoke means delight because the city will feel justice has been served or perhaps just safer in their neighbourhood?

Have you been wanting Law Abiding Citizen lately? Lol

A country man sets fire and the sight of smoke delights him, seeing the fire is going well. It is so simple that one can not see. They say do not make your sign too big because people would not notice it.
Gosh BR. didn't you see a man burning his family than going for smoke??

I can see what other people see but I also see what I said :) There are lots of ways to take this poem I think, I find it really interesting.

It could even be from an Ex-boyfriend burning a love letter or such, feeling delight that he is letting go of the past and the relationship then moving forward.

:)

Wow....I'm impressed by your interpretations and I'm so glad you all focused on that rather than saying it's more of a senryu...it doesn't follow the 5,7,5 syllable count etc.

Here is the story behind this verse....quite a chilling read!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-08-01/haiku-killer-reveals-remote-japanese-community-elderly-feud/4859726

That is awful :( some scary things happen in this world. I know age should not matter but I shamefully admit I thought this was a younger person and was shocked to find out his age.

As for the senryu -you are right - I did not even count the syllables or question the form being correct or not.

I hope the small town is able to recover from this :/

Comes to perspective after knowing the story not vice versa

At first I found BR's reading of this very disturbing. But somehow she was right, this was, about disturbing violence.

Gruesome story and a macabre application of literary talent worthy of Poe himself.

Note: re syllable count - in this case we don't know how the original would have fit into traditional structure rules since it was in Japanese, translated by someone more interested in the message than the form. In any case, English haiku, based in syllable count, is far removed from the use of traditional 'on' or morae in that language. We simply translate the weight of syllables and pauses into actual counting of syllables. NOT a Japanese tradition at all.

I see two things:

1. A man lighting up a cigarette, enjoying his surroundings as a crisp breeze flows in over the field of crops he's overseeing.

2. A passionate man who seeks civil justice, burning a flag as a symbolic attempt of defiance.

Or maybe it's about the reptilian brain and sex?

*Just read the article. Very interesting stuff.

^^ I saw the cigarette too when I finished reading....

Though, in my opinion the above example is a haiku.

because like someone told me:

"all senryu are a haiku but not all haiku are senyru"

and it makes sense, because is like

if someone says that senryu aren't haiku is like saying that humans aren't animals. We are part of nature.

EDIT: but yes, calling it senryu wouldn't hurt either.

I admit the article threw me.

My impression from the poem itself was a farmer burning leaves.

That's what my thoughts were too Larry. We are only allowed to burn off at certain times of the year here and there is always piles of branches etc that are gathered during the summer and burnt when we are allowed to do so. There is always great satisfaction when the pile is gone...nothing sinister..just a sigh of relief. Who would have thought that a haiku that appears so harmless could lead to premeditated murder.