The Feynman Lectures in Haiku by Adam T. Bogar

The Feynman Lectures in Haiku: 40 Found Haiku
by Adam T. Bogar

(2019 Cyberwit.net) 5.5” x 8.5” Staple-bound paperback. 47 Pages.
ISBN 9789389074352 cyberwit.net / www.amazon.com

​Reviewed by Robin Anna Smith.

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​For those unfamiliar, The Feynman Lectures on Physics by Nobel Prize-winner Richard P. Feynman is one of the widest read textbooks on physics. Some might think this type of material unsuitable for culling out found haiku. Page by page, Bogar demonstrates that such a notion couldn’t be further from the truth by delivering strongly topical, relevant, and thought-provoking ku for our consideration.  

Even if one isn’t familiar with the source text, Bogar’s book makes for an excellent collection of haiku—many with interesting juxtapositions that lend themselves to numerous readings—based on the words alone and their implied relationships. The additional dimension of reading the collection from a physics-related point of view allows for each poem to take on a new life.

Many of the haiku in this collection have a wonderful ambiguity to them, so while my commentary is discerned from my own reading of the poems, readers will, of course, find their own interpretations beyond these comments. While one doesn’t need to know a lot about physics to appreciate this collection, I do urge those not familiar with some of the concepts to use the internet and do a little research to enhance their enjoyment of the book.

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being carried by the wave--
or rather

This haiku brings to mind not only physical waves but waves of societal influence. It could be inclusive so as to encompass nearly endless trends, but whichever way it is read, it still poses the same challenge: do we choose to take the easy route by riding the wave or do we resist, hard as it might be, by going against the tide? 

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probability
we pretend we never looked

In the current era of what could be described as an anti-science movement, the above ku stands out as a great reflection of the falsehoods peddled as truth, the lack of checks and balances, and blatant disregard for hard evidence we see everywhere. This is not only an issue within sociopolitical movements but is also a part of bureaucratic manipulation, and capitalistic control of healthcare and research science.

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blackbody
separated by the present

A heavy-hitting haiku with perhaps a variety of readings, this ku is a strong reflection of the current state of racism and white supremacy. How these social structures are alive and flourishing, despite what we are told by our governments, despite “all of the progress that’s been made,” and so on. Black and brown people are still being oppressed by institutionalized racism and the unwillingness of many white people to recognize how they benefit from this system, regardless of whether or not they actively endorse it. 

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a new language--
we take the case

This is the concluding haiku of Bogar’s book and I feel it is a great way to end this collection. It suggests that despite the numerous challenges we might be facing today, we must not translate the past into something more palatable but, instead, go forward with a new language of hope and truth by owning up to our mistakes and creating an environment where they are less likely to recur.   
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It was very hard for me to narrow down the standout haiku in this collection. Bogar hits upon so many important themes and presents his haiku with strong and curious juxtapositions that I had numerous favorites. Other readers will undoubtedly have a similar experience with this stellar book of haiku.
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