Kobayashi
Issa (1763-1872) was born in Shinano (now Nigata prefecture). He was the first
son of a farmer . HIs mother died when he was three years old and five years
later he remarried . Issa's new stepmother was cold and Issa struggled with
family problems all his life . When he was fourteen he left Shinano and went
to Edo( which later became Tokyo) and began to study Haiku . His Haiku frequently
contain down to earth expressions and images of animals.
