Author: ML and Cursor AI
Reports compared:
- 14 tanka (2025-03-13T19:00) — pages 27–33
- 18 tanka (2025-03-13T19:30) — pages 27–35
- 22 tanka (2025-03-13T19:54) — pages 27–37
- 50 tanka (2025-03-13T20:19) — pages 27–51
Question: How do form, function, and content change as the corpus grows?
| Line | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.8 | Stable |
| 2 | 6.6 | 6.7 | 6.6 | 6.5 | Stable |
| 3 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.8 | Stable |
| 4 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.5 | Stable |
| 5 | 6.1 | 6.2 | 6.3 | 6.3 | Stable |
Finding: The 5-7-5-7-7 pattern is stable across corpus size. Lines 2, 4, and 5 remain consistently longer than 1 and 3. The 50-tanka corpus shows line 1 slightly longer (4.8) and lines 2, 4 slightly shorter (6.5), but the overall pattern holds. Conclusion: Form is not sensitive to corpus size—the poems are structurally uniform across 14→50 tanka.
| Chars | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 18 | 23 | 27 | 67 | Scales |
| 6 | 21 | 27 | 35 | 66 | Scales |
| 4 | 15 | 17 | 21 | 57 | Scales |
| 7 | 8 | 12 | 15 | 38 | Scales |
| 3 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 17 | Scales |
Average: 5.26 → 5.27 → 5.29 → 5.24 characters per line.
Finding: The distribution scales proportionally—more lines are added in each category. The 5–6 character band remains dominant. The 50-tanka average (5.24) dips slightly, with more 4-char lines (57) relative to 5–6. Conclusion: No structural shift; new poems follow the same line-length distribution.
| Metric | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Range | 24–31 | 24–31 | 24–31 | 23–31 |
| Mean | ~26 | ~26 | ~26.5 | ~26 |
Finding: The range expands slightly at 50 tanka (23–31); the mean holds around 26. Poems 31, 47–50 introduce 23–24 char minimum. Conclusion: Poem length remains largely invariant; the 50-tanka corpus adds a few shorter poems.
| Corpus | の count | の per line (avg) |
|---|---|---|
| 14 tanka | 9 | 0.129 |
| 18 tanka | 11 | 0.122 |
| 22 tanka | 16 | 0.145 |
| 50 tanka | 40 | 0.160 |
Finding: The particle の increases monotonically in both count and per-line density. The 50-tanka corpus has the highest density (16% of lines end in の). Conclusion: The possessive/nominal chain structure (の) is strongly reinforced as the corpus grows to 50 tanka.
| Ending | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| に | 8 | 8 | 9 | 21 | Rise |
| き | 7 | 8 | 8 | 16 | Rise |
| を | 5 | 5 | 6 | 12 | Rise |
| し | 4 | 5 | 6 | 10 | Rise |
| む | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | Rise |
| ぬ | 2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | Rise |
| よ | 1 | — | 3 | 6 | Rise |
| へ | — | — | 3 | 6 | Rise |
| な | 4 | 5 | 5 | 13 | Rise |
Finding: All major particles scale with corpus size. な (13× at 50 tanka) rises sharply—more prohibitives and exclamations (春よ老いな, さて責むな). Conclusion: Rhetorical function continues to shift toward imperative, vocative, and prohibitive as the corpus grows to 50 tanka.
| Phrase | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| きし | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | Stable/rise |
| しき | — | — | — | 4 | Emerges at 50 |
| かな | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | Stable |
| の神 | — | 2 | 2 | 3 | Rise |
| まへ | — | — | 2 | 3 | Rise |
| かむ | — | — | 2 | 3 | Rise |
| 神の | — | — | 2 | 3 | Rise |
| 髪の | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | Stable |
| 春の | — | — | — | 2 | At 50 |
Finding: しき (4× at 50) emerges with うつくしき (beautiful)—a recurring aesthetic judgment. の神, まへ, かむ, 神の rise to 3. Conclusion: Function continues toward sacred address and petition; aesthetic judgment (うつくしき) becomes a distinct pattern at 50 tanka.
| Phrase | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 春の | 5 | 6 | 7 | 10 | Monotonic rise |
| 夜の | 2 | 4 | 5 | 11 | Surpasses 春の at 50 |
| たま / たまへ | 3 / 2 | 4 / 3 | 5 / 4 | 7 / 5 | Rise |
| わが | — | 4 | 4 | 5 | Rise |
| の神 | — | 3 | 4 | 6 | Rise |
| の御 | — | — | 3 | 4 | Rise |
| うつくし | — | — | — | 5 | Emerges at 50 |
Finding: 夜の (11) surpasses 春の (10) at 50 tanka—night gains lexical dominance. うつくし (beautiful) emerges as a distinct phrase (5×). Conclusion: At 50 tanka, night overtakes spring as the top phrase; aesthetic judgment (うつくし) becomes a recurring function.
| Kanji | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 春 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 15 | Monotonic rise |
| 夜 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 13 | Rise |
| 髪 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 11 | Rise |
| 子 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 10 | Rise |
| 神 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 10 | Rise |
| 水 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 8 | Rise |
| 御 | — | 3 | 4 | 8 | Rise |
| 歌 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 7 | Rise |
| 君 | — | — | — | 7 | Emerges at 50 |
| 花 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | Rise |
| 紅 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | Rise |
| 雨 | — | — | — | 4 | Emerges at 50 |
| 夏 | — | — | — | 4 | Emerges at 50 |
Finding: 春, 夜, 髪, 神 continue to rise. 君 (you/dear) emerges at 50 tanka (7×)—a major addressee. 雨 (rain), 夏 (summer) enter the lexicon. Conclusion: Content intensifies; second-person address (君) and seasonal/ elemental vocabulary (雨, 夏) expand at 50 tanka.
| Theme | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring (春) | 7/14 | 8/18 | 9/22 | 15+/50 | Proportion ~30% |
| Hair (髪) | 4 | 6 | 7 | 11 | Expansion |
| Night (夜) | 3 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 夜の surpasses 春の |
| 君 (you) | — | — | — | 7 | Emerges at 50 |
| Sacred figures | 3 | 5 | 6 | 10+ | Diversify |
| 雨 (rain) | — | — | — | 4 | Emerges at 50 |
| 夏 (summer) | — | — | — | 4 | Emerges at 50 |
| うつくし (beautiful) | — | — | — | 5 | Emerges at 50 |
| Place | — | 1 | 4 | 8+ | Expansion |
Finding: 夜 (13) now rivals 春 (15) in frequency; 夜の (11) surpasses 春の (10) as top phrase. 君 (you) emerges as major addressee. 雨, 夏, うつくし enter. Place expands: 夜の舞殿, 泉の底, ゆふべの宮, 廬舎那仏. Conclusion: Content diversifies further; night gains lexical dominance; second-person and aesthetic registers intensify.
| Word | 14 tanka | 18 tanka | 22 tanka | 50 tanka | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| spring | 6 | 7 | 8 | 15 | Rise |
| hair | 3 | 5 | 6 | 10 | Rise |
| god | 2 | 4 | 5 | 9 | Rise |
| love | — | 3 | 5 | 6 | Rise |
| you | — | — | — | 8 | Emerges at 50 |
| night | — | 3 | 4 | 10 | Rise |
| beautiful | — | 2 | — | 5 | Rise at 50 |
Finding: Spring, hair, god, love, night increase. You (8×) and beautiful (5×) emerge at 50 tanka. Conclusion: The thematic center intensifies; second-person and aesthetic registers rise.
| Aspect | Change | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| Mora pattern | Stable | 5-7-5-7-7 holds regardless of corpus size |
| Line length | Stable | Distribution scales proportionally |
| Poem length | Stable | 24–31 char range unchanged |
Conclusion: Form is robust and invariant across 14→50 tanka. No structural drift.
| Aspect | Change | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| の (possessive) | Rises | Density increases at 22 tanka |
| む (volitional) | Rises | More imperatives |
| よ (vocative) | Rises | More direct address |
| たまへ (please) | Rises | More petition |
| の神, 神の | Emerges/rises | Sacred address |
| の御 | Emerges at 22 | Honorific expansion |
| な (prohibitive) | Rises to 13 at 50 | More prohibitives/exclamations |
| うつくし (beautiful) | Emerges at 50 | Aesthetic judgment |
Conclusion: Function shifts toward petition, direct address, sacred register, and aesthetic judgment. The speaker becomes more assertive; うつくし thematizes beauty.
| Aspect | Change | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| 春 | Monotonic rise | Spring remains dominant |
| 夜, 髪, 神 | Rise | Sacred–erotic nexus strengthens |
| 紅 | Rises at 22 | Color/makeup intensifies |
| 御 | Emerges and rises | Honorific body/place |
| Sacred figures | Diversify | Night god → autumn god → bodhisattvas |
| Place | Expansion | Kyoto → 奥の院 → 山ごもり → 室むつまじ |
| 秋 | Emerges at 22 | Seasonal balance |
| 君 (you) | Emerges at 50 | Second-person addressee |
| 雨, 夏 | Emerge at 50 | Rain, summer |
| 夜の > 春の | At 50 | Night surpasses spring as top phrase |
Conclusion: Content intensifies and diversifies. At 50 tanka: 夜の surpasses 春の; 君 (you) emerges; 雨, 夏, うつくし enter. The honorific, sacred, and aesthetic registers expand.
Form is stable: The 5-7-5-7-7 pattern and line-length distribution do not change with corpus size across 14→50 tanka. The poems are structurally uniform.
Function becomes more assertive: As the corpus grows, the speaker petitions more (たまへ), uses more imperatives (む), vocatives (よ), and prohibitives (な), and addresses sacred figures more directly. At 50 tanka, aesthetic judgment (うつくし) becomes a recurring function.
Content intensifies and diversifies: Core themes (spring, hair, god) strengthen; new themes (autumn, bodhisattvas, rain, summer, 君) appear. At 50 tanka, 夜の surpasses 春の as the top phrase—night gains lexical dominance over spring.
Lexical shift at 50 tanka: 君 (you) emerges as a major addressee (7×); 雨 (rain), 夏 (summer) enter; うつくし (beautiful) appears 5×. The corpus gains second-person intimacy and seasonal/elemental range.
The sequence drives the change: The added poems (23–50, pages 38–51) introduce 夜の舞殿, 春雨, 廬舎那仏, 君みずや, 二十の夏, 泉の底の小百合花. The shift reflects a narrative or thematic progression through the collection.
Sample size: With 50 tanka (12.5% of the full 399), patterns are more robust. The 夜の > 春の shift and 君 emergence suggest genuine lexical evolution in the sequence rather than sampling noise.
Meta-analysis generated from comparison of tanka_analysis_report_2025-03-13T1900.md, T1930.md, T1954.md, and T2019.md.