Abandoned Farmhouse

By: Ted Kooser

Created by: Taylor Coulbourne

He was a big man, says the size of his shoeson a pile of broken dishes by the house; a tall man too, says the length of the bedin an upstairs room; and a good, God-fearing man,says the Bible with a broken backon the floor below the window, dusty with sun;but not a man for farming, say the fieldscluttered with boulders and the leaky barn.

A woman lived with him, says the bedroom wallpapered with lilacs and the kitchen shelvescovered with oilcloth, and they had a child,says the sandbox made from a tractor tire.Money was scarce, say the jars of plum preservesand canned tomatoes sealed in the cellar hole.And the winters cold, say the rags in the window frames.It was lonely here, says the narrow country road.

Something went wrong, says the empty housein the weed-choked yard. Stones in the fieldssay he was not a farmer; the still-sealed jarsin the cellar say she left in a nervous haste.And the child? Its toys are strewn in the yardlike branches after a storm—a rubber cow,a rusty tractor with a broken plow,a doll in overalls. Something went wrong, they say.

Poem:

Biographical information:

– He served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004 to 2006.

– Kooser awards, NEA fellowships in poetry, a Pushcart Prize, the Stanley Kunitz Prize from Columbia, and a Merit Award from the Nebraska Arts Council. In the fall of 2004, Kooser was appointed the Library of Congress’s thirteenth Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry.

He was a big man, says the size of his shoeson a pile of broken dishes by the house; a tall man too, says the length of the bedin an upstairs room; and a good, God-fearing man,says the Bible with a broken backon the floor below the window, dusty with sun;but not a man for farming, say the fieldscluttered with boulders and the leaky barn.

A woman lived with him, says the bedroom wallpapered with lilacs and the kitchen shelvescovered with oilcloth, and they had a child,says the sandbox made from a tractor tire.Money was scarce, say the jars of plum preservesand canned tomatoes sealed in the cellar hole.And the winters cold, say the rags in the window frames.It was lonely here, says the narrow country road.

Something went wrong, says the empty housein the weed-choked yard. Stones in the fieldssay he was not a farmer; the still-sealed jarsin the cellar say she left in a nervous haste.And the child? Its toys are strewn in the yardlike branches after a storm—a rubber cow,a rusty tractor with a broken plow,a doll in overalls. Something went wrong, they say.

Structure of the poem:

- The poet used 3 stanzas and 24 lines.

- Each line has a rhythmic beat of 11.

- The poem has no rhyme scheme.

- This poem is a free verse.

Speaker:

– The speaker in this poem pays close attention.

– He looks for details, looks beyond the eye.

– The speaker was very absorbent.

Imagery:

A woman lived with him, says the bedroom wall

papered with lilacs and the kitchen shelves

covered with oilcloth, and they had a child,

says the sandbox made from a tractor tire.

Money was scarce, say the jars of plum preserves

and canned tomatoes sealed in the cellar hole.

Imagery:

Something went wrong, says the empty house

in the weed-choked yard. Stones in the fields

say he was not a farmer; the still-sealed jars

in the cellar say she left in a nervous haste.

Imagery:

And the child? Its toys are strewn in the yard

like branches after a storm—a rubber cow,

a rusty tractor with a broken plow,

a doll in overalls. Something went wrong, they say.

They are on an abandon farm and left in a hurry.

Literary term:

Its toys are strewn in the yard Smiley like branches after a storm—a rubber cow,

a rusty tractor with a broken plow,

a doll in overalls. Something went wrong, they say.

literary term:

He was a big man, says the size of his shoes

on a pile of broken dishes by the house;

a tall man too, says the length of the bed. Personification.

Literary term:

A woman lived with him, says the bedroom wall

papered with lilacs and the kitchen shelves

covered with oilcloth, and they had a child,

says the sandbox made from a tractor tire. Personification.

Literary term:

He was a big man, says the size of his shoes

on a pile of broken dishes by the house;

a tall man too, says the length of the bed

in an upstairs room; and a good, God-fearing man, Alliteration.

says the Bible with a broken back

Literary term:

He was a big man, says the size of his shoes

on a pile of broken dishes by the house;

a tall man too, says the length of the bed

in an upstairs room; and a good, God-fearing man,

says the Bible with a broken back Alliteration.

Literal Meaning:

– The poem was about how someone went to a farmhouse and found out it was abandon. They looked around and saw they had a kid, mom, and a dad. The man was not a farmer and were short on money.

Figurative Meaning:

- The family had little money from the leaky barn and the sandbox made from a tractor tire. There were toys every where in the yard so they were in a hurry to leave. There was a women in the house because there was laics on the wall.

Author purpose:

– To show how the family made due of what they had and improvised. He wanted to show you have to look beyond fo what you can see.

Theme:

– The theme is that even though a family had little money they still made the best of what they had.

Cites:

– http://www.wideopencountry.com/make-playground-recycled-tires/

– http://fineartamerica.com/featured/goldenrod-and-stone-wall-in-farm-field-sky-maine-keith-webber-jr.html

– http://www.altonmaterials.com/recycling-farm-scrap-metal-for-money/

– http://www.amazon.com/Trumpette-Howdy-Bouncy-Rubber-White/dp/B001FWY1H0