Abandoned Farmhouse

1. Kooser’s “Abandoned Farmhouse” narrates the perspective of the objects that are left in and around the house. Look around your own room and house. Choose 5-10 objects—they can be elements of nature or inanimate objects—and write them down. Then use these objects and try to think about what they would say about you if they spoke. Mimicking Kooser, give each object a “voice” and write a line that each object would say about your existence. Your response to this prompt can be a bulleted list.

2. Spend some time considering the poem’s perspective or point of view. Kooser invites the reader to meditate on and question how much can be known from observation alone. In three paragraphs, draft a response explaining how you feel the power of observation works in “Abandoned Farmhouse.” You might consider the element of mystery, the melancholy tone, or the idea that sometimes one can never really know what’s occurred. Consider how perception can be limited and how observation alone can be an incomplete form of knowledge.

3. The poem is structured around the concept of abandonment. The empty farmhouse is actually quite full—nearly everything the family owned was left or abandoned for some reason. In two to four paragraphs, draft a response in which you discuss abandonment in relation to Kooser’s poem.