The Far and the Near

Content Warning: This section briefly references death by suicide.

“The Far and the Near” reflects the historical context of the time in which it was written: the period between World War I and World War II, during the height of the Great Depression. The story captures the sentiments and experiences of individuals during this era of rapid industrialization and societal change. Wolfe’s story parallels these rapid societal changes in the engineer’s disillusionment and his clinging to his expired ideals. His life aboard the train was repetitive but comforting in its predictability. Stepping off the train into the real world upon retirement brings him immense regret and discomfort when he realizes that the world is not at all what he imagined it to be. He also reflects that he suddenly feels he is an old man and that he should have stayed somehow in his state of fantasy. Through his experiences, Thomas Wolfe suggests that the older generation during this period of industrialization was likewise confronted with a world they suddenly did not recognize and may have found unnerving.

Amidst this historical backdrop and emotional tone, Wolfe organizes his story along a linear chronology to emphasize the engineer’s relationship to the passage of time. The narration begins with a past-tense reflection of his many years of employment aboard his train and progresses to a present-tense narrative when he steps off the train in retirement. The initial narration efficiently summarizes 20 years of experiences, with the house and the two women at the center of his world and his subsequent happy memories. The details with which these memories are described, including the color of the blinds and the woman’s changing moods through the house window, establish the long-standing emotional connection the engineer had with his perspective of the house and its inhabitants.

The engineer also witnessed a number of tragedies while driving the train, including many deaths that were out of his control and that he was unable to avoid. These include a family car stuck on the tracks and a death by suicide. These heavy experiences are counterbalanced by the ever-present waving women, who always bring joy to the engineer’s sometimes brutal career. These opening passages reflect the engineer’s longstanding connection to the train and his deep emotional attachment to the women who wave to him, all while time passes beyond. Though the engineer recognizes some effects of passing time, his perspective on the world remains unchanged until he encounters the same people and places in a new context.

Imagery abounds in this very short story, particularly regarding the house. Wolfe uses details such as the neatly patterned garden, the three mighty oaks, and the border of gay flowers, to create an idyllic setting and invoke feelings in the reader that mirror the engineer’s own. The atmosphere at the beginning of the passage is peaceful, with the tidy cottage, garden, and oaks providing a sense of comfort, security, tranquility, and orderliness. Initially, the reader is led to trust the engineer’s memories and to experience longing and a sense of peace at the thought of such a house. These details, aside from highlighting how intimately acquainted the engineer is with the residence, draw the reader into the narration and depict a paradise that the engineer can never quite reach.

The introduction of the passing train, a recurring event in the story, serves not only to build upon the engineer’s character but also to establish the consistent, progressive aspect of time itself. The author uses these passages to evoke a sense of motion and sound in describing the passing train: “It swung into view deliberately, swept past with a powerful swaying motion of the engine, a low smooth rumble of his heavy cars upon pressed steel, and then it vanished in the cut” and “heavy bellowing puffs of smoke” (Paragraph 2). The train thus symbolizes The Relentless Passage of Time amidst a backdrop of social progress and a rapidly changing world. The language associated with the train supplies the reader with an immersive, sensory-revealing description of life aboard a train year after year. The vivid imagery of the passing train—the bellowing puffs of smoke and the clacking tempo of the wheels—create a sense of movement and anticipation as the story progresses toward the action in the second half.

Previously in a past tense, limited third-person point of view, the narration shifts to present tense upon the engineer’s retirement. Wolfe also lessens the psychological distance between the narration and the engineer, meaning that the tone and sentiment of the narration closely match the engineer’s interiority. This brings the reader nearer to the character’s mind for the climactic action of the story. Wolfe gives the reader access to the engineer’s observations, feelings, and reactions as he walks through town and approaches his beloved house. This shift in tense is aligned with his reentering of the outside world post-career. The narration becoming an active scene instead of a past reflection accentuates the jarring change in the man’s perspective and literally places him in the fast-moving external world for the first time.

The engineer feels a sense of dread and immediate disconnection from the world around him as he progresses through town, hinting to the reader of the stark reality to come. He even considers turning back, so unnerved by the disconnection he is experiencing at seeing the town from a different perspective. This gut feeling unfortunately proves to be correct for the engineer, as he is immediately filled with regret upon knocking on the door of the cottage. Despite his feelings of self-preservation, he meets the woman and her daughter. This meeting reveals a drastic disparity between the engineer’s romanticized perception and the reality he encounters upon arriving at their home.

The atmosphere of the home, both inside and out, becomes disorienting and unsettling, reflecting his confusion and disappointment: “The town, the road, the earth, the very entrance to this place he loved turned unfamiliar” and “ugly to him” (Paragraph 10). The women he had idealized and cherished in his imagination now appear harsh, suspicious, and unkind. Even the house appears dim and unwelcoming, contrary to its picturesque nature in his memory. While narrator reliability perhaps wasn’t an immediate concern for the reader, the narration retroactively becomes unreliable in this second half of the story. The engineer’s heightened fantasies about the home, a dream-like cottage on the outskirts of a town, and the women, smiling perfectly and waving, sharply contrast with the experience the engineer has at the end of the story—so much so that the reader may feel the same disillusioned response to the narrator himself. Just as the engineer is heartbroken at his Idealized Perception Versus Reality, the same reality calls the engineer’s reliability into question. Despite his intentions and beliefs, it becomes increasingly clear that the engineer has exaggerated his memories of the family and has created a sense of distrust with the reader.   

The story additionally highlights The Value and Impermanence of Human Connection and the inherent loneliness within the human experience. The engineer felt a strong connection with the women, so much so that their memory helped him through difficult times in his life. This connection seemed mutual, but upon meeting the women, he realizes his affection is unreturned. This realization recontextualizes all of his years aboard the train and deconstructs the part of his identity built around this idyllic connection. Now, suddenly realizing his age, the engineer feels part of a reality he doesn’t recognize or want to be a part of. He regrets meeting the woman and her daughter and wants to return to his ignorance, when he felt a sense of connection he was able to rely upon. Notably, none of these characters are given a name. The characters themselves, too, are impermanent in the grand scheme of life, which moves on regardless of human affairs, and their anonymity reinforces this sense of fleeting existence.  

Through vivid imagery, a shift in tense and psychic distance, and an emotional protagonist evoking empathy in the reader, this story delves into the complexities of the human experience and the profound impact of fleeting moments. Wolfe’s storytelling invites readers to contemplate the reality behind one’s thoughts and emotions, resulting in a timeless short story that captures the intricate nuances in everyday life.