The Far and the Near

“For a moment, the progress of the engine could be marked by heavy bellowing puffs of smoke that burst at spaced intervals above the edges of the meadow grass.”

When the passing train releases heavy bellowing puffs of smoke above the meadow grass, it marks its progress as well as the passing of time. This image of smoke bursting at spaced intervals creates a visual and auditory contrast against the backdrop of the tidy, serene house and its surroundings. In these descriptions, the engineer’s day-to-day routine is established for the reader, painting a clear picture of the small world he is a part of prior to retirement.

“But no matter what peril or tragedy he had known, the vision of the little house and the women waving to him with a brave free motion of the arm had become fixed in the mind of the engineer as something beautiful and enduring.”

The engineer’s perception of the little house and the women waving to him represents something beautiful and enduring in his mind. Despite the perils and tragedies he has experienced, this image has become a fixed and cherished part of his life, a romanticized version of reality that has helped him cope with difficult life experiences.

“He felt for them and for the little house in which they lived such tenderness as a man might feel for his own children.”

In this quote, the engineer’s profound emotional connection to the little house and the women who wave to him is emphasized. The author describes the engineer’s tenderness toward them with a simile, comparing his love for them to a man’s love for his own children, evoking a deep and heartfelt attachment. This sentiment reveals the engineer’s unwavering belief in the constancy and beauty represented by the house and its occupants.

“And at length, the picture of their lives was carved so sharply in his heart that he felt that he knew their lives completely, to every hour and moment of the day.”

This passage describes the engineer’s deep connection with the little house and the women who wave to him. The engineer’s daily encounters with the women and their house have shaped his perception of their lives, creating a profound emotional attachment.

“That day came. At last, the engineer stepped from a train onto the station platform of the town where these two women lived.”

The quoted passage highlights the engineer’s anticipation as he leaves his engineer role and enters retirement, stepping off his train for the final time. His first task is to visit the house and the women he has come to appreciate for 20 years. In his mind, he believes this to be a long-awaited, heartfelt, mutual closure.

“Everything was as strange to him as if he had never seen this town before.”

This quote uses a simile to reflect the engineer’s profound sense of disillusionment and disappointment as he ventures through town. Foreshadowing the despair to come, the town is not what he has imagined it to be. This moment first hints to the reader of the man’s unreliability and of the conflict to come.

“Could this be the town he had passed ten thousand times? Were these the same houses he had seen so often from the high windows of his cab?”

The engineer, confused and attempting to identify the town, finds only a discomforting unfamiliarity. In this passage, he particularly references the high windows of the train cab, suggesting he is desperately attempting to justify the differences he is experiencing simply in that he was looking at the town from a different angle while aboard the train.

“And the man plodded on slowly in the heat and dust.”

The phrase “plodded on slowly in the heat and dust” conveys the heaviness and disappointment weighing on the man’s heart as he approaches the house. His journey becomes progressively more difficult to fathom as he nears his location, represented in his hesitation and the hot, thick air impeding his steps.

“He knew at once that he had found the proper place.”

This quote captures the moment of the engineer’s arrival at the house he had longed to find. The original description of the house, with its tidy appearance and picturesque surroundings, created an image of an idyllic and enduring sanctuary. However, there is a stark contrast between the engineer’s idealized vision and the harsh reality he sees in the house, which lacks most of the traits he longed to see in person.

“But now that he had found it, now that he was here, why did his hand falter on the gate; why had the town, the road, the earth, the very entrance to this place he loved turned unfamiliar as the landscape of some ugly dream?”

The quote captures the profound disappointment and disillusionment experienced by the engineer upon reaching the house he had admired for so many years. These moments of hesitation and anxiety suggest the engineer is subconsciously attempting to preserve his idyllic ignorance, but this sense isn’t strong enough to prevent his arrival and meeting with the women in the home.

“And instantly, with a sense of bitter loss and grief, he was sorry he had come.”

This quote highlights the protagonist’s epiphany upon meeting the women he had admired from afar for so long. The description of the first woman’s appearance, with her harsh and pinched face, shatters the idealized image he had created in his mind. This realization fills him with regret and a profound sadness, as he sees his hopes and dreams crumble before him. This moment marks a turning point in the story, as the engineer’s romanticized perception clashes with the harsh reality of the situation, leaving him feeling disillusioned and aged.

“All the brave freedom, the warmth, and the affection that he had read into her gesture vanished in the moment that he saw her and heard her unfriendly tongue.”

In the quoted passage, the engineer’s perception of the woman and her house undergoes a drastic transformation upon meeting her in person. Initially, he had held a romanticized and idealized image of her and the house, symbolizing beauty, constancy, and enduring happiness. However, upon seeing her, he realizes that his perception was misguided.

“But he faltered on, fighting stubbornly against the horror of regret, confusion, disbelief that surged up in his spirit.”

In this moment, the engineer “stubbornly” proceeds to explain his presence and connection to the women despite his shame and discomfort, desperate to mend the situation despite the painful reality he is experiencing.