It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a train

The production of railroads was one of the most prominent developments in America during the Industrial Revolution. They promoted communication across America and impacted society, the economy, and politics. The photo above serves to remind audiences of the past grandeur of steam locomotives and locomotives in general. Other forms of transportation, especially cars and airplanes, have overshadowed the importance of locomotives in the nation’s history.

The train illuminated against a pitch-black night sky suggests how locomotives once illuminated a society that was previously in the dark regarding technological advancements. The length of the train is depicted to be never ending, as is locomotives’ historical impact as trains are still used today, although less frequently. However, the appearance of the train fading away as we look from the front of the train to the more distant train cars emphasizes how there is less of a prevalence of locomotives in society.

The steam emitted from the locomotive emphasizes the life and vitality it has managed to uphold throughout the years. The plane on the screen is dull and the cars are parked to emphasize how stationary and unexciting new forms of transportation can be viewed. In contrast, the steam emphasizes that the locomotive is progressing on the track and it creates motion in a photo that otherwise feels cluttered and has too many focal points. With the variety of subjects in the photo, it is easy to overlook the train. The predominance of other elements in the photo and the “disappearance” of the train seem to be intentional as to mimic how people often forget about the importance of locomotives in reality.

 Noticeably the people in the photo are not associated with the train, but with the cars that they brought to the drive-in movie and the plane that they are watching on the screen. The couple in the foreground with their arms around each other also shows that people are often too distracted to appreciate something as common as transportation. The photo is a reminder of our tendency to take everyday things for granted.