A Train Went Through a Burial Gate

A Train Went Through a Burial Gate - meaning Summary

Life's Small, Defiant Song

The poem sketches a brief, vivid scene: a train passes through a graveyard gate while a bird bursts into song, filling the churchyard and then composing itself to “say good-by to men.” It contrasts an impersonal mechanical intrusion with a small, animate ritual. The bird’s music reads as a farewell and a claim of presence amid death, suggesting quiet continuity and interpersonal address in an otherwise solemn setting.