In Train, the author, Danny Cohen, examines the recurring symbol of a train throughout the novel in the characters and plot. After examining the symbol in the book, it is clear to me that the train is a symbol of a new life and opportunities and how it can be positive and negative.

     A place in the text that is an example of my claim is evident is when Marko is boarding the train to leave Germany. Marko is finally leaving after hiding his true self for most of his life. This is representative of Marko leaving his old life behind and entering a new different life that is filled with opportunities and optimism for a new beginning ahead but is also ambiguous as the reader does not know what will happen next.

Another example where this theme is shown is on page 328. Kizzy is sitting on a train that has just arrived at Auschwitz Birkenau. Although she does not know it at the time, this is a train that has just brought her to her death. This highlights how the train transports her to a new life that is very different than the life she lived before. This illuminates how this vehicle (a train)  how the train took Kizzy from a place that she felt comfortable and a place she knew to a completely new and different place.

     There are many other interpretations of the symbol of the train. Another interpretation of the symbol of the train is the interpretation that each of the characters are each of the carriages on the train. When meeting with Daniel Cohen, author of Train, he shared with me the intended symbol of his the train in his novel. Danny said that the symbol he tried to show through the porcelain train is a symbol of the characters. There are 6 main characters in train (Tsura, Marko, Kizzy, Alex, Elise, and Ruth.) Like carriages on a train, the characters are all connected. For example, Marko and Tsura are cousins with Kizzy, Marko is dating Alex, Alex is Ruth’s brother, and Ruth is friends with Elise. As you can see, all of the characters have a connection with the other characters just like the carriages are connected even if they aren't directly touching.

Near the beginning of the novel, it is written that three of the carriages have cracks in them. The cracks in the train foreshadow the deaths of three characters in the sequel that is coming out soon; Return to Berlin. Like carriages on a train are connected, the characters all have connections that connect all of the main characters together.

     As you can now see, the symbol of the train is much more than just a form of transportation.