“‘Faith’ Is A Fine Invention” by Emily Dickinson (1891)

In “I like to see it lap the Miles,” Dickinson collapses the boundaries between trains, people, and horses. In “Faith,” Dickson upends the separation between science and religion. Her speaker calls “faith” an “invention,” suggesting that religion is the product of humans and not true gods. In “I like to see it lap the Miles,” the speaker notes the usefulness of trains, and in “Faith,” the speaker concedes the advantages of inventions like microscopes. In both poems, Dickinson’s speakers have a glib relationship with religion, which reflects Dickinson’s playful but not dismissive perception of Christianity. 

“What Soft—Cherubic Creatures” by Emily Dickinson (1896) 

In “Soft,” Dickinson parodies upper class women’s excessive vulnerability and faults them for circulating principles that they don’t practice. The women have much in common with the train in “I like to see it lap the Miles” that looks disdainfully at the less well-off houses. Yet the train has a complexity that the women lack. While the train is snobbish at times, it’s not separate from society. The train, unlike the women, is in motion and interacting with diverse landscapes. 

“So This Is Nebraska” by Ted Kooser (1980) 

Ted Kooser grew up in Iowa and has lived much of his life in Nebraska. While Dickinson’s poem displays the power of technology, Kooser’s poem shows technology’s decay: Tractors are broken and a pickup truck is falling apart; only the telephone lines retain the train’s sense of magnificence. The images of disrepair underscore Dickinson’s train’s docility. The train relies on people for its upkeep; when people shift to new technology, their old creations are in a precarious position. However, the lack of robust technology makes Kooser’s speaker as ebullient as Dickinson’s, which suggests joy in watching technology become humbled or disposable.