Classics for Beginners discussion

In this thread, you may discuss anything in parts 7 and 8 or anything in the entire book. Please note that this is the SPOILER thread, so if you haven't finished the book, you might want to use caution in this thread.

Now that you have completed the book, we can review several themes first mentioned in the beginning of the book.

1) What do you think is the meaning of the very first sentence, which is "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

2) What does the train represent throughout the novel?