Motif: Falling and Edges
There are several instances of falling in the text—some literal, like Rufus's suicide, and some suggestions or evocations of being on the edge, of risking losing oneself in the void, of potentially being unable to stop the plummet. Vivaldo sits on the edge of a roof, unnerving his companions; Rufus and Leona live at the very tip, the very fringes, of the island of Manhattan; Eric talks of falling when he is with LeRoy; Vivaldo has a vivid dream of Rufus falling and then has sex with Eric and feels himself falling; and many more. This motif allows Baldwin to convey how the characters are doing something both dangerous and exhilarating, something that might destroy them or let them fly.
Symbol: Cold Sun
Baldwin writes of the day when Ida and Vivaldo come together for their first official date, "All day long a cold sun glared down on Manhattan, giving no heat" (103). The sun is traditionally a symbol of light, life, heat, fire, and, in its rise and/or setting, rebirth, death, and the cyclical. Here is functions as a negative symbol, for its symbolism is inverted. The sun is cold, not hot, and gives no heat. It is not nurturing or warm but instead hostile. Thus, this is a symbol of the problematic nature of Ida and Vivaldo's relationship—it will not bring life but instead potentially bring death.
Symbol: Books
While in Paris, Eric is reading Henry James' Wings of the Dove and Richard Wright's Native Son. These texts don't function just to suggest that Eric has good taste, but are symbolic of Eric's inward and outward journey. Wings, like most of James's novels, is about trans-Atlantic journeys and relationships; Eric too is an American seeking something abroad. Native Son is a trenchant look at the life of a Black man in America, written by someone Baldwin himself, at times, admired and learned from. From this we can glean that Eric is interested in learning more about the experiences of Black people, that perhaps he is trying to understand his own feelings for Henry, LeRoy, and Rufus.
Symbol: Vivaldo on the Edge
"Vivaldo took another large drag and squatted on the edge of the roof, his arms hugging his knees" (310) is a specific, symbolic example of the motif of falling/edges mentioned above. Here on a night when he is becoming more desperate about and obsessed with Ida, he moves to the edge of the roof. He feels estranged from Ida and himself, close to the way Rufus felt on the night that he let everything come to a head and took his own life. Vivaldo doesn't jump, but his willingness to place himself on the edge shows how precarious things are for him.
Motif: Jazz and the Blues
Characters in the novel play jazz, go to jazz clubs, and dance and sing to the blues, suggesting not only an affinity for the art forms but also their willingness to engage with those forms which are emblematic of Black suffering and creativity. Through this music, we gain further insights into the characters of Rufus and Ida, in particular, sensing how their struggles are tied to the long history of Black struggle in this country.
