Youth vs. Age in regards to sexuality:

            Each of the main characters in Jazz are symbols for the participants in the first fall of man. A major theme of youth vs. age or loss/discovery of sexuality is seen throughout the book symbolically outlining the story of Adam and Eve.

            Dorcas, the innocent girl with a budding sexuality, is a symbol of Eve, and a symbol of temptation. “I told you again that you were the reason Adam ate the apple and its core” (Morrison 133), Joe speaks of Dorcas as though she was the tempter of sin.

            Joe is the symbol of Adam, tempted by Eve, he was responsible for the downfall of man. In the novel Joe is responsible for the downfall of his marriage, and the death of Dorcas. Joe attempts to regain his aging sexuality through Dorcas because he has grown into an old man and his wife no longer finds him attractive.

            Violet is becoming increasingly aware of her approaching age and she takes on several missions to get her ‘butt’ back. Violet is obviously threatened by her husband falling for a younger girl.  She realizes that her sexuality has also boiled down to a luke-warm soup of emotions.

Music and the background of the city

The constant sound of a drum beat or a lonely jazz improvisation is always heard in the city where Jazz takes place. Music dictates the lives of the people in the city and is continually described as the inspiration for the acts of the characters. Joe realizes that the only way he can keep Dorcas for his own after she rejects him is to kill her, Morrison describes during Joe’s act of violence that the music was red-hot and to a boil and encourages misbehavior. “Music is the weapon that the city wields to control it’s citizens” (Morrison 153).

Memory and the idea of soulmates

            All the main charactes have experienced a loss of one or both parents. The characters each are waging a battle of self discovery and definition of character. Joe recalls naming himself “Trace” because his mother left without a trace; that’s him. Dorcas’ parents were burned alive in their homes during a riot while she watched. Violet’s mother jumped down a well when she was merely five years old. Flashbacks reveal Joe and Violet’s inlaid connection through their past even before they were born, almost as though they were born with the knowledge of each other and they were destined to be in love. Each of the character’s personalities build on an idea of memory and the past.