The Confederacy
For Hero, the Confederacy is a symbol of opportunity. Hero has been a slave for most of his life; after the outbreak of the Civil War, he is given the opportunity to become free if he joins his master in the Confederate Army, fighting for the cause of slavery. Although he is paradoxically fighting for something that he aims to escape, this gives him the opportunity to do something he has only thought he could dream of: become a free man.
The Union
On the other hand, the Union is a powerful symbol of the things that Hero believes in: freedom and abolitionism. The Union, which was made up of the Northern States in the U.S. that hadn't ceded from the United States (also called the "North"), were the land of opportunity for many people in search of a better life.
Rifle
The rifle that Hero and every other soldiers uses to fight as a member of the Confederate army is symbolic of death and destruction. Naturally, with war comes death and destruction. People fight wars to make change above all else, and everything else (including the people they kill and the property they destroy) is an unfortunate byproduct of that. Rifles are imbued with a sense of evil and shown to be bad things if used inappropriately.
Family
One of the most common motifs in the play is family. Throughout the play, Hero and the rest of the characters talk about how important it is to be with family and create a vibrant home life. Through this theme, the author emphasizes the importance of family and preserving it, something that was lost because of the institution of slavery.
