Earth tones
The buildings in the community are all earth toned, a neutral color that suggests nature and the desire to be in touch with nature. The color is important because it is used here to suggest here that the community wanted to impact the environment as little as possible. Everything in the community is designed to have as little impact as possible and the colors are used to suggest this.
The number three
The number three is important in the novel and in the first two chapters it appears a couple of times. First, there are three men who want to visit the utopian society. They receive an answer to their letter three days after sending it and they also start their journey three days later after receiving the letter. The number three has a great symbolic meaning and is considered by many as being the first prime number. The number three is also a sacred number in many religions, including Christianity and is considered as being a lucky number. Because of this, the presence of the number three implies that the actions the characters will take will have a positive result and that their journey will not be pointless.
The best from both worlds
Inside the compound, the members of the community built a pond, a beautiful place where the members gathered around to enjoy their free time. The pond also has a practical purpose since it was also used as a water reservoir. In literature, when a body of water is present, it usually symbolizes a place of transition. This can also be the case here, since the people in the community took great care to make sure that the pond was as natural as possible while also being used in an artificial way by the members of the community.
Always trying to better themselves
A common motif in the novel is the idea that if something doesn’t work as well as it should, then that element should be eliminated from the community or better, replaced with something that works better. This attitude is presented as being common in Walden Two but not in the other cities outside the community.
Let nature take its course
Another motif found in the novel is the idea that people should nature take its course when it comes to sexual relationship. In most communities and countries, young people are discouraged from having sex until they reach an age considered as being the appropriate one. Even though a person may be physically ready to have a child, the idea promoted is that a person should wait until he or she reaches the mid-twenties or even thirties to have a baby, the argument being that at that age the person is more ready to take care of a child. In Walden Two, such ideas as non-existent and the members are encouraged to have children as soon as they can. By allowing nature to take its course, the people at Walden Two are happier and more satisfied with their life in comparison with those who are forced to follow the accepted social norms.
