The Lincoln Highway (Symbol)
The Lincoln Highway is a highway that begins in New York City and runs to San Francisco. It was the first transcontinental highway in the United States, and it is the road Emmett’s and Billy’s mother took when she left them behind eight years ago in search of her own happiness. While on this road to San Francisco, their mother kept sending them postcards, which their father kept hidden from them all those years. The Lincoln Highway is a physical symbol of the freedom to pursue one’s own future. Emmett and Billy plan to drive to California along the Lincoln Highway, leaving behind their small town in Nebraska. Billy begs Emmett to start their journey in Times Square, at the start of the Lincoln Highway.
Professor Abacus Abernathe’s Compendium of Heroes, Adventurers, and Other Intrepid Travelers (Symbol)
Billy’s book of adventure and travel stories becomes an important symbol of his and Emmett’s journey throughout the novel. It comes to represent Billy’s desire for adventure, as he is resolved to record his own travels in the blank You chapter. It is through this book that Billy is able to grow close with Ulysses, as the two bond over the story of Odysseus. The book becomes a bridge for Billy to interact with the larger world beyond Morgen, Nebraska.
Debts (Motif)
The motif of paying one's debts is strong in the novel. The story begins with Emmett returning home after serving his sentence in Salina as payment for involuntary manslaughter. Duchess becomes fixated on the notion of settling his debts, and pursues his loose ends on the journey to New York. While on the road, Emmett wanted to start anew, but finds himself plagued by debt once again—a promise he makes to Sister Agnes to help Duchess, and a promise he makes to Sally to call her.
Ulysses (Allegory)
Billy, left alone on the train, quickly becomes a target of a scammer who calls himself Pastor John. Before the thief manages to steal Billy’s coin collection, a veteran called Ulysses stops and shoos him away. Fascinated that the man has the same name as Homer’s hero, Billy asks him if he has travelled far and lost his wife and child. Curiously enough, Ulysses’s story correlates with the Greek hero's. Ulysses enlisted to fight in WWII despite his pregnant wife’s threats to leave him, and returned from the war to an empty home. Billy encourages him by telling him that Homer’s Ulysses reunited with his wife and child after ten years, and that the same will happen to him if he just waits a little longer.
Emmett’s car (Symbol)
Emmett’s car symbolizes his desire for independence and maturity, as he proves to the banker at the start of the novel. It is a car that Emmett bought entirely with his own money, and it is vital to his and Billy’s new start in California, as they plan to drive across the country. Duchess and Woolly, in borrowing the car, also recognize its potential and possibility for escape and independence.
The number eight (Symbol)
The number eight recurs frequently throughout the novel. Emmett was eight years old when his mother left them, and it has been eight years since. Billy is now eight himself. Ulysses has been wandering aimlessly for eight years after the war ended. The numeral 8 looks like the symbol for infinity, and the number comes to represent unresolved circles and open endings, as Emmett, Billy, and Ulysses all stand on the cusp of pivotal moments in their lives.
