Which motif is most important in your understanding of the themes in the text?

Are you giving a choice of motifs? 

no... the one that makes most sense to you

I think the motif of community plays heavily in the story. As Janie returns to Eatonville, the porch people sit in judgment over her. All of them seem to get a say in how she is to be judged. In the Everglades the community serves as more than a backdrop where Janie and Tea Cake live. There is a common function among the people that Janie finds attractive. When their boat breaks down both Tea Cake and Janie not only find physical shelter from the storm but emotional shelter from their community, “they sat in company with the others in other shanties.”