We Are All the Same in the Dark

Content Warning: This section of the guide discusses abuse.

Dandelions recur throughout We Are All the Same in the Dark, beginning with the moment when Wyatt finds 13-year-old Angel in a field of dandelions, where she wishes on 17 of them. Making wishes on dandelions is a common tradition, and the novel uses this symbol to represent hope, wishes, and the possibility of change. Related to this is the fact that dandelions can rapidly repopulate; as Angel notes, “a single dandelion plant can produce two thousand seeds” (329). Angel’s mother thus tells her they are “reminders of resurrection” (270)—including, symbolically, the possibility of life after trauma.

Despite this association with Resilience in the Face of Trauma and Adversity, dandelions do not have wholly positive connotations in the novel. Wyatt’s aversion to dandelions is made clear when he explains that blowing too loudly into a dandelion stem once attracted the attention of his abusive father. He also tells Angel the stories that Trumanell used to tell him about wildflowers like dandelions when they were young, but these memories bring him little comfort. Thus, in his case, dandelions symbolize lost hope—his lack of belief that change and “resurrection” through healing are possible.