Littmus Lozenges
Littmus Lozenges represent the idea that it’s impossible to separate happiness and sadness from each other. Miss Franny Block’s great-great-grandfather, Littmus W. Block, began manufacturing the lozenges after the Civil War, and he…
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The Mistake Tree
Gloria Dump’s “mistake tree” encapsulates the novel’s insistence that it’s important to learn from one’s past mistakes. In Gloria’s younger years, she was an alcoholic. She tied alcohol bottles that she emptied through the…
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The Wait-and-See Tree
The “wait-and-see tree” that Gloria helps Opal plant is a symbol for Opal herself. As the name implies, Gloria has no idea what kind of tree the young sapling is—it could be anything. Despite not…
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