Content Warning: The novel and this guide contain discussions of child death/miscarriage, alcohol addiction, and suicide.

The butterflies serve as the foundation for both Kingsolver’s and Dellarobia’s examination of the connections between nature, life, and rebirth. Without glossing over the reality of loss or how human actions sometimes contribute to it, the novel finds hope in nature’s resilience.

While Dellarobia learns about the butterflies’ life cycles, she also has the opportunity to consider her own. In particular, she reflects on the grief and loss of miscarrying her first child—a loss that she has yet to move entirely beyond, although seemingly everyone else in her life has learned to let it go. In addition, her marriage to Cub is figuratively dying (if not dead), which is a source of pain and sorrow for both of them. In this context, learning about the butterflies—their instinctive patterns of migration, their ability to rebound after hibernation, etc.—becomes a source of inspiration for Dellarobia. By the end of the book, she learns that she cannot change her nature, that life takes on many forms, and that a rebirth of purpose and self is possible despite the oppressive environment surrounding her and despite her own past mistakes.