Dandelion Wine is a book centered around a young boy named Douglas Spaulding during the summer of 1928. On a perfect summer day Douglas’s father is speaking to him, and in the moment Douglas is not able to grasp the importance of his father’s words. Eventually, he begins to wrestle with his brother Tom and as a result, is struck by the effort and awe. Douglas realizes that he is in fact, alive and rejoices in the beauty of life and everything around him. He states that “I’m really alive! He thought. I never knew it before, or if I did, I don’t remember.” This revelation allows him to understand what comes with being alive, he begins to see and feel things differently. It can be seen that, Douglas is full of imagination and his greatest strength
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As a result, summer suddenly becomes a time of education and appreciation. Towards the end of the book, Douglas suffers from an illness that is most likely a heat stroke. While overheated, Douglas experiences hallucinations, and is semi-conscious. The doctor is not able to diagnose Douglas, however, Mr. Joan’s the Junkman, believes that talking to Douglas will help bring him back to consciousness. It can be seen that, Mr. Joans embodies a medicine-man, due to the fact that he travels between worlds, is able to deliver babies, cure illnesses and is sensitive to things around him. In the hope that he can heal douglas he leaves him bottled air by a friend, from August 1928 to lead him back from unconsciousness. Initially, he instructs Douglas by saying, “I will leave these two bottles here upon your bed. And when I’ve gone I want you to wait a little while and then slowly open your eyes and sit up and reach over and drink the contents of these bottles. Drink with your nose. Tilt the bottles, uncork them, and let what’s inside them go right down into your head.” It should be noted that, although Douglas knew that one day he had to die he wasn’t ready to let go. He had just begun to appreciate life and had received both great happiness and the devastation from the summer. However, without the loss, he experienced he would never have appreciated just how precious life is. This is ultimately the reason that Douglas decides to
As a result, summer suddenly becomes a time of education and appreciation. Towards the end of the book, Douglas suffers from an illness that is most likely a heat stroke. While overheated, Douglas experiences hallucinations, and is semi-conscious. The doctor is not able to diagnose Douglas, however, Mr. Joan’s the Junkman, believes that talking to Douglas will help bring him back to consciousness. It can be seen that, Mr. Joans embodies a medicine-man, due to the fact that he travels between worlds, is able to deliver babies, cure illnesses and is sensitive to things around him. In the hope that he can heal douglas he leaves him bottled air by a friend, from August 1928 to lead him back from unconsciousness. Initially, he instructs Douglas by saying, “I will leave these two bottles here upon your bed. And when I’ve gone I want you to wait a little while and then slowly open your eyes and sit up and reach over and drink the contents of these bottles. Drink with your nose. Tilt the bottles, uncork them, and let what’s inside them go right down into your head.” It should be noted that, although Douglas knew that one day he had to die he wasn’t ready to let go. He had just begun to appreciate life and had received both great happiness and the devastation from the summer. However, without the loss, he experienced he would never have appreciated just how precious life is. This is ultimately the reason that Douglas decides to