“I think of us […] as flowers in the attic. Paper flowers. Born so brightly colored, and fading duller through all those long, grim, dreary, nightmarish days when we were held prisoners of hope, and kept captive by greed.” 

This early passage shows that the four child protagonists are themselves the flowers in the attic. The papery flower petals symbolize the artificial, sickening nature of both captivity and the creatures the captives become. The sentence about hope and greed creates suspense, as the reader is tasked with wondering about the circumstances that led to the children’s captivity. 

“Just because we were all blond, flaxen-haired, with fair complexions […] Daddy’s best friend, pinned us a nickname, ‘the Dresden dolls”. He said we looked like those fancy porcelain people who grace whatnot shelves and fireplace mantels.” 

The Dollanganger family’s fair, doll-like coloring and similarity hints that they are the product of an incestuous union. The fact that they are ornamental, porcelain dolls rather than plastic toy dolls readily played with indicates a kind of fragile, old-fashioned quality to their beauty.

“You can’t live without money. It’s not love that makes the world go round—it’s money.” 

Corrine’s pronouncement that money is more important than love will become increasingly significant as the narrative unfolds. Born into a family of extreme wealth, and then reliant on her husband, Corrine cannot imagine a life without a man who provides for her lavishly.