What do the butterflies mean in Nevertheless?

Throughout the series “Nevertheless,” we see butterflies being used in a lot of dialogues as well as in props. But why is it so, and what do they symbolize? Why is Park Jae Eon so obsessed with them?

In Korean culture, butterflies are symbols of rebirth, prosperity, and beauty. This symbolism explains why they are constantly used in the show “Nevertheless” to reference the love between Park Jae-eon and Yu Na-bi.

Korean dramas use butterflies in many of their scenes. In ancient cultures, people believed butterflies were symbols of life and death and reincarnations of dead people’s souls. 

All around the world, butterflies have different meanings in different cultures. They could be symbols of transformation, enlightenment, creativity, and impermanence.

The colors of butterflies also have different meanings, like green for well-being, blue for hope, orange for passion, and purple for divinity. 

1. Why is Park Jae-eon obsessed with butterflies?

In the first episode, while talking to Yoo Na in the bar, Park Jae-eon tells her that he keeps pet butterflies at home. We also find out that he has a butterfly tattooed on the back of his neck.  

In Netflix’s K-drama “Nevertheless,” Park Jae Eon explains his obsession with butterflies by saying he thinks they are pretty. However, there’s another symbolism in the show as Jae Eon is obsessed with Na-bi which is Korean for “butterfly.”

2. How are butterflies referenced in Nevertheless?

Elsewhere in the series, we see butterflies take up many other forms.

When they first meet, Jae-eon draws a butterfly on Na-bi’s arm, similar to the one he has tattooed, with a water-soluble marker. She considers this a very personal gesture. After their first encounter, Na-bi describes her feelings as “butterflies in her stomach”. 

However, in the next episode, Na-bi sees another girl in the university with the same tattoo, and she questions whether she is just one of Jae-eon’s “butterfly” conquests.

In episode four, Jae-eon brings a butterfly suncatcher for Na-bi and hangs it up on her window while cryptically talking about catching butterflies.

In episode nine, Jae-eon makes a butterfly pendant and gifts it to Na-bi to impress and convey his true feelings for her.

In the final episode, Na-bi finds the sculpture she had been working on fallen on the ground and broken into pieces. Jae-eon offers to help her, after which the two of them work day and night to put it back together. The final sculpture is an angel with tattered wings, perhaps another reference to butterflies. 

Later in the episode, Jae-eon releases all his butterflies in an attempt to leave and go to the US. The butterflies being set free symbolizes him letting go of all the “butterflies” he had “captured”, including Na-bi. However, the season ends with the two of them reuniting and thus choosing to be with each other.

3. About Nevertheless

Nevertheless is an ongoing South Korean television series starring Han So-hee and Song Kang. Based on a popular webtoon of the same name which was first published on Naver Webtoon, it tells the story of two people who are very attracted to each other but are cynical about love owing to their past relationships.\

It premiered on June 19, 2021, on JTBC and airs on Saturdays at 23:00 (KST). Each episode is released on Netflix in South Korea and internationally after its television broadcast.

It depicts a hyper realistic romance between a man who is annoyed with relationships but likes to flirt and a woman who wants to date but does not believe in love.