Summary Of In The Time Of The Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

Four beautiful Dominican heroines known as the Butterflies make a big change on the world for women. “Each represent courage, love, and sacrifice”. The Butterflies bravely went against their ruler Trujillo and went through a lot of troubles. One of the four Butterflies whom were the bravest is Minerva. Minerva was the oldest, and wanted to go to law school.

The Mirabal sisters, also known as La Mariposas, have been known throughout the Dominican Republic for participating in a major revolution against their unjust ruler, Rafael Trujillo. After years of the sisters’ hard-work, along with the others who were involved in the revolution, their work paid off when Trujillo's regime ended with his assassination. However, in order for them to have taken part in this act against Trujillo, the Mirabal sisters had to sacrifice several things from their lives, most importantly, their freedom and their relationship with their family. Many people believe that these sacrifices were not necessary because the sisters didn’t need to go to the extent where the end result would be them orphaning their children. Nonetheless,

In the Time of the Butterflies is a historical fiction novel written by Julia Alvarez. The book focuses on the lives of the four Mirabal sisters who were killed on November 25th, 1960 as a result of organizing against the government. Throughout the novel, the sisters are oppressed and hurt by the many men in their lives. The book takes a view that is not very tolerant of men. The men often do things that hurt the women in their lives, such as physically hurt them, cheat on them, or control them against their will.

From the moment that the Dominican republic was free from Trujillo’s dictatorship, contrasting viewpoints have come up regarding the sacrifices of the Mirabal sisters. While some argue that the Mirabal sisters sacrifices were not beneficial and worthwhile to the revolution because it resulted in the orphaning of their children and three young lives were lost. Others argue that the Mirabal sisters sacrifices were effective for the revolution since it changed the future of their country. I deem the sisters sacrifices are justifiable because their sacrifices had an important purpose. Isn’t it true that Trujillo's was absolutely in power for 31 years however, because of the three young sisters his cruel regime ended.

Gaining Color In the beginning, butterflies’ wings are transparent and colorless. By growing and flying in the light, they are able to stain their wings and achieve the vibrant colorful wings they are famous for. The Mirabal sisters did not start off as the faces of the underground revolution against Trujillo.

Julia Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies is a work of historical fiction set in the Dominican Republic that focuses on the four Mirabal sisters who bond together to rebel against the corrupt leader of their country, Rafael Trujillo. The four Mirabal sisters, Patria, Dedé, Minerva, and María Teresa form closer relationships with each other as they figure out a way to bring down the tyranny of Rafael Trujillo. Although they have a mutual goal, each of the Mirabal sisters has different feelings and thoughts throughout this time period. The theme of coming-of-age and identify is best exemplified through the character of María Teresa, known as Mate, through the ways she matures throughout the novel and becomes her own person who stands up for what she believes in.

Minerva Mirabal was the leader and the voice of the butterflies before their murders on November 25, 1960. Minerva was the leader of the group because of her extroverted attitude and her disgustion of oppression. Minerva consistently portrayed the image of the butterfly to the public despite the struggles she had going on in her personal life. From a young age, Minerva’s identity is rooted in her struggle against oppression. Throughout her life, she transforms her identity into a national symbol.

In paragraph 27 it states ,”there were still old cronies of the dictator around who would love an excuse to go after my family after my father ,after her ,” the cronies were loyal servants to the dictator even when he was dead so alvarez's mother thought they were still in danger of being captured or killed ,because of the cronies the mother would live in fear unlike alvarez who didn't fully believe they would come after them . Alvarez wrote her novels knowing they may wreak havoc on her family members who were still in the dominican republic and maybe her parents and sisters. In paragraph 29 and 30 it talks about the last novel she wrote about the island and how her mother thought about it ,”I don't care what happens to us i'm so proud of you ,” her mother says ,alvarez wrote the novel at the risk of her family but her mother and her new the story had to be told and the things the people had to go through

In the Dominican Republic, women were expected to go by what their husbands and fathers said. Women portrayed to have less power and authority than men. In “In the Time of the Butterflies”, the Mirabal sisters showed something very differently, instead they demonstrated the equal authority they have with their husbands. Their power challenged gender limitations that were forced on them by their patriarchal Dominican culture. Minerva, Patria, and Maria Teresa all were sisters who became involved in political movements against President Trujillo.

The Mirabal sisters were revolutionaries who opposed the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo. During the revolution, they were given the code name “Las Mariposas”, or “the butterflies”. The term “mariposa” suits each sister in a different way. Patria, Dedé, Minerva, and Mate Mirabal each have their one reason to be compared to a butterfly. The nickname “mariposa” shows who the Mirabal sisters are; they transformed from domestic, innocent mothers and wives into brave, defiant martyrs for national freedom.

Trujillo's dictatorship, resulting in the revolution, influenced Patria's physical courage to truly show. By joining the revolution Patria's moral courage counteracted her fears and encouraged her to take a step towards making a change . Finally after getting her son taken, sacrificing herself showed what she would do for someone revealing her emotional courage. This novel puts a whole new perspective on courage by demonstrating different types of courage . Many different behaviors and beliefs can link to courage; bravery, fear, and even religious faith.

It provides a role in character development shown predominantly in Patrias character. It shows the extent of Trujillo’s actions against the Dominican people by showing Patrias desperateness for her son. These examples depicted in the book show how the theme of religion has an impact on In the Time of the

This novel was written based on the Mexican revolution, which was an important event in history for the people of Mexico. The author of this novel, Juan Rulfo portrays the characters as being lost in purgatory to show how the people of Mexico felt during the time of Porfirio Diaz. Juan Rulfo used his experiences and suffering during the revolution and turned it into literature. During the Mexican revolution, there were situations in which men were more powerful and played a more important role in society than women. The use of descriptive language and imagery in the novel allows readers to understand how horrific the time period was and how the people felt.

Butterflies Reflection In The Time of the Butterflies I am exposed to many different viewpoints. An important one being Minerva Mirabal. This novel takes me through the crazy lives of the Mirabal’s. This family is in a personal war against El Jefe Trujillo.

Lazarillo de Tormes is an anonymously written pseudo-autobiographical novel that details the calamitous events of a young, poor boy’s journey to maturity, the plot of which provides a stage for Lazarillo’s moral rise and decline to be set. Said by many, including Franciso Márquez Villanueva to be a entirely a sharp social satire, “ferozmente sacrástico y pesimista por sistema,” this interpretation is diametrically opposed to Marcel Bataillon’s interpretation that the work is “un livre pour rire, de burlas,” that is, a novel that falls short of the acerbic satire of later picaresque novels and instead prioritises humanity and individuality, especially in the case of Lazarillo. I will apply these two conflicting viewpoints to the events and themes