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Analysis Of The Time Of Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

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This is a fiction book based on the historical facts about the Mirabal sisters, Trujillo and the Dominican Republic. Just imagine yourself being in the country which is ruled by the dictator. Would you stand up for your country or would you just be a traditional woman?
In this, In the Time of Butterflies book by Julia Alvarez, Minerva led the anti- Trujillo movement and tried to get the independence, after she found out how horrible he is. For example, when Sinitta said that Trujillo killed all of her uncles, Minerva felt like, “ It was as if I had just heard Jesus and slapped a baby” ( Alvarez 17). Before she knew that Trujillo is a bad guy, she and her whole family put Trujillo next Jesus and respect him as a god. All things got started to change after she found out that Trujillo is a fox who is covered under the sheep’s skin. Different from the other, Minerva protects Sinita from the crowd who is making fun of Sinita by saying, “‘So?’ I challenged the giggly girl with curls like hiccups, who whispered it to me. She shut up real quick. It made me glad all over again” ( Alvarez 14). From that quote, we can clearly see that Minerva is an open-minded, who is ready to speak up for someone and always like to go against …show more content…

It’s the secret of Trujillo’” ( Alvarez 17). As the Trujillo’s dictatorship begins, people started to afraid of saying things because he killed every single individual who is bad mouthing about him. In fact, when Lina’s story was unfolded, Minerva said, “ Lina Lovaton had gotten pregnant in the big house. Trujillo’s wife Dona Maria had found out and gone after her with a knife. I guess there was a whole other pretty girl now taking up his attention” ( Alvarez 23). He affairs with many other young girls which makes him gain a lot of haters. He is not only a dictator of the Dominican Republic but also not a gentleman for his family and

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It was useful for Alvarez to apply literary and rhetorical devices to enhance the appropriate understandings of her symbols, and foreshadowing in her novel. The four sisters were most known as “Las Mariposas”, which in the English language translates to Butterflies. “Even in the church during the privacy of the holy communion, Father Gabriel bent down and whispered “Viva la Mariposa”” (Alvarez 259). Butterflies are known for its beauty, freedom, and short term lives. Which all three known facts represents the Maribel sisters, they had the face of angels but strong and determined to fight against Trujillo and the regime.

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Promise Mavhunga Mr. Eliot English 2 Honors April 1, 2024 Change In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez is an inspiring novel set in the mid 1900s. At the time, the country was led by dictator Rafael Trujillo, whose corrupt rule ruined the lives of many in the nation. The Mirabal sisters were four sisters, Minerva, Maria Theresa, Patria, Dede, who spearheaded the rebellion against Rafael Trujillo’s tyrannical regime. While Dede was the only one who lived to see their dream come to fruition, their efforts continued the resistance even after their death.

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Imagine you and your family living under a gruesome dictator and having no freedom . Julia alvarez “ a genetics of justice “ is a novel about a young girl and her family living under a dictator with a totalitarian government in the dominican government. In this novel you learn about her journey and how she becomes to be the women she is today . “No flies fly into a closed mouth “is a quote used by her mother through the text. In the novel it also talks about the dictator and is unusual daily life .

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For Example,when Minerva confronts Trujillo, the quote captures her determination:"I finally got up my nerve and asked him straight out if the rumors were true about his mistresses. He looked me over for a long time, then leaned forward and whispered, 'Would you like to try out?'" and "I refuse to believe that there are no other choices but to accept things as they are. " I will fight for the freedom we deserve." These quotes show how Alvarez, through the point of view that Minerva is determined to fight for her

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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.

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Trujillo is she feels that everyone is equal in her eyes and no one should be looked at different. Another figurative piece that the author included in the novel is “ Trujillo is a devil, “ Sinita said as

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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

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Marxist Criticism focuses on class struggle and power structure in a literary piece (Davidson). In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez can be analyzed using Marxist Criticism to show how power is maintained in the novel. Trujillo maintains his power by convincing girls to live in his homes, jailing citizens who try to overthrow him, and killing citizens that he has large problems with. Trujillo uses his authority to make all of his citizens obey him so that he can keep his power, or else they must deal with severe consequences. Trujillo acts this way to prove that he is the man in charge and ultimately prove that he is unbeatable.

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The four Mirabal sisters were Patria, Adela “Dede” Antonia, and Minerva. These women are now all seen as symbols of resistance to feminist roles in the Dominican Republic, in addition they are seen as huge advocators for the revolt against Trujillo. Minerva Mirabal was a prime model in the rebellion against dictator Rafael Trujillo’s rule in the Dominican Republic. This woman stood up against the president for her morals and self respect by denying his romances and gambling against him in order to be able to study law which had never been done in the country before. However, once Minerva denied Trujillo’s advances he incarcerated her father and once he was released he targeted her constantly.

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Courage Courage is strength in the face of pain. Julia Alvarez portrays different types of courage in her novel, In the Time of the Butterflies. The novel is set during the time of Trujillo's dictatorship in the Dominican Republic. As a result, some of the Mirabal sisters; Minerva, Maria Teresa, and Patria, to take a step in joining a revolution against him.

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One of the strongest traits to possess is not courage nor intellect, but rather love for one another. The novel, In the time of the Butterflies, by Julia Alvarez, perfectly illustrates the capabilities love can accomplish. Love is shown to bond families like the Mirabel sisters together and evoke emotion that encourage others to sympathize with them. The stories about the Mirabel sister’s children, husbands, and themselves, paved a path to ending Trujillo’s regime. The emphasis of love that the sisters and their families share is prevalent throughout the novel In the Time of the Butterflies, as it influences them to protect and sacrifice for one another, which ultimately inspires a revolt to successfully end Trujillo’s regime.

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An example of this is when Alvarez writes, “I saw the marks on Minerva’s throat; fingerprints sure as day on Mate’s pale neck. They also clubbed them good and dead… After they were done, they put the dead girls in the back of the Jeep, Rufino in the back” (Alvarez 303). Trujillo had the Mirabal sisters killed because they were questioning his leadership skills. Trujillo is using the “accidental” death of the Mirabal sisters as an example for the rest of the citizens of the country as a what-not-to-do scenario. If you question Trujillo’s leadership or rebel against him, there is a chance you will die.

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Childhood is something extremely important in the development of people, and whether their adolescence is good or bad, it often shapes their futures and personalities. The book In The Time Of The Butterflies by Julia Alverez demonstrates this while simultaneously bringing readers into the world of young revolutionary women. Alvarez tells the story of four young women who live in the Dominican Republic and start seeing the world in a new light as they mature from sheltered individuals who speak to barely anyone outside of their family and neighbors, to school girls learning about corruption in the outside world; Minerva, the oldest of the sisters, was the first to start the descent into rebellion. When the Mirabal sisters were young,

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A strong, independant woman named Minerva Mirabel from the Dominican Republic was born on March 12, 1926 in ‘El Ojo de Agua’. Minerva was a mother, a lawyer, and an activist. During her time it was very rare for a woman to be a lawyer in the Dominican republic. Many believed that if women were lawyer they were against the dictator's rule. Many were afraid of her since it meant trouble for them and their families.

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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.

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