ipl-logo

What Are The Decisions In Julia Alvarez's In The Time Of The Butterflies

922 Words4 Pages

Aidan Colton Honors English Period D Mrs. Picozzi. In the Time of the Butterflies Prompt # 6 In “In the Time of the Butterflies” by Julia Alvarez, the Protagonists, the four Mirabal sisters are in a battle for freedom from a Dominican Dictatorship Regime (referred to as DDR in the rest of the essay). There are many big decisions in this book, all of these decisions will eventually lead to all but one of them getting killed. There is no one to blame but yourself for the consequences of your actions, but the action that the four girls did to get most of them killed was trying to revolt against the DDR, due to the power that the leader of the DDR had over his country, the close relationships that the DDR had with the four girls, especially Minerva, …show more content…

“Our history now follows the plot of the Bible. We Dominicans have been waiting for centuries for the arrival of our Lord Trujillo on the scene. It was pretty disgusting, too. “All through nature there is a feeling of ecstasy. A strange, otherworldly light suffuses the house, smelling of labor and sanctity. The 24th of October 1891. God’s glory made flesh a miracle. Rafael Leonidas Trujillo has been born!” “ (Alvarez 24) This shows how highly Trujillo thought of himself compared to others which is to be expected of a Dictator. This also shows how much higher the general public thought of him compared to others. In the second example, Maria Teresa is talking about a picture of Trujillo. “I see the picture of our president with eyes that follow me around the room, and I am thinking he is trying to catch me doing something wrong. Before, I always thought our president was like God, watching over everything I did.” (Alvarez 39) This quote also reflects the feeling of Trujillo looking like a god. But it also shows how strong of a grip he had on his country: when the Mirabal Sisters tried to revolt, they failed in part to show how strong of a presence the leader they were up against in all facets of

Show More
Related

Summary Of In The Time Of The Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

876 Words | 4 Pages

In the Time of the Butterflies, written by Julia Alvarez follows the lives of the 4 Mirabal sisters: Minerva, Mate, Patria, and Dede in their efforts against the oppressive rule of Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. All 4 sisters have varying values and identities that dictate the way they respond to adversity and develop throughout the novel. Patria, the eldest and most religious sister, has a strong connection to her faith, while simultaneously trying to figure out its connection with her internal and external struggles. Throughout the novel, Alvarez shows how Patria's identity, namely her commitment to religion and driven, family oriented nature become a source of stability during adversity, showcasing the connection between faith

Read More

Summary Of In The Time Of The Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

1309 Words | 6 Pages

As children, the Mirabal sisters are unaware of corruption within the political system. In fact, in the early pages of María Teresa’s diary she lauds Trujillo, writing that she “feel[s] so lucky that [she and her family] have [Trujillo] for a president” (Alvarez 37). Because she is so young, María Teresa is oblivious to the corruption within the Dominican Republic. However, as the plot develops, Alvarez details María Teresa’s coming of age story, emphasizing instances in which she and her sisters are exposed to the truth about Trujillo and his dictatorship.

Read More

Summary Of In The Time Of The Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

973 Words | 4 Pages

In the Time of the Butterflies, a novel by Julia Alvarez, tells the story of four sisters living in the Dominican Republic during Trujillo’s reign in the nation. The novel details the sisters’ fight for freedom against the dictatorship, as well as giving readers a personal glimpse of these women’s lives. It shares all four sisters’ fictionalized perspectives and shows their opposition to the regime from beginning to end. When people think of heroes, they think of individuals that show courage, that stay strong in the face of danger and what they stand for, whether they be superheroes or people like firefighters. Most people remove themselves from the idea of accomplishing heroic feats because of the separation between the “ordinary” and the heroic.

Read More

Summary Of In The Time Of The Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

871 Words | 4 Pages

The sacrifice of the Mirabal sisters persists to influence and connect with those in the Dominican Republic. A New York Times article describes the result of courageous actions by the Mirabals as being, “marked change in the political climate has completed the transformation of ‘the Butterflies,’ as the sisters were known in their days as members of the anti-Trujillo underground, into symbols of both popular and feminist resistance” (Rohter). Patria, Dedé, Minerva, and María Teresa Mirabal defy the abilities of women to overthrow Dictator, Rafael Trujillo and his tyrannical supremacy. In the novel, In the Time of the Butterflies, Julia Alvarez demonstrates a fictional style to explain the true events the sisters underwent to terminate the division

Read More

How The Brief Wondrous Life Of Oscar Wao Theme Of Identity

1828 Words | 8 Pages

Oscar’s development and role helped make Yunior into someone that is a man, opposed to someone striving for Machismo. Machismo can be defined in Dominican culture as being a jock, witty, and a “ladies man”; however, masculinity and femininity are reliant on one another in this culture. Men are expected to be able to woo any lady they want whether through a suave personality or even violence. This culture is reliant on the man being completely dominant over the woman, often protecting her and providing for her, while also having many women at one time. Rafael Leonidas Trujillo is introduced as the feared dictator who is a predator with pretty women and is known for his extreme violence.

Read More

Summary Of In The Time Of The Butterflies By Julia Alvarez

858 Words | 4 Pages

Women at this time were fighting to get out of a patriarchal society and have political action in their countries. They didn’t want to be subject to men, or confined to their gender spheres remaining in their households. The Mirabal Sisters greatly portrayed this. They were assassinated by dictator Rafael Trujillo and are now symbols of martyrdom in the struggle against the dictator (Robinson). The infatuating fight of the Mirabal Sisters began the end of Trujillo’s dictatorship and a new era in the Dominican Republic.

Read More

In The Time Of The Butterflies Religion Essay

741 Words | 3 Pages

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

Read More

Marxist Criticism In Time Of The Butterflies

804 Words | 4 Pages

Trujillo gets worried when he learns about the 14th of June Movement because he knows that the goal of the movement is to overthrow or kill him. One by one, he starts jailing members of the movement, as well as ransacking or destroying their homes. At Patria’s house, Trujillo has the SIM tear “...the house apart, hauling away the doors, windows, the priceless mahogany beams of Pedrito’s old family rancho” (Alvarez 192). The way that he messes with those involved in the movement is cruel. After having their homes ransacked, Trujillo jails only the Mirabal husbands, which makes the sisters think they are safe.

Read More

Rafael Leonidas Trujillo: A Genetics Of Justice

859 Words | 4 Pages

Even though he was assassinated he still had followers and people who were still team Trujillo. Eventually Julia escaped again but her family could not. Julia in her latter years wrote a book about what happened back in her adolescents. She wrote her mom a letter and her mother went on about she should talk about those things and for 4 months the two went without talking. Long after trujillo's death her mother still had that cursed fear.

Read More

Rafael Trujillo Assassination Essay

459 Words | 2 Pages

Fleurianne Debe Dr. Hasty 11.20.14 1B The Assassination of Rafael Trujillo Rafael Trujillo, dictator of the Dominican Republic, almost the equivalent of Adolf Hitler. Rafael Trujillo was the most corrupted, arrogant, disastrous, beastly, inadequate dictators in the history of the Dominican Republic. His time as dictator was known as the Trujillo era. All the things that Trujillo has done have led up to his well-deserved assassination.

Read More

Mirabal Sisters Argumentative Essay

598 Words | 3 Pages

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.

Read More

Rafael Leonidas Trujillo's Argument Essay

386 Words | 2 Pages

Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina was dictator of the Dominican Republic (HRC 1). He was born on October 24, 1891 in San Cristobal. His parents were José Trujillo Valdez and Julia Molina Chevalier. He was on the power since 1930 until his assassination in 1961.

Read More

Importance Of Courage In Julia Alvarez's In The Time Of Butterflies

1134 Words | 5 Pages

“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘ I lived through this horror I can take the next thing that comes along.” - elanor roosevelt. The novel In The Time of Butterflies, transpires during the time of the Trujillo rebellion in the Dominican Republic. As a whole, this story is an example of courage, and exemplifies this through the actions of the Mirabal sisters.

Read More

Comparison Of Letter From A Birmingham Jail And A Genetics Of Justice

1022 Words | 5 Pages

At the same time, families “kept their daughters out of the public eye, for Trujillo was known to have an appetite for pretty girls, and once his eyes was caught, there was no refusing him” (1). Preventing exposure to the girls of what was happening outside created the lack of knowledge of Trujillo’s evil acts, making them believe that he was a “great man”. Over time, as Alvarez’s mother understood “the true nature of the dictatorship”, she is upset because she admired Trujillo all throughout her childhood. When Trujillo was assassinated, although “the execution was an external event, not necessarily was an

Read More

Literary Analysis Of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's 'One Of These Days'

816 Words | 4 Pages

Marquez explains how the country has extreme levels of corruption due to anarchy and savagery. The story also leads into how the nation’s dictator who lead a tyrannical government under an absolute power until his death came. The ruler is seen as a self centered man who focuses on his personal desires such as women, love, and fear of loneliness. The dictator comes to the conclusion that: “he himself is the government” and that no one will get in the way of his rule. Marquez uses these many aspects of the dictator the express the outcome of the life in Latin America under an absolute power.

Read More

More about What Are The Decisions In Julia Alvarez's In The Time Of The Butterflies

Open Document