In The Time Of Butterflies Analysis

Literature, to me, is the looking glass into understanding many issues that society faces today. It has a way of both introducing history and inspiring futures. While the novel, In the Time of Butterflies” by Julia Alvarez was representing the historical story of the Mirabal sisters, it also gave a secondary insight into gender issues that plague society. The novel touches upon themes, such as, marital and familial relations, machista dictatorships, and gender roles. It provides the reader with a clear lens into social issues that many women faced during the mid 1900s and that even more women face today.

Although many men have given the Mirabal sisters a reason to distrust and detest them, their husbands have proved to them that not all men are inadequate. With their fathers affair, and the substantial amount of attention Trujillo puts towards women, the Mirabal sisters have had many reason to believe all men are the same. Minerva Mirabal is the third sister and the most wrapped up within the revolution. She meets her husband Manolo Tavarez in Jarabacoa where they were both studying law, and she learns he is also a revolutionist. Unlike Jaimito, the husband of Dede, Manolo has supported and went along with everything his wife has believed in. Manolo was imprisoned with the other men, and unlike the sisters, they were unable to obtain the fortune of being put on house arrest. After Minervas death, instead of living in fear, Manolo kept fighting in the Revolution and did everything to uphold his wifes name. “ After he was famous and riding around with body guards in that white Thunderbird some admirer had given him. Most likely a woman. Our Fidel, our Fidel, everyone said. He refused to run for president for those first electi...

... middle of paper ...

...ere she belongs, shes scared of the consequence that could come out of it. In spite of the fact that Dede kept her distance, she still chose to uphold her sisters name and tell their story rather than keep it in the past, even though she knew it was a burden she had to carry on her shoulders. Even though she wasn't with her sisters the night of her death, she was still around to tell the truth, rather than a story stormed up by the media. “Its me, Dede, its me, the only one who survived to tell the story” (Alvarez 321)

After reading the novel, In the Time of Butterflies, I find that society plays a large part on gender divisions. When the society is facing hardships, such as an authoritarian regime, critical issues become second hand. The Mirabal sisters faced many problems like fidelity and patriarchy that undermined many of their attempts to create social change.