The historical fiction novel In the Time of the Butterflies, by Julia Alvarez, has an interesting story about four sisters who rebel against Trujillo, their cruel dictator. The book starts years after the event, focusing on the surviving sister, Dedé, as she recounts the time when her father predicts what he thinks will become of his girls in the future. In the next chapter, narrated by Minerva, the three girls, excluding Dedé, go to religious school. There, Minerva learns the cruelty of Trujillo towards Sinita’s family. Soon after, Trujillo visits the school interested in Lina. But one day, Lina never returns; she has become pregnant and is sent to Miami for safety. In a new wing of the school, a recitation contest is being hosted, and Minerva and her three friends decide to enter together. …show more content…
Additionally, María Teresa (Mate) contributes to the book in the third chapter through her diary entries. One day, she is called into the principal's office because Minerva had been sneaking out. Mate lies that Minerva was visiting her ill uncle, when she had really been sneaking out for secret meetings at Don Horacio’s house. Hilda, one of the girls who attends the meetings, joins the school to escape the police. After being caught, Mate is forced to give up her journal because of the evidence it contains about Hilda. Patria, the narrator of the fourth chapter, initially wants to be a nun, but quickly falls in love with Pedrito. They are married and have two kids. Unfortunately, her third child dies. Patria has trouble recovering from this, connecting it to how she didn’t continue her religious calling. Patria suspects that Pedrito has moved her dead son to the backyard after seeing him digging one night. Worried, she checks the cemetery, in order to see if her son is still there. She sees her son decomposing, and realizes she has lost all
In the Time of the Butterflies is a historical fiction novel by Julia Alvarez based on events that occurred during the rule of Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. This book shows the hardships the Mirabal Sisters had to go through while being part of an underground effort to overthrow the dictatorship of Trujillo. It also shows that ultimately, it was their courage that brought upon their own death. Alvarez wants us to understand anyone and everyone has the potential to be courageous.
Within the novel, “In the Time of the Butterflies,” Mate, Minerva, Dede, and Patria had to create decisions to overcome obstacles that would transform each of their lives. Throughout the book, all of the sisters changed somehow. They all grew up, matured, and saw things how they never viewed before. While looking at these things at a different perception, they learned to make decisions that were sometimes brave and sometimes cowardly. Each of the Mirabal sisters had to choose whether or not to be fearful and give up, or be courageous and stand her ground, or make sacrifices to show her strength throughout the novel.
In the novel “How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents”, Julie Alvarez gives the reader multiple accounts that narrate the difficulties of four sisters growing up in unfamiliar lands. The Garcia girls are Carla, Sandra, Yolanda and Sofia, and Alvarez speaks the most through Yolanda 's narrative. The sisters were born in the Dominican Republic and were exiled to the United States as children with their loving mother and traditional father. Papi Garcia grew up during an era where women were not supposed to be left alone which transformed him into a protective father and moving to a new life raised his fatherly instincts to a greater height. The novel starts in 1989, with the Garcia girls as American adults. The novel starts to flow backwards
Despite the various acclamations In the Time of the Butterflies has received, the novel actually received a bit of criticism in the literary realm due to controversial subject matter. One school in Port Washington even decided to ban Julia Alvarez’s novel. A student from this district commented on the school board’s decision stating “The Port Washington school district has a national reputation for diversity and open-mindedness; we should keep it that way. So we were surprised and distressed when we first heard about the school board 's decision to ban Julia Alvarez 's novel ' 'In the Time of the Butterflies ' ' because it included a
Upon returning to the Dominican Republic after many years, Yolanda decides to take a trip across the island––something her family views as ridiculous. “‘This is not the states’ . . . ‘A woman just doesn’t travel alone in this country.” (9) This quote highlights the sexism inherent in Dominican society. Yolanda’s family is asserting that women are not individuals capable of taking care of themselves. On another hand, Yolanda’s close friendship with Mundín causes tensions as their mothers confront them about crossing gender lines. “My mother disapproved. The outfit would only encourage my playing with Mundín and the boy cousins. It was high time I got over my tomboy phase and started acting like a young lady señorita. ‘But it is for girls,’ . . . ‘boys don’t wear skirts.’” (228) This is an example of how Dominican societal norms and gender roles have impacted the sisters. Yolanda and Mundín were the only boy-girl playmates out of all the García children, yet this was frowned upon by both of their parents as to not impede the seemingly inevitable growth of Yolanda’s femininity, and conversely, Mundín’s masculinity. Moreover, this shows how societally-prescribed gender roles were instilled in Yolanda at a young age. However, this is not the only way in which women’s freedoms are
In any culture women are often confined by expectations of womanhood. In both stories the female characters challenge those expectations. The main characters of In the Time of the Butterflies are all females who stand up for what they believe in and don’t give up. “’What if I can’t’ Dede’s voice shook. ‘Jaimito thinks
Rosario was falling in love with her coworker, Paco, who worked as a security mam at the house where she worked as a house keeper. But she did not let herself to have those feelings while she was away from her son. She refused to get into a relationship with anyone because she first wanted to fix her immigration status by herself. She was determinated to reach her goals without the help of a man.
Literature of the Americas has many stories and they all have comparisons, but they also have many differences. “Day of the Butterfly” by Alice Monro and “Crossroads: A Sad Vaudeville” by Carlos Solórzano have characters that share some traits and ways, but like all characters they have things that are different. The old woman from “A Sad Vaudeville” is a dynamic protagonist who finds herself meeting the perfect man for her, but has a dilemma when he is in denial because she is not the ideal girl of his dreams; she’s old. Myra from “Day of the Butterfly” is a static antagonist who does not have the same care free attitude as most of the children her own age. She is rather shy and does not fit in or socialize much with people her own age.
This novel is a story of a Chicano family. Sofi, her husband Domingo together with their four daughters – Esperanza, Fe, Caridad, and Loca live in the little town of Tome, New Mexico. The story focuses on the struggles of Sofi, the death of her daughters and the problems of their town. Sofi endures all the hardships and problems that come her way. Her marriage is deteriorating; her daughters are dying one by one. But, she endures it all and comes out stronger and more enlightened than ever. Sofi is a woman that never gives up no matter how poorly life treats her. The author- Ana Castillo mixes religion, super natural occurrences, sex, laughter and heartbreak in this novel. The novel is tragic, with no happy ending but at the same time funny and inspiring. It is full of the victory of the human spirit. The names of Sofi’s first three daughters denote the three major Christian ideals (Hope, Faith and Charity).
Helena Maria Veramontes writes her short story “The Moths” from the first person point of view, placing her fourteen year old protagonist female character as a guide through the process of spiritual re-birth. The girl begins the story with a description of the debt she owes her Abuelita—the only adult who has treated her with kindness and respect. She describes her Apa (Father) and Ama (Mother), along with two sisters as if they live in the same household, yet are born from two different worlds. Her father is abusive, her mother chooses to stay in the background and her sisters evoke a kind of femininity that she does not possess. The girl is angry at her masculine differences and strikes out at her sisters physically. Apa tries to make his daughter conform to his strict religious beliefs, which she refuses to do and her defiance evokes abuse. The girl’s Abuelita is dying and she immerses herself in caring for her, partly to repay a debt and partly out of the deep love she has for her. As her grandmother lay dying, she begins the process of letting go. The moth helps to portray a sense of spirituality, re-birth and becomes, finally, an incarnation of the grandmother. The theme of the story is spiritual growth is born from human suffering.
Alvarez, Julia. In The Time of the Butterflies. New York, NY: Penguin, 1994. Print Hardback. 31 Oct 2013 - 8 Dec 2013.
“The secret of happiness is freedom, and the secret of freedom is courage.” In America, Americans are blessed to have the right to freedom. Unlike other unfortunate countries, their freedom is limited. In many Latin American countries, the government’s leader has all power of the Country. Citizens have no rights to freedom, they are trapped in a cruel country where innocent people are killed each day. Civilians fear to speak out to the regime of leader; However, there were a few courageous citizens enough to speak out against the government. For example, “The Censors” by Luisa Valenzuela and the historical fictionalized account, “In The Time Of The Butterflies” by Julia Alvarez reveal individual 's role in overcoming oppression.
Out from the kitchen and into the world, women are making a better name for themselves. Although humankind tends to be male dominated, men are not the only species that inhabit the world that they live on. In Julia Alvarez's novel In the Time of the Butterflies, the women of the Dominican Republic are expected to grow up to be housewives and lacking a formal education. Women may be cherished like national treasures, but they are not expected to fulfill their truest potentials as human beings.
Maria Luna - Antonio’s mother. A kind woman who’s one dream is to see her youngest son become a priest. She is obsessed with his education and pushes him to learn about the culture of her family, the Lunas.
She tells how she met her friend Isabel. She eventually comes across a man named Edward. Her and Edward instantly fell in love with each other, so they got married. They travel to Edward’s aunt ‘s home. There Laura meets Edwards aunt and his sister. Laura and Edward’s aunt get along very well, but Edward’s sister does not agree with the marriage because Edward was meant to marry someone else. Edward’s father arrives and is told about Edward’s marriage but he disagreed with it. Lady Dorothea, Edward’s ex to be wife, arrives at Edward’s aunt’s home. Laura did not really care for Lady Dorothea’s demeanor. After Lady Dorothea left Edward and Laura go to Edward’s friend’s home. Laura meets Sophia, Edward’s friend’s wife, and takes a liking to her. Near the end of the day Edward received a letter from his aunt stating that Edward’s father was displeased about Edwards abrupt leaving and ask for his return. Edward’s friend gets arrested and everyone decides to go and visit him. Laura’s pass away while she was not around. Sophia and Laura run into their grandfather and two cousins. Sophia and Laura meet a girl named Janetta they all quickly become friends. Sophia and Laura convince Janetta to get married to the person she cares about. Sophia and Laura eventually run into their husbands near their overturned carriage. The women’s husbands pass away. Laura and Sophia are taken in by a woman named Bridget. Sophia passes away. Laura gets into a carriage that has her family in it. In Don Juan, Don Juan’s father dies. His mother takes over his studies. Juan becomes fond of his mother’s friend, but does not understand his feelings. Don Juan and his mother’s friend become very close over time. Don Juan has a sexual relationship with his neighbor. His mother’s friend’s husband finds out and brings a small force. When the husband returns he finds Juan. Don Juan’s mother decides to send