In the novel In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, is a story of three girls who develop from being innocent girls to being part of a revolutionary to stop Trujillo a Dominican dictator. Throughout the story we see each of the sisters go through hard moments in their life. However the sister that has developed the most though is Minerva. She goes from being just a girl with a dream to be a lawyer too a woman willing to sacrifice anything to support the revolution and stop Trujillo.
When Minerva was young she didn’t see Trujillo as a tyrant. To her and everyone who was oblivious of what was going on; he was a strong dedicated leader. It wasn’t until she was put into Inmaculada Concepcion where a girl tells her about the “bad things”
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Trujillo was doing: “Bad things?” I interrupted. “Trujillo was doing bad things?” It was as if I had just heard Jesus had slapped a baby or Our Blessed Mother had not conceived Him the immaculate conception way. “That can’t be true,” I said, but in my heart, I felt a china-crack of doubt” (16). That “china-crack of doubt” was also a spark that started and changed her view of Trujillo and once that flame was ignited her motive to stop Trujillo never ended. Minerva eventually started going to secret meetings that could put her at risk of getting arrested: “It turns out she and Elsa and Lourdes and Sinita (her friends) have been going to some secret meetings over at Don Horacio’s house! Don Horacio is Elsa’s grandfather who is in trouble with the police because he won’t do things he’s supposed to, like hang a picture of our president (Trujillo) in his house” (39). Minerva is risking getting caught when she goes to these secret meetings and this is also where her passion for a revolution begins. Things are getting serious and Minerva starts to sacrifice people in her life to be able to get the freedom everyone in the Dominican Republic deserves.
“But Minerva, your own child—" I began and then I saw it did hurt her to make this sacrifice she was convinced she needed to make” (155). Minerva asks her sister to take her son, Manolito, because she is going to be moving a lot for her revolutionary activities. Her sister Patria at first doesn't understand how she could give up her child; but she realizes that it isn't that Minerva doesn't care. She's making an immense sacrifice for what she believes in. Minerva has consistently sacrifice herself in her combat of injustice, and expects the same of those around her. When Minerva got out of prison, she talks about sacrificing her peace of mind, “I hid my anxieties and gave everyone a bright smile. If they had only known how frail was their iron-will heroine.” (259) In the end Minerva finally sacrifices her life along with most of her other sisters.
Even though there are moments where things were serious Minerva still had moments where she felt like she was young again: “We moved quickly now towards the Jeep, hurrying as if we had to catch up with that truck. I don’t know quite how to say this, but it was as if we were girls again, walking through the dark part of the yard, a little afraid, a little excited by our fears, anticipating the lighted house just around the bend – That’s the way I felt as we started up the first mountain,”
In times of urgency she was still able to remember memories about her childhood with her sisters. Minerva believes that becoming aware of the situation in her country is the same as becoming free. Rather than being the blind little girl, or someone who turns away because they'd rather not know the truth, she opened her eyes and sees the lack of freedom that fills all of society. Even though Minervia never became the lawyer her young self wanted to be she was still able to fight for her country's rights and follow her heart. She had lost her innocence and dug a hole in her heart that helped her become who she is now, a hero.
His face is gaunt, his voice shaky, his once fancy guayabera is soiled and hangs on. him, several sizes too large." Minerva, page 74 of the book. Trujillo is weaker than Minerva.
Minerva is able to show her courage at a dinner party thrown by Trujillo, the dictator at the time. At the party she went to reluctantly, Trujillo asks Minerva to dance. Knowing of Trujillo’s offensive past with females, she is hesitant to accept, but says
“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.
In 1938, Minerva’s father permitted her to go away to boarding school along with her two older sisters, Patria and Dedé. Alvarez’s writing on behalf of Minerva speaks volumes as to the point of view Minerva had growing up. “And that’s how I got free. I don’t mean just going to sleepaway school on a train with a trunkful of new things. I mean in my head after I got to Inmaculada and met Sinita and saw what happened to Lina and realized that I’d left a small cage to go into a bigger one, the size of our whole country,” (Alvarez 13). Minerva’s father, said that out of all his daughters, Minerva should have been born a boy. The other Mirabal sisters said that she was their father’s favorite daughter because Minerva acted the most like a son to him. She almost became the son he had always wanted, but never had. Due to her father’s influence, as Minerva grew up, she aspired to being a lawyer. Something which was unheard of for a woman in the ‘40s.
Minerva and Maria Teresa are two characters in Julia Alvarez’s In Time of the Butterflies. Minerva is one of the four main characters of the novel, as well as Maria Teresa. Minerva is the second youngest of the family and is very caring and kind. She was talking to her friend Sinita, who was one of the girls she met at school, and told her, “Tell me Sinita, maybe it’ll help” (Alvarez 16). Her friend Sinita told her the story about her brother’s death and Minerva felt sympathetic for her lost. Maria Teresa is the youngest of the Mirabal sisters and the ...
sister is Minerva. Their is 3 great reasons why Minerva is a hero. Minerva stood up for Sinita
In The Time of the Butterflies, chapter six briefly explain why Minerva action against Trujillo led to the sister death. Minerva slapping Trujillo in the face was a sign of bravery that she was not going to let Trujillo dilated her action like he did to a bunch of other women. It was clearly shown that Trujillo wasn’t going to let this slide by, instead build various events to make her suffer, making her commit to this actions which eventually will give Trujillo a reason for murdering the sisters’.“ pg 83-101”. This evidence shows that Minerva is willing to break out from the barriers that society and Trujillo dictatorship is implementing on them, and make a change for the better. “Women hold their beaded evening bags over their head, trying to protect their foundering hairdo after Minerva slap Trujillo”(pg 100). This shows how during the era that Trujillo govern fear was upon every individual that step in the shadow of Trujillo even if you didn 't have anything to do with it. “But el jefe has other plans for me,” A mind of her own, this little cibaeña”(Trujillo), her smirks, rubbing his cheek, then turns to Don Manuel”(pg 101). This evidence shows that Trujillo had other plans to handles his
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.
Two weeks is all it takes for a caterpillar to completely transition into a butterfly. Compared to our span of life, this seems like a rushed transition; however, there are certain ways that humans can change just as quickly as a caterpillar. Although these are not physical changes like the caterpillars, they still remain significant. In the novel In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez the characters experience changes in values, personal opinions, and political views. The character Patria fits the image of a butterfly as she rapidly changes in result of certain situations . Over the course of the book Patria quickly undergoes several momentous changes as she alters her political stance and values.
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.
In the French revolution, some important catalysts were the winter famine, the raised food prices, and the poor spending of money by the French monarchy. Due to the lack of resources and food, people were fighting over resources. These events contributed to the French citizen’s angry attitude with the monarchy who they blamed for raising the already high food prices and poorly spending their already low sum of money. Similarly in In The Time of The Butterflies, each sister has a specific catalyst that encouraged them to join and support the revolution earlier than they would of. One sister’s catalyst that particularly stuck out was Minerva and the catalyst that convinced her to join the revolution. “Because Lio presented a very real opportunity to fight against the regime…. Minerva was never the same…”(66,Alvarez) Lio, who was a popular revolutionary, “presented a very real opportunity” for Minerva to actually transform her thoughts on the revolution and the regime into actions that actually could make a difference. Lio influenced and sparked Minerva’s thoughts for she “was never the same”. “Never the same” meaning the same Minerva, but a Minerva who thought proactively. In relation to this, the French Revolution would have later or never happened if the famine, high prices, and poor spending had not occurred. All in all, without a catalyst, social change could not
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
“had to be brave for Sinita.” (19). This “hero’s attitude” is further evident in Minerva’s interactions with her sisters. One poignant example of this heroism is seen when Maria Teresa confronts minerva about why she was going to secret meetings at Don Horacio’s house, and asks her why she's doing such a dangerous thing. Minerva responds that she wants maria teresa to grow up in a free country, perfectly illustrating how minerva is willing to sacrifice herself so that the people around her can grow up in a better
Minerva does not try and escape even though she “is always sad like a house on fire—always something wrong. She has many troubles, but the big one is her husband who left and keeps leaving” (Cisneros 63). Minerva is clearly unhappy, but because she is accepting of her role and she will not leave him. She does not have the power to leave her husband and if she tried she would probably be beaten or worse. Esperanza wants to help Minerva but there is nothing that she can do for her: “Next week she comes over black and blue and asks what can she do? Minerva. I don’t know which way she’ll go. There is nothing I can do” (Cisneros 63). Esperanza knows that she cannot do anything for Minerva. It will take the power of Minerva removing herself from the abusive situation to actually save herself. Minerva having no power in her marriage is a clear relationship back to the theme of women accepting their role with men as their superior.
“The Necklace”, narrated by Guy de Maupassant in 3rd person omniscient, focuses the story around Mathilde Loisel who is middle class, and her dreams of fame and fortune. The story is set in 19th century France. One day, Mathilde’s husband brings home an invitation to a fancy ball for Mathilde; to his surprise Mathilde throws a fit because she doesn’t have a dress or jewelry to wear to the ball. M. Loisel gets her the beautifully expensive dress she desires and Mathilde borrows a diamond necklace from Mme. Forestier, a rich acquaintance of Mathilde. Mathilde goes to the ball and has a night she’s dreamed of, until she gets home from the ball at 4 A.M. to find