The Mirabel sisters were 3 beautiful sisters, whom rebelled against the word of the president of the Dominican Republic at the time, Trujillo. The Sisters started a rebel called the 14th of June and protested against Trujillo and made It through his punishments surviving prison, the murder of their father, and torture. Unfortunately, one day they were lured into a sugar cane farm and beaten to death. But before they were the strong, courageous, and fearless women they were when they died, they weren't always like that. It took a few changes in the sisters to become they Mirabel sisters we know and love today. The purpose of this essay is to summarize the changes in the Mirabel sister's throughout the story "In the time of the butterflies. …show more content…
To begin, with the sister Patria.
In the beginning Patria was very religious and even wished to be a nun. She could be described as "always in a rush" because she was married so young. She was known for crossing out her bucket list at a young age, even though she was the oldest sister. She was doing things adults do, but at a young age. Such as wanting to become a nun, being married , going to school at a young age to achieve her career goals and much more. Basically she was naïve. But most of all she was religious. In the text she says "No one had told me to believe in God or to love everything that lives. I did it automatically…". Then towards the end we find out that she is she is very kind, friendly and wise. Most of all she became as strong as ever Having so many sorrows she found a good way to deal with the pain of losing the things and the people she loves. She was strong for her younger sisters even though she lost her home, husband, son, and her peace of mind, she stayed strong for the rebellion. Her transition was from a simple kind religious quiet girl, to a strong, powerful, and withstanding women who could take anything life had to throw at …show more content…
her. Next, we have the transformation of Minerva.
Minerva is introduced as whimsical but mostly curious. Wondering what everything meant and asking every question possible and needing an answer. She would also try to relate to anything to understand, because that’s what she wanted the most, to understand. In the text it says " Sometimes, watching the rabbits in their pens, I'd think I'm no different from you, poor things." She always made sure to already have an understanding of something even if it wasn’t correct. As the story progresses she becomes more and more adventurous, she can be described as a wild child. Who liked to explore, take risks, and was even crazy yet always had a method behind her madness. This can be seen when she finds out about her dads second family, and hits his car out of anger then drives away. Not only that but her curiosity causing her to want to find out where her father was, and who those "raggedy" children were, and why they looked so much like her. No adventure was too much for her as long as it killed her
curiosity. Last but not least is Maria Theresa. Also known as Mate, Maria Theresa was the youngest of all children and most likely the one who changed the least. She can be described as cautious and petit, but she was very organized and made sure every situation had a clear resolution and every possible problem and a correct solution. In other words she was always trying to be as prepared for anything as possible. An example of this is when her father died, in order to control her feelings and to grieve at her own pace she had a "little book". Which she used when she needed to get her feelings under control when they are going crazy due to a certain situation she is dealing with. She always got very excited when little good things happened she was easy to entertain and was calm though on the inside she was going crazy. Towards the end of the book Mate's cautiousness came in handy, as she helped come up with ideas and solutions in the rebellion. Her spirit was always glowing bright as any drop of hope could make all the difference to her. She found happiness in the joy of others which made her most likely the most loving of all sisters. She was very caring yet strong and everything else it takes to be a Mirabel sister. To conclude. The Mirabel sisters, Patria, Minerva, and Maria Theresa were very different before they were what they are remembered as. Though many showed similarities in a more mature way. Non the matter they are strong women who stopped tyranny themselves. These changes were for the best and shaped them to the "butterflies" who symbolize freedom, power, and beauty. With or without these changes the sister were Powerful and even being sent into the grave couldn’t stop their strong transformations.
He had to get back at her by going through her family instead of going directly to her. Minerva was brave enough to slap the dictator. She was stronger than him, and she was incredible. Minerva was the most heroic of her sisters. She introduced her family to the rebellion.
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.
Out of all the Mirabal sisters, being courageous was Minerva’s specialty to show how she feels without being verbal with her emotions, and to get her point across. Right from the beginning of the book Minerva chose to create actions that were not only courageous, but reckless. After Minerva found out about her other sisters she crashed her father’s Jeep into his Ford at his other lover’s house. As always, she wanted to make a scene, “My voice was as commanding as his. ‘You’ve lost my respect,’” (Alvarez 89). Her father was extremely disappointed with her, but she wanted him to know that what he was doing was extremely wrong. Crashing her father’s cars was definitely brave, and especially since she did it in front of her other family without any second thoughts. Towards the middle of the book, Minerva informed Mate about some things she did not know, “Manolo and Minerva have explained everything. A national underground is forming,” and this is when Minerva explained more about how they created a national underground to try to get everybody freedom no matter what happened (Alvarez 142). This national underground was a h...
Julia Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies is an account of the four Mirabal sisters’ lives in the Dominican Republic during Rafael Trujillo’s dictatorship. Three of the Mirabal sisters - Minerva, Patria and Maria Teresa sacrificed their lives in the name of freedom by participating in the underground movement which opposed Trujillo’s dictatorship. Their participation in the revolution was a threat to Trujillo’s power and this resulted in the three sisters being killed. The novel tells the story from the point of view of each of the four siblings. The sisters, also referred to as, “The Butterflies,” each had a different approach to dealing with life under Trujillo’s reign. Minerva, the first person from her family to join the revolution, was motivated by principles and she contributed consistently to the revolution. Dede is the only survivor from the Mirabal sisters’ family, this is because she did not participate in the revolution. However, she takes care of the deceased children and tells the story of
The Mirabal Sisters, otherwise known as Las Mariposas, made their mark in history due to their efforts in the revolution against the Trujillo regime in the Dominican Republic. Julia Alvarez, a native Dominican herself, wrote In the Time of the Butterflies due to an account told by Dede Mirabal about the lives and tragic fate of her sisters Patria, Minerva, and Maria Teresa. Dede’s three sisters were murdered due to their involvement in the revolution; Dede did not join the revolution, and thus survived to help recount their story. Since the novel’s publication in 1994, In the Time of the Butterflies has impacted various aspects of life, and contemporary culture frequently alludes to facets of the novel. One critic commented that "In the Time of the Butterflies suggests that the Mirabal sisters not only fought against the Trujillo regime, but also against the Dominican Republic’s patriarchal culture and gender roles. They were very
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
Junot Diaz’s novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is focused on the hyper-masculine culture of the Dominican, and many argue that his portrayal of the slew of women in the novel is misogynistic because they are often silenced by the plot and kept out of the narration (Matsui). However, Diaz crafts strong women, and it is society that views them as objects. The novel recognizes the masculine lens of the culture while still examining the lives of resilient women. In this way, the novel showcases a feminist stance and critiques the misogynist culture it is set in by showcasing the strength and depth of these women that help to shape the narrative while acknowledging that it is the limits society places on them because of their sexuality
Demetria Martínez’s Mother Tongue is divided into five sections and an epilogue. The first three parts of the text present Mary/ María’s, the narrator, recollection of the time when she was nineteen and met José Luis, a refuge from El Salvador, for the first time. The forth and fifth parts, chronologically, go back to her tragic experience when she was seven years old and then her trip to El Salvador with her son, the fruit of her romance with José Luis, twenty years after she met José Luis. And finally the epilogue consists a letter from José Luis to Mary/ María after her trip to El Salvador. The essay traces the development of Mother Tongue’s principal protagonists, María/ Mary. With a close reading of the text, I argue how the forth chapter, namely the domestic abuse scene, functions as a pivotal point in the Mother Tongue as it helps her to define herself.
The Dominican Republic under the Trujillo regime was considered one of the most violent eras ever in the Americas. In The Time of The Butterflies, by Julia Alvarez, commemorates the lives of Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa Mirabal. These women were known as “Las Mariposas” because of their direct involvement in an underground revolution against Trujillo. In the story, the Mirabel sisters are women with childhoods, hopes, and dreams, who fight for the liberation of their country. After their assassination, they became symbols of freedom and revolution for persecuted peoples all over the world. The Mirabal sisters not only fought against the Trujillo regime, but also opposed the unfair gender roles of that time. In the Dominican Republic,
In the book “Bless Me Ultima”, by Rudolpho Anaya, there were two families represented, the Marez family and the Lunas family. These two families were very different, but were brought together by the marriage of Gabriel Marez and Maria Lunas. Through the eyes of their son Antonio one may see the comparison of the two. The differentiation of these two families is very clearly noticeable, such as in their personalities, the expression of their religion, and their everyday ways of life.
“Jaimito think its suicide. He told me that he will leave me if I get mixed up in those things”. Here is where Dede confesses the truth about her participation with the Mariposas. Although later on she claims to be leaving Jaimito. Dede knew that she needed to join her sisters this was the only way she was going to show her loyalty to the “Mariposas”. Minerva, Patria, and Maria Teresa husbands were all involved with the “Mariposas” movement. Could this be the reason why they were so committed and involved with the “Mariposas” movement? The support that all their husbands gave them through the journey guided them to influent the change, and to them it was very important. We all ask ourselves could this be another reason why Dede felt so strong about getting people to hear he story, to find the interest in it. Dede made her family home into a museum, this way people can see how they lived when it all began. There is also a monument that tourist or native Dominican that would like to know the story of the Mirabal Sisters. Why is this so important? Its known that a lot of Dominican or people all around the world do not know the story of the Mirabal sisters and what they died for; the truth behind the lies and the unrealistic story telling. Dede’s accomplishment was to let everyone now what happened to her sisters to her father and how Trujillo dictated
her grandmother) and grief, Viramontes successfully paints an endearing tale of change. “The Moths” emphasizes the narrator’s oppression by her. household’s religion and by the social structures associated with it. juxtaposed by the freedom for development available within the native. curandera custom taught by her grandmother.
Even in the beginning of the story, Minerva shows a powerful rebellious attitude. Minerva’s first encounter with courage comes during her first year at school. A girl she pities and befriends, reveals a major secret to
In my opinion from what I have understood from the text she is a tempestuous character. She is initially perceived as being wild bright and proud. Her character then develops a macabre quality that becomes a precocious influence over everybody in the village of Salem. She abuses this 'ability' to turn things to her advantage and others demise.
The poem “Exile” by Julia Alvarez dramatizes the conflicts of a young girl’s family’s escape from an oppressive dictatorship in the Dominican Republic to the freedom of the United States. The setting of this poem starts in the city of Trujillo in the Dominican Republic, which was renamed for the brutal dictator Rafael Trujillo; however, it eventually changes to New York when the family succeeds to escape. The speaker is a young girl who is unsophisticated to the world; therefore, she does not know what is happening to her family, even though she surmises that something is wrong. The author uses an extended metaphor throughout the poem to compare “swimming” and escaping the Dominican Republic. Through the line “A hurried bag, allowing one toy a piece,” (13) it feels as if the family were exiled or forced to leave its country. The title of the poem “Exile,” informs the reader that there was no choice for the family but to leave the Dominican Republic, but certain words and phrases reiterate the title. In this poem, the speaker expresser her feeling about fleeing her home and how isolated she feels in the United States.