Dedé Mirabal: The One Left Behind

They say about families that if you knock on the door, they have to let you in. Family will always be there no matter what. The book, In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, tells the true story of the four Mirabal sisters, Patria, Dedé, Minerva, and María Teresa and their fight for freedom against the harsh dictator, Trujillo, in the Dominican Republic. In the book, Alvarez uses the theme of family loyalty to show that no matter what happens families fight and work for each other because they’re family no matter what. This ethic of loyalty to each other is shown throughout the book from the time when life is uncomplicated and simpler, to the most dangerous moments of the political resistance. The sisters never give up on each other and their families.

In the book Alvarez informs us that this takes place during Trujillo 's reign over the Dominican Republic in the 1930’s to the 1960’s. Throughout history dictators have risen and fallen all across the world. Many have been seen as evil, and sometimes good to others, but no matter what a persons view tend to be there are some who even consider them god. Due to a dictators extensive powers and complete control over every aspect of a persons life this is what comes to be. Trujillo is just the same, at first his true motives were questioned and it wasn’t apparent to all what he really was. As the Mirabel sisters grow up it becomes clear that Trujillo is in control of more of their lives than it may seemed. Trujillo leads a complete authoritarian rule over the Dominican Republic with spies everywhere, this can suggest that he trying to assume the role of a terrible god, who is always watching and ready to punish. While all

The Dominican Republic’s dictator Rafael Trujillo had thousands of people killed because of their disobedience to him. From the 1930s to 1960s the country was under the control of Trujillo. He had taken control of the Dominican Republic and used his power against people who decided not to follow him and his laws. The four Mirabal sisters, Minerva, Patria, Mate, and Dede were all risking their lives because of their involvement in the underground, against their harsh dictator. In the book In the time of the Butterflies, the four Mirabal sisters perspectives are impacted by the underground movement against Trujillo because of each of their involvement with the revolution.

The Mirabal sisters are all considered heroines for their work against Trujillo. Three of them

All four sisters reject their stereotypical role as women in the society by standing up for their beliefs and the revolution. When Minerva said,” It’s about time we women had a voice in running our country,”(Alvarez ?Chapter 1?) shows how outspoken she is about her country. The way Minerva demands equality shows the influence that men have over women in the Dominican culture. During the 1960s, the men expected women to be housewives, and to just cook and clean. In the book when Jaimito says,” The Mirabal sisters like to run their men, that was the problem. In his house, we was the one to wear the pants.”(Alvarez, 176-177) That shows that men expect women to be below them.

This passage was written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez in The Chronicle of a Death Foretold. It is about Divina Flor who explains to the writer why she did not warn Santiago Nasar that he was going to die. She recounts that, as a child, she was sexually assaulted by him. This passage is so important to this book because it brings out the themes of women's roles in Latin American Society, power and culture. These themes help the Marquez bring out the important contexts of the story so readers can understand the importance of the story. In The Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Gabriel uses structure techniques, symbols, contrast, foreshadowing, imagery and figurative language to bring out the theme of gender roles.

    Dede Mirabal, the second oldest Mirabal sister is portrayed as the weakest sister of them all. She represents the obedient wife many women were used to being.”I followed my husband. I didn't get involved” (Alvarez 171 playbook). She is an example of a follower. She allowed her husband Jaimito, to be in control due to her inability to speak up. Another example that illustrates Dede lack of  independence is when she stated, “he told me he’ll have to leave me if i get mixed up in this thing” (Alvarez 179 playbook). Dedes excuse for not joining the revolution had a major impact towards her relationship towards her sisters and especially with her husband. The relationship she had with Jaimito was very abusive. The idea that a man was able to decide

Minvera Mirabal stood as a symbol of revolution to those who wanted to see the downfall of Rafael Trujillo. Her and two of her three sisters were advocates of the revolution until the sad ending of the story in which the three sisters were killed in a car crash. But before the ending of the Mirabal sisters can be discussed, the life of Minerva and the point she developed her political principles must be addressed.

"Sadly Frances had many misfortunes is her future. Her family suffered through war and loss, but she always kept her faith. While her husband was fleeing capture, soldiers destroyed her home. Instead of moving she cleared up the rubble and turned it into a hospital for homeless people."

In the Time of the Butterflies revolves around the Mirabal sisters, women living in a very patriarchal, “macho” society. Their personal struggles are part of the power of their story, as they stand not only as symbols of rebellion against Trujillo, but at the same time as loving, independent women with husbands and children. Alvarez shows how the resistance against women in politics can even be propagated by the women themselves, as both Mamá and Patria initially express sentiments that women are inferior to men, or else are somehow “purer” and so shouldn’t dirty themselves with politics. In talking to the interview woman in the present day, Dedé says that women “followed their husbands,” but she knows that this is an excuse, as she is the

When you hear of the Mirabal sisters, which sister comes to mind first? When thinking of a hero, Minerva comes to mind first. She was a hero to many. In In The Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, Minerva's actions symbol courage, love, and sacrifice. Minerva was a strong individual that knew how to stand for what she believed in. She was mature and responsible. Minerva stood up to Trujillo, had a mindset to go to law school, and was favorited by her parents.

She is the only one who survived because she really did her best to stay out of the revolution against Trujillo unlike her three sisters did. For Dede, courage develops both before and after the deaths of her family members. To her courage means sho stay and help her family and herself instead of being selfish and running away. After her sisters passed away, she had many people that wanted to ask her questions like how did she survive and why is she the only one that lived. This was hard for Dede to handle because some of the questions that some people would ask are very hard to answer. Also, in some cases, she is even still searching for the answer to these

In the beginning she didn’t show a lot of courage she didn't want to be involved in the revolution. Both of her sisters would ask her to join the revolution and join them. Dede would really start to begin and question her marriage and about joining the revolution. When her sisters were in prison she would gain courage and fight for them. Dede was the only sister of the three that would survive. After her sisters died she would go and share stories about them. Dede would show a lot of courage because when both of your sisters die and with every thing that is going on in her life she would still go out and share their

Both Sadie and Bessie Delany were the two characters that left a lasting impact on my life. After reading all about they have been through in their century long lives, a huge impression was left on my life. The Delany sisters have inspired many of their readers to live life to the fullest. They lived through many hardships in their lives and were

Hoover also indicated about the brave story of Maldonado about learning a new language and handling many other things in her life. I agree with that and her story is very similar to our story but the difference is just that she will stay in her new place but we will go back to our country after graduation. Also, she has more difficulty than us because she misses her family a lot. The feeling of being immigrant is very harsh because people who migrate always feel that they want to stay in their home but their situation force them to be immigrant. What she felt leads her to explore and learn new things. It is the same to us the feeling of studying abroad leads us to learn new thing such as being independent, rational and educated. She also said