Flight Behavior

In the time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, is a fictional story about the Mirabal sisters during the time of the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic in 1860. The book was is told by the sisters in their points of view.. In the book the sisters represents butterflies, because they show they are free and change. Each sister embodies freedom and changes in their own littler ways, but for different reasons.

for a wild ride through their lives from their point of view. "In the Time of the Butterflies" is about

In Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony and Barbara Kingsolver’s Flight Behavior, both of the main characters develop a connection with the issues surrounding the state of the environment in the novels that leads to creation of a new character, the character of “environment”. Both Tayo and Dellarobia discover more about themselves through their relationship with nature and their surroundings, however, Silko manages to convey empathy for the character “environment” more efficiently when compared to Kingsolver. Tayo’s link with the character “environment” mentally and spiritually, resonates with the audience and draws in support for “environment”, whereas any empathy for the character “environment” in Flight Behavior becomes buried underneath

However, there are also stories that highlight the limits of human capability and the oppressions we face on earth. The use of bird transformations in particular stories showcases the fact that animals have a freedom we can never have as mortals as we are tied down by mortal concerns. Trying to achieve this freedom is impossible as exemplified by Icarus. Only as an animal can one transcend beyond mortality and experience true freedom. Ovid’s portrayal of birds in these stories pose a perplexing question as to the status of animals in relations to humans.

In her novel, In the Time of the Butterflies, Julia Alvarez unfolds a dramatic character transformation of the Mirabal sister, Maria Teresa. She is detailed to be a very thoughtful character who always seem to look out for others, especially those important to her in life. Alvarez induces this empowering development of Maria Teresa through the usage of diction, point of view and selection of detail.

In order for them to cope with such death and destruction, the adolescents must disconnect themselves from their emotions, suppress their feelings, and accept the agonizing conditions of their lives. Eventually, they learned to displace their emotions and to daydream freely when surrounded by the chirping birds and frail butterflies; “One morning two butterflies play in front of our trench. They are brimstone-butterflies, with red spots on their yellow wings… They settle on the teeth of a skull. The birds too are just as carefree, they have long since accustomed themselves to the war.”; (Remarque 127). The brimstone-butterflies that were mentioned within the novel represented the beauty of nature, fragility of life, and vulnerability of existence. Despite the struggles of war, they acted as an illumination and a reminder to Paul and the other comrades that even beauty could be present in the ugliest situations, as well as, how majestic the world truly is. With how delicate the birds and butterflies generally are, they represent the purification and innocence of all life. They certainly reflect the peaceful workings of nature. Overall, the juxtaposition between the violent battle front and nature’s beauty, as well as, humanity was inconsistent throughout. To elaborate, although the harshness of war rages on, the world outside of it is constantly changing and moving forward as the birds and butterflies “have long since accustomed themselves to the

The butterfly is often used as a symbol of rebirth, which connects with the title of “Change”. The raised skull of the first butterfly evokes death, but its bright, cheerful colors and central position seem to suggest that ‘death’ in this work is not to be feared, and is even necessary. The second butterfly, hanging freely from the ceiling, is noticeably different from the first, again invoking the idea of change. Change here is then often painful, but it is needed and can even be

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” (Andre Gide) In the novel, In the Time of the Butterflies, written by Julia Alvarez, four sisters are led through a risk infested journey in which they must overcome hindrances with hollow consequences. This historical fiction novel takes us through a rollercoaster of events, incorporating everything from the partialities towards women, to life below the oppressive administration of the Dominican Republic’s dictator, Rafael Trujillo. The events painted by the four sisters give us some insight as to the positives and negatives of life in the Dominican Republic. As the novel progresses, we see the diversity in relation to the

(Kingsolver 422) This quote most effectively shows her fleeting sense of faith and expanding scientific worldviews. Dellarobia’s ideals were stripped away from her, leaving her struck with a cold sense of realization that both she and the butterflies are in a struggle for survival. Thus she was left bare, with no protection, much like the butterflies. “Down here in the open, without the camouflage of the forest, with their cover utterly blown...”

Sherman Alexie’s Flight Patterns tries to tackle a challenging subject. It probes the underbelly of modern life, sifting through the cloudy American mind that’s full of seemingly useless information, in search of what’s truly important in life. This happens through the stories two main scenes. The first depicts William’s relationship with his daughter and wife, and conflicts in life. The second engages William in a taxi-cab conversation that shuffles his priorities and forces him to confront his problem. This pushes him to his tipping point, and when the ride is over, he becomes uneasy and cares only to hear his family’s voice, not about his job, or the fears that had previously been driving forces. Alexie is trying to show that

Pleasants' and Oberhausen’s abstract is divided further into four parts, the first of which states, “The size of the Mexican overwintering population of monarch butterflies has decreased over the last decade,” (10). That same point continues to discuss the reasons for the monarch population decrease, including

It didn't form an emotional connection, and it focused less on the Mirabal family and more on the interaction between them and the revolution and the regime. The experiences and journal writings in the narrative make it unique and intriguing to the readers, which the movie seemed to lack. The narrative was written by all four sisters, so the reader received their point of view on things, in contrary the movie seemed to be portrayed through Minerva’s point of view. Consequently, it didn't give Patria, Dede, or Maria Teresa a voice in the movie. All the sisters were involved with the revolution, but it wasn't really shown well in the

I found this article interesting as when I was younger, I learned about butterflies in school. However, one of the behavior of butterflies that my teachers and textbooks could never explain was how monarch butterflies, as one of the

The poem symbolizes freedom. The butterfly is a metaphor symbolized freedom of the jews. They both got out and were free in very different ways. These both events happened

The resentment within the young girl’s family is essential to the novel because one can understand the young girl better as she makes her decision.