In The Time Of The Butterflies Comparative Essay

Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor allows people to take books that they normally wouldn’t think to analyze in a certain way and opens a whole new spectrum on literature. In the TIme of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez connects with the idea and principles of Foster’s book if you take a deep look in the book you are reading. Like Foster says in chapter seven or the bible, In the Time of the Butterflies is a literary work able to connect with this chapter, having a bible reference to extend or emphasize the story thematically.

In the short story “The Moths” by Helena Maria Viramontes, the author uses symbolism and characterization to paint the scene of a girl in a literary fiction that has lost her way and ends up finding herself within her Grandmother through the cycles of life. Through the eyes of an unnamed girl we relive a past that has both a traumatic ending and a new leash on life; however, we do not get there without first being shown the way, enter “The Moths”.

In the Time of the Butterflies during the 1940s, in the Dominican Republic, the ruler or dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo punished people if they didn’t do as he told them and plenty of other cruel things. He ruled for about 30 years, so the people were tortured for quite a long time. He became the dictator by eliminating everyone who had power above him. He even married his wives just to use them to get the the top and control everyone. It was just an unfair way to handle things and an unfair country overall. In her book, “In the Time of the Butterflies,” Julia Alvarez incorporates the history of the famous Mirabal sisters by telling the history of their life and how it was back then for their Dominican Republic country. Julia Alvarez

     The monarch butterfly, as known as Danaus plexippus, is often called the milkweed butterfly because its larvae eat the milkweed plant. They are also sometimes called "royalty butterflies" because their family name comes from the daughter of Danaus, ruler of Argos. There are many other interesting facts about this butterfly including its anatomy and life cycle, where the butterfly lies on the food chain, the migration from Canada to Mexico, why the butterfly is being threatened, and lastly, what is being done to help the butterfly.

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

Mark Twain stated “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear”. To be courageous, one must be fearless, strong, and faithful. In the story, “In the Time of Butterflies”, four sisters have to display courage during a time of a bloody revolution. They have to overcome many obstacles including imprisonment, death and divorce but they all revolt and stay strong to themselves and their families and never give up.

Life is a constant struggle against the ever present chill of death. Fear, betrayal, and cowardice all stems from life’s distaste of death. Human beings naturally rebuke the unknown, so it is only logical that people fight the inevitability of death. However, most people are ignorant of the reality of one day dying, prompting writer Virginia Woolf to write the essay, “The Death of the Moth”, in order to convey the frailty of life whilst also showing the awesome might of death. In the essay, her main purpose is to show that the moth embodies the human race, and that death is an inevitable fact of life no matter how much the human race struggles to stay alive. Woolf is able to get her purpose across by

Death is a word associated with loss, grief and sadness, but in the novel In the Time of the Butterflies we see death in a whole new perspective; martyrdom. Strong, independent, caring, honest, and having firm beliefs are all characteristics we see in a martyr especially in Patria. In the novel we explore the wonders of Julia Alvarez’s writing and get to witness Patria as a martyr and an individual who fought for the right of women against a dictator: Trujillo.

“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

The shift in tone and changes in the description of the surrounding environment reveal Simons character development. The difference in how Jack is describe interacting with his environment, shows Jacks transition into savagery. William Golding uses complex nature imagery to subtly depict characters loss of innocence.

The setting in the two novels plays important roles in both of the plots. In The Butterfly Revolution, the setting shifts in the very beginning of the story. In the journal Winston Weyn receives for his birthday from his uncle, he describes his home. Winston also shares with us that from his parents he half-heartedly accepted a trip to High Pines for the summer. Winston was not like most boys, and instead of playing baseball and doing things that most boys do, he read books. This bothered his brother Howard, which just encouraged Winston to read more and more. His father and mother, both concerned, had multiple talks with Winston but none of these talks resulted in anything. “And here I am, sitting on a thin and kind of smelly narrow mattress on my bunk in a cabin at High Pines” (22). He went from the comfort of his own bed to the smelly mattress of High Pines. The central conflict of the story begins at the camp. This shift of setting allows the real story to begin. Later in the novel, the setting shifts again. Some of the boys begin to venture off into the girls camp, or Low Pines. After the revolution has begun, they take over the girl camp, also. If the girls’ camp was not involved, two out of the three deaths would have been prevented. John Mason would not have died under the

This critique written by Roberto Gonzalez Echevarria of In the Time of the Butterflies focuses mainly on the political facts that are not apparent in the novel. He states that Alvarez makes her novel appear blurry, not making it a “serious historical fiction.” However, the critical commentary that Echevarria made would not necessarily apply to the film due to the fact that Alvarez’s intentions are to initially expose readers to life in the Dominican Republic under the control of Trujillo, rather than have it be a serious historical fictional novel with facts and real life events. In fact, the film focused more on the historical aspect of this time period unlike Alvarez’s novel. It provided slow motion slide shows of Trujillo’s

Imagine living in constant fear and not knowing what will happen next. Mawi was one of those children until he got the chance of a lifetime. In the memoir Of beetles and angels By Mawi Asgedom, Mawi had the chance to change his life, but if he took it, it would mean leaving his house and friends back home. Does he take it, or will he leave it and proceed to live a life in fear? On this journey you will see the hardships him and his family go through as being refugee’s. Through coming to the united states Mawi loses his bond with his homeland and people but gains hope and a new chance, which motivates him to treat people kindly, and live differently also to try his best to succeed in the life he was given.

Nathaniel Rich, the author of several novels, reviews, essays, and criticisms for major magazines and newspapers, wrote this depiction of female Olympic boxer Marlen Esparza in the July 2012 Vogue magazine entitled Marlen Esparza: Going the Distance. Rich begins the article by recounting the events of Esparza's determination to be trained by Coach Rudy Silva; her persistent efforts and obvious talent caught the Silva's attention aside from the fact he did not normally train females. Her talent for this male dominated sport prompted Silva to inquire why she wanted to box and when she told of her troubles in school he gave her certain conditions in promises to coach her (848-9). Rich explain how by the time Esparza

Woolf incorporates symbolism in her essay by describing the moth as life and energy. "So simple a form of the energy" and "taken a tiny bead of pure life and decking it as lightly as possible with down and feathers, had set it dancing and zig-zagging to show us the true nature of life" quoted from the essay. Another way she incorporates symbolism is by describing the months journey to death. Woolf also describes the scenery, the horses, and the farm itself. The month had traveled from one windowsill to the other.Flying from one end to the next. Eventually it's movements become awkward. The month wasn't filled with much "life or energy". It stops flying until it can't anymore. Slowly excepting it's death after fighting it back for as long