The Role Of The Mirabal Sisters In Rafael Trujillo's Regime

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 Mirabal sisters never thought they would grow up to fight for their freedom, but as they

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.

Courage is an important trait that needs to be present in order to affect change. The book in the time of butterflies by Julia Alvarez demonstrates this need for courage in the story of the four Mirabal sisters who acted with courage to create change in the Dominican Republic. They do this by showing great courage in the face of oppression. Minerva was one of the bravest of the Mirabal sisters. She shows: moral, intellectual, emotional, and physical courage throughout her life. These are demonstrated in her leadership and her heroic actions of resistance. Some of her main sources of courage were her childhood friends, her family, her sense of justice, and desire for equality. She shows courage repeatedly sticking up for what is right despite of threats,

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

Julia Alvarez’s novel In the Time of the Butterflies shows the lack of fairness in society and the importance of maintaining a strong family bond. Trujillo was not fair between men and women and granting men the rights to do whatever they want. The Mirabal sisters’ revolutionary against president Trujillo and fighting for freedom of the country and its people. In Saudi Arabia women are now granted to drive, but there some other things that men can do but women cannot. The Mirabal family has a strong maintain of a family bond. Minerva is one of the four sisters who is brave and had the courage to stand for others and started the revolution against the president.

In consideration of the possibility that the OAS(Organization of American States) might come to inspect the country, Trujillo was trying to release some prisoners he imprisoned or at least improve their living conditions to impress the OAS. As the plot progressed, the Mirabal sisters were released from prison, but three of were murdered by a group of people who were loyal to Trujillo. Their opposition toward the brutal Dictator and act of encouraging others to rebel lead to their death. After Trujillo was assassinated, the new president visited Dede and said that “All those properties they had stolen he was going to distribute among the poor. He was going to make us a nation proud of ourselves, not run by the Yanqui imperialists”(Alvarez 310). The Mirabals sisters died for a purpose and the only remaining Mirabal lives to tell the fascinating and terror some stories of the sisters.

    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.

Patria is exposed to the truth that Trujillo was not the god-like entity she perceived him to be. In Patria’s mind there is no separation between god and Trujillo; they are one. Patria is finally coming face to face with the problems within the Dominican Republic. This revelation foreshadows how Patria will become involved with the regime and what part she might play.

Likewise, another factor that assists in Trujillo’s persistent control of the Dominican Republic is his abuse of power. Rules are restrictions and too many rules lead to the entrapment of citizens. Julia Alvarez specifically utilizes the word “weakness” to portray the character trait that the majority of the citizens possess. In the word “weakness,” one thinks about not-strong and lack of courage. In essence, no one has the courage to stand up to Trujillo. For example, we see the common trait through the quote, “People who opened their big mouths didn’t live very long.”

In addition, Trujillo was friends with the head of the armed forces, and friends with his wife’s lover. One day Trujillo told the general about his wife having an affair with another man, and Trujillo became the head of the armed forces soon after the general shot his wife and her lover. (17). Even though the sisters didn’t want to believe it the accusations against their president, but began to realize how true they were. Over time the sisters met others that didn’t agree with their president’s ways, and that is how the Mirabel sisters came to join the Virgilio Morales.

Rafael Trujillo, a Dominican dictator, developed a harsh reputation as being one of the most violent and domineering leaders of South America in his thirty-one years of power. In The Time of the Butterflies, Julia Alvarez provides insight into the effects of Trujillo’s infamy by sharing the stories of three Dominican sisters and their struggles to gain independence and speak their truth. The Dominican-American author dramatizes the lives of the Mirabal sisters, three historical women who were assassinated in 1961, for their involvement in the anti-Trujillo movement. Roberto Gonzalez Echevarria, a Cuban critic of Latin American literature, provides a bias insight with regards to the novel.

In the past, women had less power than men for thousands of years. In other words, men played an essential gender role and controlled people all around the world. Obviously, most leaders were males, and there were more male bosses than female`s in companies. This unequal social injustice has existed all around the world, especially in the Dominican Republic. In this country, men always thought the only responsibility of women was staying at home and taking care of the whole family. In addition, men did not care what women really wanted, and the only way was to force women to do what men asked. In the movie In the Time of the Butterflies, which happened in the Dominican Republic, people struggle under the brutal dictatorship of Trujillo between the 1930`s and 1960`s. In this movie, men play the important gender role that women have no right to apply for university, and they have to be obedient to men. However, women work hard to defeat their oppressed unequal fate and seek feminism, especially for the three Mirabal sisters. The Mirabal sisters are normal women who live in a farm with their parents. Unfortunately, their father is killed by Trujillo, so they become revolutionaries. They lead people to dare to start the revolution against feminist resistance. Although the Mirabal sisters understand they will sacrifice their lives, they never abandon due to their respectable ambition to gain equal rights as men.