In Time Of Butterflies

In the Time of the Butterflies is a novel by Julia Alvarez that tells the fictitious story of the Mirabal sisters during the dictatorship of Rafael Ttujillo in the Dominican Republic. The story starts with one of the women, Dede, being interviewed about her prominent three sisters who were killed during the country's political unrest at the time. Minerva, the third sister, is accepted to boarding school alongside her elder sister, Patria, and instantly becomes friends with a fellow classmate, Sinita. Sinita tells Minerva about how the president murdered all the men in her house, despite the fact that most people believe he is a good man. Inspired by her friend's experience with the dictatorial regime, Minerva decides to start a political revolution with the help of her other sisters apart from Dede.

Patria, meanwhile, is on her way to become a nun when she meets Pedrito and marries him at the age of sixteen. She undergoes numerous spiritual challenges as a young woman, and when she loses her third baby she thinks that it is her punishment from God. On a pilgrimage with her three sisters and mother, Patria regains her faith, and later on starts a Christian revolutionary group which she merges with Minerva’s revolutionary group. Eventually, Maria Teresa, the youngest of the four sisters, joins in the revolution. The sisters are constantly harassed by security officials, persecuted, and imprisoned. Their family also suffers retaliation from the Military Intelligence Service. To revenge their political actions, the president orders three of the sisters to be killed. The sisters and their driver are ambushed on their way from visiting their husbands in prison and beaten to death after which their bodies are put in the car and rolled down a cliff to make it look like a road accident.

Plot Analysis

The plot of the story follows a typical three-act plot style, which is also commonly used in screenwriting. Typically, at the end of the first act, the main character is completely involved in a conflict but is actively involved in making things “right”. During the second act, the main character is usually farthest from their goals but remain hopeful. By the end of the third act, the story reaches its climax and is resolved. The same trend can be observed in the story of the Maribal sisters as depicted by Alvarez and can be analyzed as follows.

Act I

in the first part of the novel, the Maribal sisters come of age, each of them facing their individual challenges, whether political, spiritual or romantic. A great part of the story is built in this section. For instance, Minerva learns of dictator Trujillo’s assassination of innocent citizens, while Patria regains her spiritual faith after a pilgrimage with her sisters and mother. By the end of the first part, the three sisters are determined to overthrow the dictator no matter what it costs them.

Act II

The second part of the novel contains the trials and tribulations that the three sisters, Patria, Minerva, and Mate, underwent during their struggle against the regime. They try to convince Dede to join the revolution but she refuses citing marital reasons. Although they are aware of the dangers associated with defying the president’s orders, they are hopeful that their actions will result to a better government and environment where their kids can grow.

Act III

The final part of the story features the downfall of the three sisters, although in real sense their deaths contributed more to the revolution as much as their actions. Minerva and Mate are incarcerated and undergo serious torture while in prison. They are eventually released and later on their way back from visiting their husbands in prison, they are ambushed and killed by Trujillo’s men. Only Dede lives to tell their story.

Christopher Booker (2005) proposed seven basic plots that are recycled continually in literary works such as novels, plays, movies and operas. The seven plots are: overcoming the monster, rags to riches, the quest, voyage and return, rebirth, comedy, and tragedy. He also gives the account of a meta-plot where the story undergoes several stages including anticipation, dream, frustration, nightmare, and resolution. With regards to In the Time of the Butterflies, the plot follows a meta-plot style although the story ends tragically with the death of the main characters. In the anticipation stage, the Maribal sisters cannot wait to leave their farmhouse and explore the world, an opportunity which is presented by Lio. In the dream stage, the character is hopeful and committed to the cause, similar to the way the sisters were determined to overthrow Trujillo. Frustration comes in when Dede refuses to join them, and other things start going wrong. The characters realize that they are not after all invincible. In the nightmare stage the characters are almost completely helpless and there is very little hope. In this stage, Mate and Minerva were imprisoned along with the husbands of all three sisters. The resolution stage in this case is somehow complicated because the characters eventually achieved their dreams but at the cost of their lives.

Works Cited

Alvarez, Julia. In the Time of the Butterflies. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2010. Print.

Booker, Christopher. The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories. London: Continuum, 2005. Print.

Deadline is approaching?

Wait no more. Let us write you an essay from scratch

Receive Paper In 3 Hours
Calculate the Price
275 words
First order 15%
Total Price:
$38.07 $38.07
Calculating ellipsis
Hire an expert
This discount is valid only for orders of new customer and with the total more than 25$
This sample could have been used by your fellow student... Get your own unique essay on any topic and submit it by the deadline.

Find Out the Cost of Your Paper

Get Price