In the Time of the Butterflies
Julia Alvarez
Ms. Lonardo
LHS
2011-2012
Why do we tell stories?
How do author’s choices create meaning?
Name ______________________________
Table of Contents
Block______
Vocabulary Words……………………………………………………………………………………………………..2
TIME Magazine Article……………………………………………………………………………………………….3
PowerPoint Guided Notes…………………………………………………………………………………………..5
Character List…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….7
Spanish/ English Vocabulary Reference Sheet……………………………………………………………..9
Response Papers………………………………………………………………………………………………………10
Reading Comprehension Questions……………………………………………………………………………12
Fourteenth of June Movement……………………………………………………………………………………21
1
2
Vocabulary Words 4.3 – 4.8
4.3
dissenter
deification
despotism
mariposas
4.4
pilgrimage
gaudy
benefactor
crucifix
4.5
agitators
desecrate
mulatto
munitions
4.6
Epiphany
stupor
romanticize
diminutive
4.7
ominous
imminent
succumb
placating
4.8
indignant
confided
admonition
imperious
3
Warning Beneath the Cliff
Time Magazine
Monday, Dec. 12, 1960
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC:
Tragic coincidences are not uncommon in Dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo's Dominican
Republic. Last week Trujillo's mouthpiece, El Cáribe, reported another: the curious case of three
wellborn sisters noted for their opposition to the Dictator. They were found dead near the
wreckage of a Jeep at the bottom of a 150-ft. cliff on the north coast of the tight little island. Said
El Cáribe: "The accident in which Driver Rufino Cruz and the sisters Patria Mirabal de Gonzáles,
Minerva Mirabal de Tavárez and Maria Teresa Mirabal de Guzman died is presumed to have
happened when Cruz lost control of the vehicle."
There was much to the story of the three Mirabal sisters that El Cáribe did not tell. The story
began with Minerva, 32, who reportedly caught the Dictator's eye some years ago when she was
a pretty university student. When Trujillo tried to exercise his Dominican version of droit du
seigneur, Minerva's response was a stinging slap on the face. Shortly thereafter, both Minerva
and her middle-aged father were jailed, Minerva briefly, her father for two years before he was
released —to die 15 days later of a combination of malnutrition, beatings and general misuse.
The sisters all married anti-Trujillo husbands—a lawyer, an engineer, a farmer. In 1957 the
three couples began organizing an underground opposition to the Dictator among the
Dominican Republic's middle and professional classes; after the failure of a Cuba-based airborne
invasion in 1959, the underground movement took as its name the date of the failure—the 14th
of June. Last January, as the 14th of June gathered strength to strike at Trujillo, the Dictator got
word of the plot and cracked down.
In the trials that followed, two of the husbands got 20 years, the other 30. To
forestall plotting, the men were sent to widely separated prisons. Two of the sisters themselves
were imprisoned briefly, then allowed to return to their family home near Salcedo, 70 miles
4
northwest of Ciudad Trujillo. Two months ago, without explanation, all three husbands were
moved to a prison near Salcedo. There, after a tantalizing delay, the wives were granted
permission to make a joint visit a fortnight ago. The sisters' cars had been confiscated; gratefully
they accepted a stranger's offer to ride to the prison in his Jeep. On the way back, for reasons
unexplained, the Jeep driver left the main highway for an unnecessary—and fatal—jounce along
a desolate, cliff-edged road.
There was, of course, no hint of foul play in the reports from Trujilloland. But the terrible deaths
of the three sisters and their driver—who presumably was considered expendable—would be
something for the 14th of June underground to think about.
Non-Fiction Reading
1. Annotate this article.
2. What would you call the writer’s tone or attitude? Explain your answer.
3. The main idea is never stated--only implied. What would you say it was?
4. Reread the article and pick out five people or groups you think will be important in
In the Time of the Butterflies.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
5
PowerPoint -- Guided Notes
Directions: As you listen to the PowerPoint Presentation, take notes on the following
topics and questions.
Julia Alvarez
o Where was she born?
o How old was she when her family fled from the DR? Why did her family leave?
o In your own words, Why did Alvarez choose to tell the story of the Mirabel sisters?
o What are some differences between the DR and the US? How does this influence
Alvarez’s writing?
Historical Fiction
o What is historical fiction?
o What are some of the things considered legend in In the Time of the Butterflies?
What is known to be factual?
o What does Alvarez say about her characters?
6
Dominican Republic
o Where is the Dominican Republic?
Trujillo
o What impact did the US Marines have on Trujillo?
o What type of ruler was Trujillo?
o What was the impact of his reign on the Dominican people?
o How did other countries feel about his rule?
Catholicism in the DR
o Explain the role of Catholicism in the DR and on Trujillo’s reign.
o Who is Saint Bernadette?
o Who is Saint Dominic?
Gender Roles in the DR
o What was typical for women in the DR during the 1950s and 1960s?
7
CHARACTER LIST
Minerva Mirabal
LAS MARIPOSAS (from NEA Big Read)
Independent, outspoken Minerva is determined to get an education but, even after finishing
law school, is prohibited by Trujillo from practicing. She is the first to join the revolution- la
primera mariposa, the first Butterfly. Her husband Manolo is also a leader in the
underground.
"They marveled at my self-control-and so did I. But by now in my life I should have
known. Adversity was like a key in the lock for me."
María Teresa (Mate) Mirabal
María Teresa, young and naïve, communicates primarily through journal entries. She
becomes aware of the underground after she questions Minerva about both the strange,
coded language she uses and a crate of guns that is delivered to the house. She marries
Leandro and both join the resistance.
"I've lost all interest in my studies. I just go to classes in order to keep my cover as a
second-year architecture student. My true identity now is Mariposa (#2), waiting daily,
hourly, for communications from up north."
Patria Mirabal
The eldest sister, Patria, toys with the idea of becoming a nun before falling in love at
sixteen with Pedrito González, a handsome young farmer. She becomes involved with the
underground after witnessing a battle in the mountains between government forces and
anti-Trujillo rebels on the fourteenth of June, 1959.
"Coming down that mountain, I was a changed woman. I may have worn the same
sweet face, but now I was carrying not just my child but that dead boy as well."
Dedé Mirabal
In the novel's opening chapter, Dedé's father foretells her future, saying, "She'll bury us all
[. . .] in silk and pearls." Until after her sisters' deaths, Dedé obeys her husband Jaimito's
orders not to get involved in the revolution.
8
"I see them all there in my memory, as still as statues, Mamá and Papá, and Minerva
and Mate and Patria, and I'm thinking something is missing now. And I count them all
twice before I realize-it's me, Dedé, it's me, the one who survived to tell the story."
OTHER IMPORTANT CHARACTERS
Add information or new characters as we read.
Mamá: Mother to the Mirabal girls.
Papá: Father to the Mirabal girls.
Fela: A worker for the Mirabal family who claims to be a fortune teller.
Minou: One of Minerva's children
Trujillo: Rafael Leonidas Trujillo, also known as "El Jefe" (the Chief), is the self-appointed
dictator of the Dominican Republic.
Don Manuel: Trujillo's right-hand man..
Virgilio: Virgilio, code name "Lio". He is a revolutionary. He was involved with one of the
sisters.
Jaimito: Jaimito is Dede's husband and cousin.
Leandro--Maria Teresa’s husband, (a.k.a “Leandro”)
Manolo: a revolutionary who is Minerva’s husband.
Sinita: Minerva's good friend, whom she met at Inmaculada Catholic School for Girls.
Pedrito González: A farmer. He married Patria Mirabal when she was 22, on February 24,
1947
9
Reference Sheet
Spanish Terms with English translation
Spanish Term
Gringa dominicana
Maria santisima
Exactamente
Anacchuita tree
Campesinos
Tan afuera de la cosa
Gringos
Galleria
Ay Dios/ Dios mio
Pobrecita
Mi napita
Senorita
El cuco
Promesa
Sarampion
Guardia
Peseta
Brujo
Quinceanera
Un clavo saca
Otro clavo
novio
English Translation
Dominican with light (whiter)
complexion
Virgin Mary
Exactly
Olive tree
peasants
Out of touch
Foreigners, Usually Americans
Gallery
Oh God
Poor little thing
My little extra one
Miss
The Boogieman
promise
An infection
guard
Type of currency?
witch
15th birthday/ similar to Sweet Sixteen
Under control
UN CLAVO SACA OTRO CLAVO:
something or someone else to take away
the pain… it’s an expression
boyfriend
10
Response Paper Prompts
Submitted to Turnitin.com by 3pm of due date
Throughout the course of reading In the Time of the Butterflies, you will write six response essays. Each
week you have the choice to write a critical response paper or a creative response paper. You must
write three critical responses and three creative responses; so plan accordingly. Each essay should be
one to two pages in length.
Critical Responses: Your critical responses must have properly cited evidence from the novel. Your
evidence should focus on the most recent chapters that we have read, but you may incorporate other
parts of the novel, if necessary.
Creative Responses: Your creative responses must be meaningful and follow all of the steps required,
but do not necessarily need direct quotation.
Response One
DUE: April 30
Critical: Symbolism & Metaphor
Identify a theme from the first two chapters of the novel and then explain how Alvarez uses symbolism or
metaphor to develop that theme. Possible choices include: tree symbolism in chapter 1, rabbit metaphor
in chapter 2, hammer and nail metaphor in chapter 2
Creative: Historical Fiction
Part I: Find a news article about something you find interesting.
Part II: Drawing on your understanding of historical fiction, use the article as a starting point for a short
story in which you develop characters and a conflict.
Response Two
DUE May 7
Critical: Perspective Identify a theme from the novel and explain how Alvarez uses unique character
voices and perspective to develop that theme.
Creative: Changing Perspective
Part I: Think about a meaningful experience in your life. In one paragraph, describe that experience from
a first person perspective.
Part II: In one paragraph, describe that same experience from a third-person perspective. Part III: Write a
brief reflection about the story changes when the perspective changes.
Response Three
DUE May 14
Critical: Gender Roles
How does Alvarez use Minerva and Dedé to develop to draw attention to gender roles in the novel?
Creative: Found Poem
Write a 15-20 line found poem about or from the perspective of one of the Mirabel sisters.
11
o You may only use words from the novel
o Needs to have a title
o Poem must reflect the voice of the character
Write a one-paragraph reflection about the choices you made in constructing your poem and why you
think it accurately reflects the character.
Response Four
DUE May 21
Critical: Imagery
How does Alvarez use contrasting imagery to develop a theme in the novel?
Creative: Museum Artifacts
Part I: Pick two objects from the novel that you think could be artifacts in the museum that Dedé runs
dedicated to her sisters’ memory.
Part II: For each object, explain how it is important in the context of the novel and how it contributes to
the reader’s understanding of the sisters or the significance of their sacrifice. DO NOT simply explain
what the object is.
Response Five
DUE May 29
Critical: Motif
Identify a specific motif in the novel and analyze how Alvarez uses this motif to develop a theme.
Creative: Missing Narrative
From the perspective of any character in the novel, write a missing narrative from the time that Minerva
and Mate are in prison. In this narrative, employ references to a meaningful motif from the text.
Response Six
DUE June 4
Critical: Archetype
How does Alvarez use archetype to develop a theme?
Creative: News Article
Write news article that frames the story of the Mirabal sisters as either archetypal martyrs or archetypal
heroes.
12
Reading Comprehension Questions
Directions: As you read, use these questions as a guide. You will not receive credit for answering these
questions, but you will be quizzed on your reading. Having these questions in front of you while you read
will help you focus on important aspects of the story.
CHAPTER ONE: DEDÉ
, 1994 AND CIRCA 1943
1. Who is coming to visit? What does Dedé think of her?
2. What happens every November 25th?
3. How does Dedé describe each of the sisters?
 Minerva

Maria Teresa

Patria
4. At night, Dede thinks about Trujillo and the police state. Describe the images in her mind.
13
CHAPTER TWO, MINERVA, 1938, 1941, 1944
1. Why does Papá allow the girls to go away to school?
2. What is Sinita’a secret? Describe the secret in your own words.
3. What happened to Lina? Describe the courtship with Trujillo.
4. Describe Trujillo’s visit to the school and the girls’ performance.
14
CHAPTER THREE: MARIA TERESA, 1945 TO 1946
1. How does the epistolary format (diary style) affect your view of María Teresa?
2. Why does Minerva say diaries are important?
3. Who is Hilda, and how is she connected to Minerva? Why is the connection between these two girls
important?
4. Why does Mate have to hand over her diary? What could this demise of the little book symbolize to
the reader?
15
CHAPTER FOUR: PATRIA, 1946
1. What did Patria and her family assume she would become? Why?
2. What causes Patria to abandon her aspirations of becoming a nun?
3. How does Pedrito describe himself? Look at page 50.
4. Why was Patria worried about Minerva?
5. On page 53 Patria says she understands Minerva's hatred for Trujillo. Explain.
6. What religious imagery do you notice in the chapter? How does it add to your understanding of
Patria’s character?
16
CHAPTER FIVE: DEDE, 1994 and 1948
1. Fela is one of the family servants. What is her role in preserving the memory of the sisters.
2. Who is Minou?
3. Who is Jaimito? What is planned for him?
4. Explain what happened on the night Lio went into hiding. What does this indicate about the political
climate in the Dominican Republic?
17
CHAPTER SIX: MINERVA, 1949
1. What does Minerva learn about her father?
2. What does she find in Papa’s room and how does she react?
3. Why does the family go to the Discovery Day Dance? What happens while they are there?
4. When Papá goes to jail, what does he ask Minerva to do?
5. How did Papa change in jail? What causes this change?
6. How could the loaded dice a symbol for the regime?
18
CHAPTER SEVEN: MARIA TERESA 1953-1958
1. Describe Mate’s dream after Papá dies.
2. What does Mate spend most of her time writing about?
3. Minerva gets her law degree on July 27th. Why is she disappointed?
4. Why does Mate to join the National Underground?
19
CHAPTER 8, PATRIA, 1959
1. What happens in Cuba? What does this have to do with the Dominican Republic?
2. What happens on Patria’s retreat?
3. Why is it important that Patria names her son Raul Ernesto?
4. What is the SIM?
5. Why does Minerva ask Patria to keep Manolito?
6. What does Patria and Pedrito’s house eventually become?
20
CHAPTER 9: DEDE, 1994 AND 1960
1. How do the differences in their marriages effect the sisters’ involvement in the revolution?
2. Why is Fidel’s speech played endlessly on the radio?
3. What does Dedé mean when she thinks “The problem is when I open my eyes and see for myself”?
4. Explain how the SIM arrested the following people
o
Leandro
o
Pedrito and Nelson
o
Manolo
o
Mate
o
Minerva
5. Does Dede really have a choice in joining the underground?
21
CHAPTER 10, PATRIA, JANUARY TO MARCH 1960
1.Who is Peña?
2. How does the Church respond to national events?
3. Patria says, “Once the goat was a bad memory in our past, that would be the real revolution we would
have to fight: forgiving each other for what we had all let come to pass.” What does she mean?
22
CHAPTER 11, MARIA TERESA MARCH TO AUGUST 1960
1. From where is Maria Teresa writing?
2. Why do Maria Teresa and Minerva not accept a pardon?
3. Why is it important to tell the OAS (The Organization of American States) what really happens?
4. What happens when they take Mate to “La 40”?
23
CHAPTER 12: MINERVA AUGUST TO NOVEMBER 1960
1. How did Minerva change after she gets out of jail?
2. Explain how Minerva feels when Elsa says “Viva la Mariposa.”
3. What is the significance of moving the men to a new location?
24
EPILOGUE, DEDE 1994
1. What happens on the mountain pass?
2. What tone does Dedé use when recalling the trial and its aftermath?
3. What title does Dedé give herself about the retelling of her sisters’ story? Why?
4. Describe what happens to the following people after the sisters’ death:
a. Jaimito
b. Manolo
c. Pedrito
d. Leandro
e. Mamá.
25
26