In the Time of the Butterflies (200-322)

Summary: Patria has been feeling terrible without her son or husband. As soon as news arrive that can help Patria know the whereabouts of the men, she sets up a package to smuggle into prison. Next, she reads in the news that eight prisoners have been pardoned. Patria feels hope, but Captain Peña has taken over her land. Patria has been praying on behalf of her family while the church is being attacked by the government for their revolutionary sermons. During, Patria and Captain Peña's conversation they plan on when Nelson should be out and how they should celebrate, Patria offers a sancocho. Then she goes and tells her mom that in her payers she has offered the lord herself in exchange for Nelson.
         Maria Teresa is also in prison, at La Victoria and she has been writting in a smuggled notebook. Teresa and the rest of the woman are locked up with sixteen non politicals who are there for serious crimes. When it comes for her turn to be released along with the rest who are politicals, she feels sad to be leaving the other inmates who became like her sisters. One of them was Magdalena whom was serving 20 years for attempted murder when he tried to get her daughter back when a wealthy family known as De La Torres took her away. Captain Peña suggests Patria and the other girls write Trujillo a thank you letter, but they are not convinced just yet until Leandro and the rest of the men are safe.
         Trujillo begins cracking down out of panic, and Captain Peña tells the girls not to visit the men in prison any longer. Manolo believes that he and the other prisoners will be killed, and that's when the girls decide to take action. They begin to organize a meeting at Minerva's house, and their Tio happens to stop by, and tell them he overheard Trujillo's conversation. Trujillo had said that his only problem was the church and the Mirabal sisters. Later on November 25, Minerva and Maria Teresa go to Puerto Plata to visit Manolo and Leandro, the men told the sisters to wait until the next day because rumors had been going around, and it was not safe. However, they still decided to head home. The girls were taken away from their jeep and killed. Through visitors that came to Dede, she is able to infer what happened to her sisters. The sisters were killed by strangulation and placed back in their jeep, then pushed over the edge of the cliff. The men responsable for their deaths were taken to prison, but soon released. Manolo, Leandro, and Pedrito were released following up to Trujillo's assasination. 

Quote: "Si dios quiere, she reminded him" (Alvarez 286).

Reaction: This quote is from when the girls were going to Puerto Plata to visit the men, and it means if god wants. In other words they would only make it on god's behalf, which I find ironic as to how Patria had offered herself for Nelson to be let out. Then that same night at Puerto Plata the sisters are killed. The sisters had once mentioned they did not pardon anything they had done so far, which is like Antigone she believes she has done nothing wrong. They also accept the consequences of going to prison for what they did and even death. They did not fear Trujillo who in other words was the law like Creon. The sisters do end up getting killed, but so does Trujillo. Also, reading through this I noticed they mentioned the last name Peña, which is one of my last names, and also the plate known as sancocho that is one of my favorites.

In the Time of the Butterflies (150-200)

Summary: Patria is back at the family's conuco for New Years and she is afraid for her sisters and her son. Patria's son Nelson, begins to talk about joining the liberators and Patria tries to seek help from Padre de Jesus Lopez. However, the Padre himself does not know how to help her. Nelson tells Patria that the revolutionaries are expecting an invasion by the liberators from Cuba. Trujillo has heard rumors of the invasion and has declared  a state of emergency. On June 14, the mountainside is bombed, 49 men and boys died. Patria decides to start a group called Accion Clero Cultural (ACC). Pedrito becomes upset that revolutionaries begin to meet in the backyard of their house, since Trujillo has passed a new law. The new law stated that any land could be confiscated for people housing enemies. Patria then tells him their son is involved in it too.
          Dede gets a visit from her sisters, in which she decides to escape with them for a meeting. Before she leaves, she wanted to talk to Padre de Jesus Lopez, but as she sees him pull in she notices some boxes that show he is part of the revolutionaries. She is scared to talk him then because he might convince her to join, and she does not want to go agains Jaimito's word her husband. Jaimito does not want Dede to go. Dede then finds Jaimito and her sons at her mother in law's house and she is suggested that they go on a honeymoon to release any tension going on in their marriage. However, the honeymoon just turns in to a boring vacation for them both. After Dede does not go, she hears that Nelson, Pedrito, Manolo, and Minerva had been arrested, once their home was ransacked. Patria comes back looking terrible, and it's up to Dede to save her sisters and reconstruct her marriage with Jaimito.

Quote: "Voz del pueblo, voz del cielo" (Alvarez 199).

Reaction: Besides the fact that the quote is in spanish, it is also a saying that is taken as an important fact of experience by many people. The quote means, voice of the people, voice of god. Dede says this to Minerva in a conversation they have about Trujillo, in which Dede tells Minerva that Trujillo is serious about killing her. Meaning that the popular opinion is always right, and that follows up into Minerva's death. Which also is inferred that certain rumors are true and people should take them into consideration.

In the Time of the Butterflies (100-150)

Summary: Enrique Mirabal has passed away, Carmen his once mistress and her four daughters attended the funeral. In her journal Maria Teresa states how shocked she was that they would show up. However, Minerva told her that they were Enrique's daughters too. After the death, Teresa began to have weird dreams in which she would see other people in coffins as well. First, she had a dream in which she found her wedding dress laying inside the coffin with Enrique. Next, in her dream was Manolo, Minerva's husband inside the coffin. Once again, while away to university, she had the dream and it was with one of Minerva's friend in the coffin. Teresa is also having love life problems, she does not know who to choose between her cousins Berto and Raul. However, she soon becomes tired of both once she kissed Berto and Raul confronts her about it. By July third, Maria Teresa graduates, and her aunt bakes her a cake. Her aunt then tells her she must choose between one of her sons Raul or Berto, and Teresa tells them she wants neither. She then goes on to be roommates with Minerva at her university. Minerva later moves in with Manolo and they have a child, Minou. Trujillo then punishes Minerva by not granting her a license to practice law. Teresa, stays with her sister and helps her with her home and her relationship. Later on Maria Teresa herself falls in love with Leandro, and they marry on Valentines Day.

Quote: "North to Tamboril and the mountain road to Puerto Plata, the rain drives on, in every bohio and small conuco, and on out to the Atlantic where it is lost in the waves that rock the bones of martyrs in the deepest sleep" (Alvarez 116).

Reaction: When I first came across the quote it reminded me of the Dominican Republic, and the places that were mentioned I have been too. My father's family owned a conuco in the Dominican Republic, and I used to go with him there which is like a farm with animals and crops. I would see people milk the cows, and cut down pounds of plantains. I have also been to Puerto Plata, it's just amazing how I could make a connection with the story. To analyze the quote, Minerva is driving back from the Capital and it is raining just like the same day when she slapped Trujillo, and the rain was coming down strong just like Trujillo's character.