Preview

Minerva Mirabal

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
594 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Minerva Mirabal
D’Anna Massey
American Literature
I.T.O.B.
February 12, 2014 In The Time of Minerva Mirabal In my tenth grade literature class this year I had the opportunity to read a book that I had never thought about reading. To my surprise, once I started reading I couldn’t stop. The book was titled, “In The Time of The Butterflies.” This book spoke of four sisters who were just trying to survive. One of the sisters, however, decided she wouldn’t just survive, she would fight. This young woman was known as Minerva Mirabal, the outspoken butterfly.
How would you treat your half sisters and your father’s mistress? With hatred and anger...possibly, or would you give them love like Minerva Mirabal did? It takes a strong person like Minerva to do something as astonishing as this. A strong person that is destined to change the world one life at a time, and she did just that. Minerva Mirabal is the name of a woman that will always live on. She went through many different hardships and roadblocks, but she never stopped persevering. She was one of the people, who even during Trujillo’s reign of terror never gave up hope. Throughout Minerva’s time of rebelling people often forgot to look at Minerva’s life as a whole.
MInerva Mirabal was the daughter of a man named Enrique Mirabal. She had three sisters, or so she thought. Half way through Minerva’s short life she found out about her father’s mistress and Minerva’s other four sisters. At first sight Minerva was outraged. She did not think that anything like this was possible. She even went as far as crashing her car into her father’s while he was at his mistress’ house. What she did next was even more astonishing. Minerva forgave her father.
Forgiving her father was just a little of what we know about Minerva Mirabal. However, this is enough to let us know what type of person she was. Minerva was the type of person that cared more for others than herself. Even when she was in jail she made sure that all the woman had

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In the Time of the Butterflies is an award-winning book written by Julia Alvaraz, a famous Latina writer. This is the story of the four Mirabal sisters during the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. The sisters make a political commitment to overthrow the Trujillo regime. Throughout the book you can see the family being prosecuted, humiliated, tortured and imprisoned, all for going against the government in secrecy. When they are caught they are all put in danger. This story is set in both the present (1994) and the past (1943) by the perspective of Dedé, the only surviving Mirabal sister. The book starts off in “present” day 1994. Dedé is asked to speak about the tragic tale…

    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Minerva says to her mother, “I’d just left a small cage to go into a bigger one, the size of our whole country” (Alvarez 19). The small cage Minerva talks about is being trapped in the Mirabal household, thinking Trujillo is a God. After she learns about the rebellion, her views of her dictator are ruined. Her whole life she has not thought anything of women not having a voice in the government, but Minerva turns herself around and discovers her strength to change that. Although Minerva fears Trujillo, she does not show it towards him. When the Mirabal family receives an invitation to Trujillo’s party, they are shocked to see that he would especially like to see Minerva present. While Trujillo is dancing with Minerva, he becomes forceful with her and begins to throw himself onto her. Minerva knows not to give into what he…

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The novel, In the Time of the Butterflies, explains the life of the four Mirabal sisters. There was Minerva, Maria Teresa, Dede, Patria. The only survivor was Dede. These girls played a major role in getting rid of the dictatorship of the Dominican Republic. Las Mariposas was their code name. They fought to overthrow Trujillo out of office, even though he forced himself in. Patria, Mate, Minerva lost their lives trying to free others.…

    • 271 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    As her cause develops, Minerva will not decide that discretion is the better part of valor in any situation. As she is invited to a private party, and as she is dancing with Trujillo, she feels threatened, not awed, by his power, and when he exercises his power to feel Minerva, he receives a swift slap. Such a reaction is extreme to say the least for any other human being, and Trujillo just shakes his head in wonder at her ferocity. Her action has not helped her revolutionary cause and in fact has dealt her cause as ferocious a blow as she dealt Trujillo face. She slapped him because she relishes the fight, and the art of the fight. The revolution is just another way of fighting, and one that she is wary of because she does not yet know how to win.…

    • 566 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Reading the biography of Fidelia Hoscott Fielding made me think of my family's culture and the history of my country.I think that Fidelia is a woman who was strong not to give up her culture and language even if it was a modern life time.…

    • 289 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Trujillo employed this method against people whom he believed had wronged him or to impede their efforts of defeating his government. The author demonstrates this through the unfortunate series of events experienced by the Mirabal family. For instance, after the incident where Minerva rejected Trujillo's improper advances by slapping him, her father is "sent to the capital for questioning," but in reality it was more than a matter of questioning. Minerva's father was subject to extreme torture as punishment for his daughter's audaucity, and it was later discovered that "he has gone mad" due to his imprisonment. Furthermore, the three Mirabal sisters exposed themselves and their family to greater danger as they commenced with their political activity. They were being constantly spied on, received numerous threats, and were eventually imprisoned. Likewise, other individuals were suppressed by the SIM. Trujillo himself has implied the use of cruel tactics to silence educators of communism or politics that contradicted his own, when he quotes "but we've been teaching those teachers their lessons all…

    • 751 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Here she earns the nickname “Mariposa”. Over the course of the novel, readers are able to witness Minerva’s increasing strength and determination as she defies social expectations. All of her life Minerva desired to be free. Like a butterfly, she was always eager to spread her wings. She desired to be free from her father’s rules when she was young, and from Trujillo’s dictatorship when she was grown. As Minerva matures, she becomes more aware of her country’s political circumstances. At one point in the novel Minerva reflects, “And that's how I got free. I don't mean just going to sleep away school on a train with a trunkful of new things. I mean in my head after I got to Immaculanda and met Sinita and saw what happened to Lina and realized that I'd just left a small cage to go into a bigger one, the size of our whole country” (Alvarez __). Minerva feels that becoming aware of the political situation in her country is similar to being freed. Rather than being sheltered and naïve, Minerva is able to open her eyes and face the imprisonment that pervades the Dominican Republic. Minerva’s character development embodies the perseverance that butterflies show as they undergo…

    • 851 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Aware of the consequences, Minerva, Patria and Maria Teresa spend the majority of their adulthood rebelling against their ruler, Trujillo. Although the sisters were murdered, they sacrificed their lives for a purpose. Due to their courage, the country now has a more democratic government and has changed from a war zone to an area where people come to relax. Similar to bright flowers sprouting in a cemetery, the sisters accomplish their goals and create a legacy for themselves in a situation where they were set up to fail. The eldest sister, Dedé, is the only one left to spread the courageous story of her sisters. However, being the one left alive, she is asked many questions.…

    • 1390 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    References: Alvarez, J (2010). In the time of the butterflies. Chapel Hill, North Carolina, ALGONQUIN BOOKS OF CHAPEL HILL…

    • 1232 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Kingsolver

    • 1311 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Kingsolver and Tretheway bring into their stories societal and economical issues. Kingsolver introduces the towns’ personality into the story and Tretheway introduces her towns’ history. In Flight Behavior, Dellarobia at first is viewed as saintly or “receiving grace” (pg 57) for her discovering the butterflies. As time progresses the towns’ view changes and becomes more focused on ways money can be made from the butterflies. The…

    • 1311 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    The novel, In the Time of the Butterflies, retells the story of 4 sisters who fought in a revolution against the dreaded regime of Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. The Mirabal sisters, Maria Teresa, Dedé, Minerva and Patria all have different insights and perspectives on what they think freedom actually is. The novel is written in first and third person and Maria Teresa’s contributions to the novel are written in the first person; entries taken from her diary. Maria Teresa’s first chapter in the novel depicts her as naive and materialistic. Maria Teresa finds comfort in expressing herself, however, she doesn’t have the confidence to do it out in…

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Crossing The Mangrove

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages

    As the story begins to unfold everything that Francis has done unto the people surfaces after his death. Mira and Vilma both impregnated by Franics is the cause of his death. Artistid’s which is Mira brother cries that his sister was raped. “I want you to lock up the Cuban for rape”(52). In reality the truth being both woman voluntarily shared the same bed with Francis. Francis never went looking for the women they…

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Harry Potter Allusions

    • 786 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Professor McGonagall is an extremely intelligent woman (hence being a teacher) who is also known as excellent dueler that is a member of the Order, an underground society fighting the Dark Lord. Professor McGonagall not only shares the same first name the roman counterpart to Athena (aka Minerva), she also shares very similar traits considering that Minerva is the Roman goddess of wisdom and war. In the Harry Potter books she is a reputable teacher who demands respect, just like how Minerva the goddess demands respect from her peers and mortals through her wisdom and war fear tactics. This can be seen in Ovid’s Metamorphoses Book VI when Minerva challenges Arachne to a weaving competition. Minerva weaves a tapestry that glorifies the gods, but it honors herself in particular. Minerva portrays herself in the tapestry as a strong goddess and victor and also weaves the other gods in her tapestry that, “look on in wonder. Victory crowns her work” (Ovid, Metamorphoses Book VI, page 295). This shows that Minerva holds herself in high regard and demands respect not only from mortals, but also her fellow gods. Rowling continues to cleverly allude to classical mythology in order to strengthen and deepen her characters’ qualities by comparing their temperance’s to their classical…

    • 786 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Minerva displays fear and entrapment by her reaction to being abused by her husband. She has two children and a husband that comes and goes as he pleases. One day, Minerva has had enough of this and tell her husband. He reacts by taking all of his belongings and leaving the house. Later in the night, he comes back and throws a rock through…

    • 270 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The book we recently read was called, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”, written by Maya Angelou. This was a memoir about Maya Angelou’s life from age 3 to 17. The story was about Maya’s life living with her brother and grandmother who she called, “Momma” in Stamps, Arkansas. Then later in her life, she ended up living in St. Louis with her mother, San Francisco with her Father, and even living in a car at a junkyard. She was faced with confusion in her later years as a teen and became pregnant and had a little boy. Through the years, there were many people who had an impact on Marguerite’s life. I believe that Momma, Mrs. Flowers, and Mr. Freeman had a huge impact on Marguerite’s life whether it was positive or negative.…

    • 967 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays