Themes

**Hope**: As the sisters gain in knowledge of the regime, they begin to have hope for a new future. They hope for a free country, an education, and overall freedom. Yet, as the novel unfolds many of the sisters lose hope and fail to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Various events hinder the hope in the sisters' hearts and leave the butterflies feeling hopeful but trusting less in the power of their hope.

**Deception & Defiance**: The father deceives his family when he has an affair. He also deceives Minerva when he hides her letters from Lio. Trujillo deceives his people and his country. Minerva and Lio defy Trujillo and the law.

**Rebellion (to cause revolution/ change):** against patriarchy; both the dictatorship and tyranny of Trujillo, and in marriage and men at the head of a family. In both instances, the Mirabel sisters defy and rebel agaisnt the social and political norms of the times. Politically and socially, the society is undergoing countless changes, which also involves violence and revolution. A theme that has been reoccurring since the start of this novel is the theme of change and resistance to change. In the Time of the Butterflies, illustrates the idea of a government changing. Trujillo's government is a dictatorship, and groups of people attempt to resist this rule and change. They show small acts of rebellion and defy gender role expectations.

**Growth**: Alvaraz illustrates the maturation of the Butterflies and shows how they, their choices, their lives and their hearts change with experience and age. By displaying the childhood of these legendary leaders, we are able to see what gave them the priorities they had to and truly understand what made them heroes. All of the Mirabal sisters developed in mind, spirit, and knowledge of what truthfully was going on in their government. From both outside influences and their own experiences, the sisters realize the need for freedom in their country, and realize what they must do to obtain it- to peacefully protest the government, even if it means fighting until the end.

**Oblivion/Unawareness (also, ignorance or blindness)**: Maria Teresa is unaware at first of what kind of a leader Trujillo is. She expresses great eagerness and happiness when El Jefe's birthday occurs; "I feel so lucky that we have him for a president" (37). She is met with shock upon hearing about Trujillo's violence from her sister Minerva.

**Importance of Family**: Strength of Community (and the strength needed to bring a nation together, a larger form of community) is seen much when we see acts of rebellion occur. The community provides strength and protection. It can also be seen that Adultery has a huge effect on the Family Structure. In this novel, Julia Alvarez emphasizes that the family structure of this time is a patriarchal family and shows the roles of family members.


 * Nationalism and Family:** By page 168, all four of the sisters have families of their own, and three of them are willing to risk everything, including the safety of their families and loved ones, for the revolution and the improvement of their country. The sisters put their country ahead of their family, and therefore are intense Nationalists, putting their country before everything else in their lives that they care about.

**Secrecy and Protection:** There are many secrets in the Mirabel family in Julia Alvarez's In the Time of the Butterflies, most of which are meant to benefit another family member or help them in some way. One major secret in the family is the father, the head of the family, Enrique Mirabel's, infidelity. Enrique tries to keep his affair and three other children a secret to protect his family, yet they discover his secret anyway, hurting them more. Dede, in an attempt to protect her sister from the danger that Lio posed to her sister Minerva, burns a letter from him inviting Minerva to take asylum out of the country with him, thinking, "Dede could not expose her sister to this danger" (83). She then decides to keep the letter a secret from her sister, as well as her knowledge of Lio's hiding place. Enrique, Minerva's father,also tries to protect her from Lio and his dangerous revolutionary ideas by hiding four of his letters to her, which greatly angers Minerva, as she says, "I wanted him to know that he had been found out" (88). Instead of protecting his daughter, Enrique hurt her even more by hiding the letters and the secret from her. Alvarez is suggesting in her novel, The Time of the Butterflies, that secrecy is used as a method to protect their family members and the people they love from harm or pain. Faith: Patria maintains a very strong faith and is highly religious, yet she meets Pedrito and her call to be a nun is ovrshadowed by love at first sight. Minerva’s bold struggle against the oppressive regime causes her to hold the Church in low regard, as well as the government. The Mirabal sisters’ faith in God and in themselves shifts throughout the story as they try to find out what they want, fall in love, and deal with family circumstances.

**Gambling**: Literal gambling and figurative gambling. Many of the Mirabal’s extended family relatives like to gamble, even though Mama does not approve of it. Her uncle Chiche gambled with Trujillo once when they were partners in war, and Chiche gave Trujillo loaded dice. Gambling is often dangerous, unfair, and rigged. This is definitely true in Minerva’s case; she is gambling by putting her life on the line to free her country from the fettering chains instituted under Trujillo’s rule. She is fighting for liberty and justice against unfavorable odds. She is uncertain of the outcome, but hopeful for a better future.

**Courage**:A central theme is finding courage. In this novel Julia Alvarez suggests that courage is an trait individual to every character in its development and in their actions. The Mirabal sisters are all undeniably courageous, but all are in different ways. Through this Alvarez is able to suggest not only the wide range of courage but its ability to change and morph from person, to time and in action.


 * Doubt: **The sisters each experience periods where they doubt their faith and ideals. For example, Patria doubts her faith, Dede, Maria Theresa, and Minerva doubt their childhood hero Trujillo. These moments of uncertainty solidify the sister's characters and future decisions and help mature them into strong and confident women.


 * Letting Go**: Dede is reluctant to reveal and think about her past too much. She carries around the baggage of the past and it effects her about 30 years later. She is still jumpy every time there is an abrupt sound. There is also a tone of guilt or regretfulness when she narrates her story. Especially, she is afraid of someone asking a question that she is not typically asked. Going deeper into her past is an issue for her. She needs to learn to forgive herself for her choices and learn to live with them and to learn from them.

Education is a factor which affects the entire course of the novel. The Mirabal girl's education was the intial spark to their involvement in the revolution. When entering into the outside world, the Mirabal sisters left their sheltered lives and became enthralled in the world of politics and revolution. The theme of education is present throughout the book even when Minerava wants to educate her half sisters. She recognizes how and education completely opens ones eyes to the world. Minerva makes it clear that education is one of the most important aspects in life.
 * Education:** Education is initially Minerva's way of escaping the confinement of her home, just as a butterfly would desire to escape from the jar of a child, or a bunny from a cage. After attending school, the sisters realize the importance of their education, and the effects that their education had had on them. Minerva discovers how important education is when she sees her uneducated half-sisters, and decides that they must be educated. Mama becomes the least educated female Mirabal family member, and her daughter Maria Theresa must help her with even her signature, stating in her diary, "Tomorrow I'll copy it in my nice penmanship, then Mama can sign it with her signature I've taught her to write" (121). Education differentiates the sisters and their mother not just because of the literacy level of each, but also because the sisters are more empowered and independent women than their mother, who grew up uneducated in a patriarchal society, and who willingly accepts her role as a housewife, subordinate to her husband. Minerva's education is what ultimately leads her to the revolution and her future as one of the four Mariposas. Without her education at the convent, it can be said that Minerva may not have been exposed to the severity of the regime and the chaos surrounding her. Education for women is a way to gently expose young girls to the outside world, away from their comfort zone at home, and a way to create a sense of independence for girls which would ultimately lead to their own unique futures.


 * Finding oneself/Personal Identity:** Being involved in such a dangerous situation and unstable environment requires the Mirabal sisters to obtain an in-depth understanding of themselves and their beliefs. As their situation starts becoming more complicated and "twisted", it is necessary for the sisters to support the beliefs that they have held throughout their process of becoming mature revolutionaries. Alvarez highlights this theme through the actions of each respective sister as she makes the decision to join the cause. By developing each woman's personality and describing how they remained firm in their values even when everything seemed to be terrible, Alvarez suggests that remaining true to one's beliefs is extremely important and will ultimately pay off in the end, even if things do not turn out how they think.


 * Sisterhood:** There are three different examples of sisterhood in the novel. The four Mirabal sisters, Patria, Minerva, Maria Theresa, and Dede, are an example of biological sisterhood, and there are very strong bonds between them. Papa's daughters from his other family are an example of a different type of sisterhood, a half-sisterhood, as the four Mirabal sisters never really got to know their three half-sisters during their childhood or had a chance to form a strong relationship with them. Another type of sisterhood shown is as more symbolic sisterhood, between Maria Theresa and the women she befriends while in prison, who she describes by writing, "These girls are like my sisters. I can't imagine the lonely privacy of living without them" (253). This special relationship is also described by William Shakespeare in his play //Henry V//, when King Henry V states, "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother." Alvarez is suggesting that sisterhood can come in many forms, but it can always be defined by the special relationships between people.