Student-Generated
Chapter
Timelines
for In the
Time of the Butterflies
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Chap 1: Dede, 1994 & 1943
~Dede waiting for interviewer
~Mention of camera crews for
sisters each November
~Dede sells life-insurance. Everyone
wants to buy from "lucky" sister
~Dead sisters national celebrities
~Flashback to 1943: dad wealthy
and generous to neighbors
~Only the fortune of Dede told
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Chap 2: Minerva
1938,1941,1944
~1938, Minerva is 12 yrs old and
she goes off to school at Inmaculada
Concepcion
~Dad doesn't want girls to go. Minerva
is his favorite. Mom convinces him to
let them go to schooll
~She meets Sinita, a "charity" student
and is kind to her.
~She finds out Sinita's secret: Trujillo
killed all the men in her family
~Finds out Trujillo came to power
through betrayal of friends
~1941, Minerva is 15 yrs old and
she meets Lina Lovaton
~Trujillo courts Lina and she gets
pregnant. He doesn't marry her.
~1944, Minerva is 18 yrs old and
she and her friends perform on
Independence Day in front of Trujillo
~Sinita tries to shoot Trujillo with a
bow and arrow. His son stops her.
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Chap 3: Maria Theresa,
1945-46
~1945, Maria Theresa (or Mate) is
10 yrs old and she gets a diary from
Minerva to record her thoughts
~12/20: She goes home for holidays
~1/14: She returns to school. Doesn't
like being there.
~2/18: Lies to principal to cover up
for Minerva who is sneaking out
~2/24: Whole school visits Park of
the Dead. Minerva tells her she
wants her to grow up in a free
country
~2/25: Starts to fear Trujillo and his
guardia
~4/30: Meets Hilda and thinks she's
rude.
~6/27: Guards looking for Hilda
~6/29: Mate sees Minerva graduate
~7/20: Patria's baby boy born dead
~7/23: Has to bury her diary because
she mentions Hilda in it.
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Chap 4: Patria, 1946
~1946, Patria is 22 yrs old
~When young she had her head in
the clouds, gave things away, very
spiritual and religious
~People start to suspect she has a
higher calling to serve God
~Hormones instead of God start
calling and meets Pedrito
~She started school at 14, meets
Pedrito at 16 and marries him at 17
~Fears for Minerva as she becomes
more political. Patria doesn't under-
her sister's problem with the current
government
~7/20: Buries baby
~Starts to lose faith in God when she
loses the baby and also faith in
Trujillo
~Taking care of her husband brings
her back from her own grief
~Nelson is born
~She, mother and others go on a
religious pilgrimage to the capital
Higuey
~There are hints of marital problems
between her parents
~She hears the voice of the virgin.
Her faith is restored.
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Chap 5: Dede, 1994 and 1948
~1994, Dede is 69 yrs old and taking
care of the family property with the help
of servants. They show busloads of
people through the house and museum
dedicated to the Mariposas.
~1994, Fela is conjuring the girls spirits
against Dede's wishes. Minou,
Minerva's daughter likes Fela's conjuring
of her mother
~1948, Dede is 23 yrs old
~Mario and Lio, a teacher of medicine
at the university, come into their store
~Dede attracted to Lio but he and
Minerva hot it off
~Saturday night they play volleyball:
Lio and Minerva caught in the bushes,
Jaimito and Lio argue and Jaimito calls
him dangerous. Fear they may be
reported by spies.
~Mom likes Lio and talks politics with
him
~Mom hears of Lio's protest of the
government in the papers. Dede also
surprised. Girls not allowed to see Lio
so they meet him secretly
~Newspapers more disturbing and
making absurd laws. Lio's political
party is outlawed
~Lio goes into hiding
~Jaimito proposes to Dede. Lio is hiding
in car.
~Dede takes letter from Lio asking
Minerva to run away with him and burns it
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Chap 6: Minerva, 1949
~1949, Minerva is 23 yrs old
~Rumor that she doesn't like men
~Dad won't let Minerva leave for
university. At home for 3 yrs
~Sees four girls at yellow house with
the same eyes as her father's
~Finds Lio's letters hidden in her
father's coat pocket. There's also
an invitation to Trujillo's party
requesting her especially
~Smashes into dad's truck at his
lover's house
~Confronts father. He slaps her
~Oct 12: She and family go to
Trujillo's party
~Dances with Trujillo and tells him
she wants to be a lawyer. She lets
it slip that she knows Lio
~Trujillo is sexually aggressive and
she slaps him
~They leave the party without
permission. Trujillo angry. Minerva
forgets her purse with Lio's letters
~Father taken in for questioning
~Minerva and mother try to find
father but whereabouts unknown
~Minerva questioned and admits
knowing Lio. Trujillo offers bargain:
will release father and forget
everything if she has a "private"
meeting with him (sex)
~She refuses and must wait 3 weeks
to get another interview with him
~At 2nd interview, rolls loaded dice
with Trujillo: she wins, she gets to
study law, he wins, he gets her. Both
roll doubles...a tie.
~Father released: broken man
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Chap 7: Maria Theresa, 1953-58
~1953, Mate is 18 yrs old and father
is dead
~Finds out about his 2nd family at his
funeral. Feels it's shameful.
~Trying to choose between two
brothers: Raul and Berto
~Helps mom write false
complimentary letter to Trujillo
telling of dad's death. Mate now
hates Trujillo
~1954, Mate is 19 yrs old, Raul
kisses her. Berto angry.
~Mate meets and cooks for Manolo,
Minerva's new boyfriend
~July 3rd: Mate graduates. Moves
to capital to attend university with
Minerva.
~Tries to study law with Minerva but
is bored.
~Tries a relationship with a guy at
school--doesn't work out
~1955, Mate is 20 yrs old. Minerva
gets married
~Mate marches in world fair
~1956, Mate is elected "Miss
University"
~1957, Mate is 21 yrs old and she
moves in with Minerva, Manolo and
their baby Minou
~Minerva graduates but Trujillo
won't let her practice law
~Helps Minerva through hard time of
Manolo cheating
~Joins resistance
~Falls in love with Leandro--a guy
delivering ammunition
~1958: announcement for her and
Leandro's wedding
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Chap 8: Patria, 1959
~1959, Patria is 35 yrs old and has
been
married for 18 years
~Has built marriage on rock but there
are problems ahead
~Gets news that Cuba is freed by Castro
~Becomes pregnant with Raul Ernesto
~Lets Nelson go to seminary school
~Goes to church to seek guidance
~Minerva gives her child to Patria to
take care of while she gets more
involved in the resistance
~Patria offers her land as a place for
resistance meetings
~Trujillo declares a state of emergency
~Her religious retreat gets postponed
~June 14th: they gets bombed in church
in Constanza on alst day of retreat
~Patria sees a young boy gunned down
~Trujillo's Guardia and local farmers
hunt down and kill all the liberators
from Cuba
~Patria back home lets them move their
meetings from outside to inside her
house. Symbolic: she joins them
~Husband angry but later also joins.
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Chap 9: Dede, 1994 and 1960
~Her sisters ask her if they can bury
boxes on her land. Husband says no
~They ask Dede to join them
~Dede plans to leave Jaimito
~Listens to Lio on underground radio
~She goes to priest for guidance but
when she realizes he's part of the
resistance, she runs away
~Returns to empty house: Jaimito
takes sons to his mothers
~Minerva and Manolo drive Dede
to sons and Manolo suggests
another honeymoon for Dede and
Jaimito to reconcile. It works.
~Leandro arrested
~Nelson and Pedrito arrested after
their house is ransacked and burned
~Manolo arrested
~Minerva has tuberculosis
~Mate arrested
~Minerva arrested
~Dede doesn't want to get involved
but now she is and it draws her and
Jaimito closer
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Chap 10: Patria, Jan-Mar 1960
~Patria adjusts to arrest of husband,
son and sisters
~Patria prays to and honors Trujillo
in hopes he will act decently/behave
~Pena angers her with sexual
innuendo and talk of husband
~At church, Patria hears priest speak
out against human rights abuses
~Churches desecrated by SIM and
Patria, mom, Dede and Noris clean
~Margarita arrives at house to give
note fom imprisoned sisters
~They create a care package to be
smuggled into Minerva and Mate
~Discover traces of spies all around
their house
~Patria begs Pena to help get Nelson
released
~Plan sancocho for Pena; also revenge on neighbors
who deserted them
~Family travels to capital to retrieve
son who'll be sponsored by Jaimito
~Partia keeps Noris close
~Trujillo arrives in room full of
journalists; he dismisses questions
about human rights abuses
~Trujillo recognizes Mirabal name
and takes an interest in Noris
~Patria drops on knees in thanks to
God when Nelson released; appears
on front page that she's thanking
Trujillo
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Chap 11: Maria Theresa,
Mar-Aug 1960
~Mate gets diary in prison and records
that her fear keeps growing there
~Minerva gets solitary for singing the
national anthem when they arrive
~They attend Minerva's "little school"
each day, likeCastro in prison
~Women offer to give Mate their time at
the window; she realizes their equality
~Find out everything for sale in prison
but freedom; they make shopping lists
~Mate in poor health...vomiting
~Questioned occasionally by SIM,
especially Minerva who they think is the
brains behind it all
~Mate creates a schedule to keep from
going crazy
~Whereabouts of Leandro unknown
~Turn down pardon because Minerva
feels there's nothing to be pardoned for
and if not all free, none free
~Hunger strike and everyone wears
crucifixes; Minerva gets solitary again
~Mate realizes she's pregnant; plans to
abort it so SIM don't take it
~Loses baby when the SIM do
something to her...she won't say what
~Have a mockery of a trial--get 5 yrs
~Minerva reads Mate's letter of what the
SIM did to her; wants her to tell OAS
~Rumor that Leandro is a traitor
~Mate's encounter with Magdalena
~Mate selected to be interviewed by
OAS; Minerva wants her to tell all
~Drops note from Minerva to OAS but
not her personal story
~They find out all the political women
will be released; they're sad to leave the
other women
~We read note Mate wrote telling what
SIM did; they gave her electric shock
until Leandro agreed to do what they wanted
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Chp 12: Minerva, Aug-Nov 1960
~Minerva is under house arrest but
for the 1st likes staying home and
fears leaving it. She has self-doubts.
~They begin business of christening gowns because
family is now poor
~Pena tells them to write a letter to
Trujillo requesting a visit
~News that the OAS has imposed
sanctions and a hope rises in the
country that will soon be freed
~Men who try to start an uprising
are caught and hopes for a revolution
fade
~They get to visit the men again;
rumor that men in prison being shot
~Visit to Dr. Vinas to find out if
ervolution happening; he tells them
the U.S. didn't help because didn't
want communist government
~Minerva has to go to old house and
clear it out for the SIM headquarters
~People gather in square; guards disperse them
~Manolo and Leandro moved to
Puerto Plata
~Mate, Minerva, and Patria go to
visit and pick up lone soldier on road
~Learn from soldier that the men are
to be moved back soon so change
minds about moving to Puerto Plata
~They buy purses and the clerk slips
them a card telling them to avoid pass ~They drive
by Trujillo's and see
Pena's car parked there
~They arrive safely and visit
husbands who don't want them to
drive back that night
~Try to call home before leaving but
the phone is busy
~Leave anyway and follow truck
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Epilogue: Many come to visit Dede
after the murder with their own tales of that day;
Flashes back to day of murder:
truck comes upon abush and Patria tells driver they
are being murdered; he drives on; women are
strangled and
clubbed and then put pack in car and sent off the
hill to make it look like an accident; no one
believes it was an accident;
murderers sentenced to 20-30 yrs but then sent free
during revolutions; three yrs later Manolo is seen
as the Fidel Castro
of their country; his revolution fails and he is
murdered; Leandro becomes a famous architect and
has a new family;
Pedrito also remarries and loses touch with
Mirabals; Minou, Minerva's daughter, successful,
has own family and is
unscarred overall by the tragedy; Dede meets Lio at
a party and he names all the benefits that came
from the Butterflies'
sacrifice and bravery; Dede questions if it was all
worth it; Dede hears the butterflies' spirits each
night as she goes to bed.
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