In the Time of the Butterflies

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Dear Diary”

In this activity, students are asked to imagine the Mirabal sisters at moments of extreme emotion and to think about that experience through the eyes of each character. Because only Mate keeps a journal, students will write three diary entries that capture the characters of the other sisters.

• Of the four Mirabal sisters, only Mate keeps a journal. What kind of journal entries might the other three sisters have written?
• In a small group discussion, discuss these important moments in each sister’s emotional and psychological development:

1) The night that Patria delivers the stillborn child

2) The day that Minerva discovers her father has a mistress and a secret family

3) The night that Dedé accepts Jaimito’s marriage proposal

Write three brief journal entries about these experiences, using the voice of the sister at the center of each experience. Each entry should capture the impact of the pivotal moment. How did the experience change the sister or alter the direction of her life?

• Share your findings and your logic with other groups, stressing how each sister can be defined by adjectives.