The furtive way in which Julia Alvarez frames her story is through a multitude of characters who experience fear and intimidation from the dictator of the Dominican Republic El Jefe, but he is better known as Rafael Trujillo. . Alvarez divides the story into three different sections in which Dede, one of the Mirabal sisters and the only survivor of Trujillo's administration, discusses the past, present, and the period before Trujillo killed the Mirabal sisters. Alvarez used many different themes to show the true colors of the history of the Dominican Republic. This story is articulated from many different perspectives, but primarily through Dédé's words and narration. However, at the same time, there were underlying themes that helped explain the fear instilled in the characters. Although there are many different themes in “In the Time of Butterflies,” the ideas of fear, intimidation, and courage all describe the history of the Dominican Republic. One idea that cannot be ignored is how Trujillo was undeniably compared to a hierarchical system. figure of God. Trujillo's reign extended through the lives of many people. Some characters in the story did not fully believe what Trujillo was capable of doing to the people of the Dominican Republic. His authoritarian and almost fascist style of government leads readers to believe that he was attempting to assume the character of God. Trujillo always monitored indirectly through the many spies, so when something went wrong, security was there and ready to discipline the population. This notion allowed readers to see Trujillo as a divine figure. In fact, there was a photo hanging in front of Mom's house and a photo of Trujillo...... in the middle of a paper...... about the period in the history of the Dominican Republic, at the Trujillo era. Although this book is a fictional text, many aspects of this book are true to the Dominican Republic. Rafael Leonidas Trujillo was a true fascist figure and leader of the Dominican Republic. He was brutal in his actions and created the SIM (Military Intelligence Service), which would control the press and create a climate of fear. Alvarez indirectly discusses this with the spies and other factors that implemented the logic of fear in the characters. Trujillo was responsible for the fact that money was hidden from the people and the majority of the masses were poor throughout the Dominican Republic. Overall, Alvarez does a fantastic job portraying the realities of what the Dominican Republic was really like through the themes of fear, intimidation, and courage..