What are some symbols used in the book, In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez?

In Julia Alvarez's book, In the Time of
Butterflies, there are several symbols.

First,
as noted in the title, butterflies are significant. (This supports the theme of "change
and transformation.") In the history of the Dominican Republic, Rafael Trujillo was a
feared and violent dictator. In the face of his oppression of his people, a secret
resistance was born: three of the members of the resistance
were...

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Las Mariposas, or
The Butterflies. These were the code names of Minerva, María
Teresa, and Patria Mirabal, three sisters who were key members in an underground
movement to overthrow
Trujillo.

In this story, the
women represent a fight for freedom from oppression. The image of butterflies would
symbolize, then, the metamorphosis of these young and innocent girls into courageous
women (who ultimately die for their cause). In addition, butterflies could also
symbolize the freedom for which these women struggle: not only for themselves, but for
the entire country.

Another symbol could be the children.
The children are a symbol of hope for the future, and also for the legacy of their
parents that they carry into the future. They symbolize generations to come, and it is
for them—the children and future generations—that Minerva, Maria Teresa and Patria
fight.

Another theme is authoritarianism. I believe that
Trujillo not only is a dictator in his own right, but can be thought to symbolize the
abuse of power in any region/country, etc., where an authoritarian government rules,
controlling the people in every aspect of their lives. The dangers that Alvarez points
out show how a tyrant can affect not just the actions and thoughts
of the adults, but can also serve to brainwash the children, a threat to generations to
follow—the future, in this case, of the Dominican Republic.