In the Time of the Butterflies

Chapter 11

chapter 11 of in the time of the butterflies why does maria decide not to give the letter describing her treatment in prison to the OAS who could possibly have helped her?

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The OAS Peace Committee will be interviewing one prisoner from each pavilion, and the head guards choose Maria Teresa. Because the rooms will be tapped and she will not be able to speak aloud freely, Minerva tries to persuade her to smuggle in to them a personal statement about what she went through in La 40, along with a letter explaining what their conditions arereally like. After her ten-minute session in the visitors' hall with seven members of the committee, Maria Teresa lets the letter containing the statement written by Minerva and Sina and signed "The Fourteenth of June Movement" fall out of her braid, and the young commissioner leading her out picks it up. However, she does not let drop the letter with her own personal account.

Though the intimate bond between Minerva and Maria Teresa that has been developing throughout the novel is made clear in this chapter, Maria Teresa decides to go against her sister's wishes and does not give the OAS the letter of her personal account. She explains, "The second note with my story was lodged further up in my braid. Maybe it was the sight of that ribbon Santiclo had given me when I was so broken, I don't know. But right then and there, I decided not to drop the second note. I just couldn't take a chance and hurt my friend." This decision demonstrates an important difference between Maria Teresa and Minerva: Minerva tells her little sister, "This isn't personal, Mate ... This is principle," but Maria Teresa sees Santiclo as more than just a symbol of what they are revolting against; she sees him as a person, and she refuses to risk his being punished or even shot.

Source(s)

http://www.gradesaver.com/in-the-time-of-the-butterflies/study-guide/summary-part-iii-chapter-eleven-maria-teresa-march-to-august-1960

What is the toughingest thing that happened with Maria Teresa and the window