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Wilner
The Generalissimo is a nickname given to Rafael Trujillo, the dictator of the Dominican Republic. Trujillo is prejudiced against the Haitians; he claims that the Dominican Republic must preserve its culture and sovereignty by exterminating or expelling Haitians from the country. The Generalissimo devises a linguistic test that is meant to help Dominican soldiers target Haitians: he claims that Haitians cannot properly pronounce “perejil,” the Spanish word for parsley. Trujillo’s test and racist agenda illustrate the ways in which language and identity are used to prompt violence and emphasize borders between cultures.
The Generalissimo / Trujillo Quotes in The Farming of Bones
The The Farming of Bones quotes below are all either spoken by The Generalissimo / Trujillo or refer to The Generalissimo / Trujillo. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 8 Quotes
Señor Pico Duarte bore the name of one of the fathers of Dominican independence […] His eyes lingered on his son, his heir […]“I will name him Rafael, for the Generalissimo,” he said as Juana reswaddled the children even more securely than before. The señora agreed to this name with a coy nod. And so the boy became Rafael like the Generalissimo, the president of the republic.
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Above Papi’s head loomed a large portrait of the Generalissimo, which Señora Valencia had painted at her husband’s request. Her painting was a vast improvement on many of the Generalissimo’s public photographs. She had made him a giant in full military regalia, with vast fringed epaulets and clusters of medals aligned in neat rows under the saffron braiding across his chest. Behind him was the country’s red and blue flag with the white cross in the middle, along with the coat of arms and the shield: Dios, patria, libertad. God, country, liberty.
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Chapter 37 Quotes
You may be surprised what we use our dreams to do, how we drape them over our sight and carry them like amulets to protect us from evil spells.
My dreams are now only visitations of my words for the absent justice of the peace, for the Generalissimo himself.
He asked for “perejil,” but there is much more we all knew how to say. Perhaps one simple word would not have saved our lives. Many more would have to and many more will.
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The Generalissimo / Trujillo Character Timeline in The Farming of Bones
The timeline below shows where the character The Generalissimo / Trujillo appears in The Farming of Bones. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
...in elaborate script, noting that they occurred in the “seventh year of the Era of Generalissimo Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina.”
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Chapter 8
...they [are] needed.” After greeting his wife, the señor names his son Rafael, after the Generalissimo. Luis, Juana’s husband, is also in the room; Amabelle notes that he looks tearful, and...
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...he will be placed in charge of. He will also be responsible for “ensur[ing] the Generalissimo’s safety at the border.” He claims that the operation will be “quick and precise,” and...
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...radio for news of the Spanish war. Behind Don Ignacio sits a “regal” portrait of Trujillo, the Generalissimo; the portrait also contains the country’s flag, along with “the coat of arms...
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Chapter 18
...radio, which interrupts the party abruptly. The broadcast features a song by “La Orquesta Presidente Trujillo,” and is then followed by “three long patriotic songs” and parts of speeches once given...
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The broadcast continues, and Trujillo’s voice sounds “charged with certainty and fervor.” Hearing his words, Señor Pico stands at attention,...
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Chapter 22
...She notices that older children are being baptized for a second time, so that the Generalissimo would “become their official, albeit absent, godfather.” Señora Valencia lets Amabelle kiss the newly baptized...
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Chapter 26
...in Haitian Creole that she must leave the house. He has heard rumors that the Generalissimo has ordered soldiers to kill Haitians. Amabelle once again mistrusts these rumors; she claims there...
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...subject, and asks what the señora will paint nexther last work was the portrait of Trujillo.
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Chapter 27
...they are murmuring to themselves. The last woman in line is holding a portrait of Trujillo, and praying for his good health.
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...at a neighbor’s house” will inevitably lead to hatred and resentment, and wonders if the Generalissimo is waiting for them at the border of the two countries.
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Chapter 28
...smells like the “bonfire of corpses” that was lit on fire after a hurricane; the Generalissimo had ordered the burning, and the odor is unmistakable.
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Chapter 29
...sees children and adults making music, and notes the colorful uniforms and banners that bear Trujillo’s name. She then looks at herself and the group, and realizes that they all look...
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...surround the travelers, “isolating” them from the rest of the crowd that is eagerly anticipating Trujillo’s departure from the nearby church. Tibon lunges for one of the younger soldiers and begins...
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...and begins to sing the national anthem; they stampede over Amabelle, hoping “to glimpse” the Generalissimo’s car and his processional.
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...Haitians: she speculates that since the Haitians use the herb to cleanse themselves, perhaps the Generalissimo is using the word to cleanse his country. Amabelle thinks Odette’s pronunciation of “pesi” is...
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Chapter 33
...of the peace who listen to survivors’ stories and write them down. He explains that Trujillo has not taken responsibility for the slaughter, but has agreed to give money to those...
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...of the building. In the photograph, he is wearing a medal given to him by Trujillo; the medal is a symbol of “friendship” between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The crowd...
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Chapter 35
...for information about Father Vargas or Father Romain. Father Emil tells her that people asked Trujillo to let them go, and that the priests were released. He claims that Father Romain...
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Chapter 37
...her giving testimony to things or people, such as the justice of the peace, or Trujillo himself. She admits to herself that she knew that many people would die; she also...
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Chapter 38
...waits for a reply to the note she gave to Father Romain. In May 1961, Trujillo is killed, which prompts a celebration in Haiti. Seeing the celebration, Amabelle comments that she...
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As Amabelle watches the celebrations of Trujillo’s death, she sees Yves, who does not approve of the festivities. She believes that Yves...
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Chapter 41
...Dominican soldiers used the word for “parsley” to target Haitians. The señora replies that when Trujillo was a guard working in the cane fields, one of the Haitian workers escaped. Trujillo...
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