Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas
This article explores Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz’s (1648–1695) strategic poetic approach, aimed at democratizing writing and knowledge among women during her period. It examines her engagement with the literary academy, Casa del Placer, believed to have included nuns from Portuguese convents and wome...
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| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
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| Series: | Latin American Research Review |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1542427825000069/type/journal_article |
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| author | Víctor Sierra Matute |
| author_facet | Víctor Sierra Matute |
| author_sort | Víctor Sierra Matute |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article explores Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz’s (1648–1695) strategic poetic approach, aimed at democratizing writing and knowledge among women during her period. It examines her engagement with the literary academy, Casa del Placer, believed to have included nuns from Portuguese convents and women of the nobility. Specifically, the study analyzes Sor Juana’s final poetic work, the Enigmas ofrecidos a la Casa del Placer (1695), comprising twenty unanswerable poetic enigmas. In this collection, Sor Juana departs from individual lyric expression, a shift I call a “poetics of dedication,” advocating for a communal cultural identity centered on her persona’s fame. Through this gesture, Sor Juana appropriates and challenges patriarchal narratives that labeled her as a “monster” due to her perceived exceptionalism. My article shows how, toward the end of her life, Sor Juana embraces and subverts discussions about her exceptional status and transatlantic identity, fostering a sense of transoceanic sorority among women writers of the colonial period. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9fbdbff618264b66828e1949276a50ea |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1542-4278 |
| language | English |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Latin American Research Review |
| spelling | doaj-art-9fbdbff618264b66828e1949276a50ea2025-02-10T09:53:27ZengCambridge University PressLatin American Research Review1542-427811610.1017/lar.2025.6Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic EnigmasVíctor Sierra Matute0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4476-7855Baruch College, The City University of New York, New York, New York, USThis article explores Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz’s (1648–1695) strategic poetic approach, aimed at democratizing writing and knowledge among women during her period. It examines her engagement with the literary academy, Casa del Placer, believed to have included nuns from Portuguese convents and women of the nobility. Specifically, the study analyzes Sor Juana’s final poetic work, the Enigmas ofrecidos a la Casa del Placer (1695), comprising twenty unanswerable poetic enigmas. In this collection, Sor Juana departs from individual lyric expression, a shift I call a “poetics of dedication,” advocating for a communal cultural identity centered on her persona’s fame. Through this gesture, Sor Juana appropriates and challenges patriarchal narratives that labeled her as a “monster” due to her perceived exceptionalism. My article shows how, toward the end of her life, Sor Juana embraces and subverts discussions about her exceptional status and transatlantic identity, fostering a sense of transoceanic sorority among women writers of the colonial period.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1542427825000069/type/journal_articleexceptionalitylyricizationenigmaspoetics of dedicationGlobal Hispanophoneexcepcionalidadliricizaciónenigmaspoética de la dedicaciónhispanofonía global |
| spellingShingle | Víctor Sierra Matute Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas Latin American Research Review exceptionality lyricization enigmas poetics of dedication Global Hispanophone excepcionalidad liricización enigmas poética de la dedicación hispanofonía global |
| title | Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas |
| title_full | Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas |
| title_fullStr | Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas |
| title_full_unstemmed | Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas |
| title_short | Was Sor Juana a Sphinx? Monstrosity and the Poetics of Dedication in Her Transoceanic Enigmas |
| title_sort | was sor juana a sphinx monstrosity and the poetics of dedication in her transoceanic enigmas |
| topic | exceptionality lyricization enigmas poetics of dedication Global Hispanophone excepcionalidad liricización enigmas poética de la dedicación hispanofonía global |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1542427825000069/type/journal_article |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT victorsierramatute wassorjuanaasphinxmonstrosityandthepoeticsofdedicationinhertransoceanicenigmas |