The “Lieutenant Nun” reading was an interesting diary to read, written about adventures before, after and while experiencing the newly colonized world of Latin America. I really appreciated reading an excerpt from a woman, as I imagine female memoirs are hard to come by from that period… And in history in general… And actually, now that I’m thinking about it- probably the only and/or biggest reason why this one is so well documented, is because Catalina de Erauso identified for most of her life, as a man. Lol… Damn.
It’s really inspiring to read about a bad-ass warrior woman in the 1600’s who went against everything that was expected of a Spanish woman, and expected of her by the Church. She not only identified as a soldier, but she fought & defended herself violently and repeatedly, and proved to be just as successful as the male soldiers alongside her. She also traveled all over the world, disassociated from religion, and worked doing different jobs besides military. All of these qualities challenged female stereotypes of that time period… And even challenges some of the stereotypes women face today.
That being said, I am honestly finding it difficult to make the connection between this reading and Latin American Studies. Of course, a lot of Catalina de Erauso’s adventure takes part in the recently colonized Latin America- But I don’t find the writing paints any clear picture about Latin America during that time… And while it is fun to follow along on Catalina de Erauso’s adventure- She is a Spanish solider- Not Latin American. Anyway… I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s class to hear & discuss the importance of this piece! 🙂
I agree. I was surprised that Erauso’s life as a man is the part of her story that holds the most importance in her memoir. It’s as if she wasn’t seen as a woman at all, but as a conquistador. Would it be fair to assume that Catalina de Erauso wouldn’t have done most of the things she did if she didn’t dress up as a man? (given the time period she lived in, of course)