Homenaje a Evita Perón y Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

Evita Perón

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Short Video Bio of Eva Peron

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Evita Perón: “One cannot accomplish anything without fanaticism”. María Eva Duarte de Perón was the second wife of President Juan Perón and served as the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952. She is often referred to as Evita. Eva Perón became powerful within the pro-Peronist trade unions, essentially for speaking on behalf of labor rights. She also ran the Ministries of Labor and Health, founded and ran the charitable Eva Perón Foundation, championed women's suffrage in Argentina, and founded and ran the nation's first large-scale female political party, the Female Peronist Party. In 1952 shortly before her death from cancer at the age of 33, Eva Perón was given the official title of "Spiritual Leader of the Nation" by the Argentine Congress.

Places to Travel and Tour In the footsteps of Evita Peron

Learn more about Eva Perón by watching this 30 minute video.

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Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was a 17th century nun, self-taught scholar and acclaimed writer of the Latin American colonial period and the Hispanic Baroque. She was also a staunch advocate for women's rights.

Who Was Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz?

Juana Inés de la Cruz's intelligence and scholarship became known throughout the country during her teen years. She began her life as a nun in 1667 so that she could study at will. After taking her vows, Sor Juana read tirelessly and wrote plays and poetry, often challenging societal values and becoming an early proponent of women's rights. Sor Juana is heralded for her Respuesta a Sor Filotea, which defends women's rights to educational access, and is credited as the first published feminist of the New World. She died in Mexico in 1695.

Early Years

Juana Inés de la Cruz was born out of wedlock in San Miguel Nepantla, Tepetlixpa — now called Nepantla de Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz in her honor — near Mexico City, circa November 12, 1651, when Mexico was still a Spanish territory.

In 1667, owing to her desire "to have no fixed occupation which might curtail my freedom to study," Sor Juana began her life as a nun. She moved in 1669 to the Convent of San Geronimo (St. Jerome) in Mexico City, where she remained cloistered for the rest of her life.

Juana had plenty of time to study and write in the convent, and she amassed a large library. She also gained the patronage of the viceroy and vicereine of New Spain, and they supported her and had her works published in Spain.

Poems

Sor Juana's enduring importance and literary success are partly attributable to her mastery of the full range of poetic forms and themes of the Spanish Golden Age, and her writings display inventiveness, wit and a wide range of knowledge. Juana employed all of the poetic models of her day, including sonnets and romances, and she drew on wide-ranging—secular and nonsecular—sources. Unlimited by genre, she also wrote dramatic, comedic and scholarly works—especially unusual for a nun. Sor Juana's most important plays include brave and clever women, and her famous poem, "Hombres necios" ("Foolish Men"), accuses men of behaving illogically by criticizing women. Her most significant poem, "Primero sueño" ("First Dream"), published in 1692, is at once personal and universal, recounting the soul's quest for knowledge.

Defending Women's Rights

With Sor Juana's growing renown, however, came disapproval from the church: In November 1690, the bishop of Puebla published (under the pseudonym of a nun) without her consent Sor Juana's critique of a 40-year-old sermon by a Portuguese Jesuit preacher, and admonished Sor Juana to focus on religious studies instead of secular studies.

Sor Juana responded with stunning self-defense. She defended the right of all women to attain knowledge and famously wrote (echoing a poet and a Catholic saint), "One can perfectly well philosophize while cooking supper," justifying her study of secular topics as necessary to understanding theology.

Death and Legacy

Sor Juana died in Mexico City, Mexico, on April 17, 1695.

Today, Sor Juana stands as a national icon of Mexican identity, and her image appears on Mexican currency. She came to new prominence in the late 20th century with the rise of feminism and women's writing, officially becoming credited as the first published feminist of the New World.

Citation Information:

Article Title: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz BiographyAuthor: Biography.com EditorsWebsite Name: The Biography.com websiteURL: https://www.biography.com/writer/sor-juana-ines-de-la-cruzPublisher: A&E Television NetworksLast Updated: July 9, 2020Original Published Date: April 1, 2014

Deciphering the Meaning of the Day of the Dead Altar in Mexico

Photographer Dane Strom visited Jalisco, Mexico, to document the real life altars of Mexican culture surrounding Dia de los Muertos.

Strom writes: "The Day of the Dead altar is usually built on multiple levels, with some extravagant, community-built versions reaching a story high. But the most common altars are divided into three sections: the ground-level entrance called la entrada, a mid-tier section with a table of offerings, and the highest level representing heaven, where photos of the dead are hung alongside images of favorite saints, the Virgin of Guadalupe and Jesus.

On November 2, the dead come back to visit the living, and the entrance of the altar (ofrenda or altar in Spanish) is built to welcome and guide them to their altars. Common elements are laid along the entrance, such as candles, skull decorations, seeds, a carpet of colorful sawdust, incense, and marigolds" (https://danestrom.com/day-of-the-dead-altar-meaning-jalisco-mexico/).

More Information & Fun Facts - Dia de los Muertos Altar Objects

¡Feliz mes de la Herencia Hispana!

Below you will find some fun facts and details about the Dia de los Muertos altar!

Papel Picado: Papel Picado is placed around and above the altar as an offering of traditional folk art. This practice takes time, patience, and practice to prepare this art to hang over the altar.
Photos & Trinkets: Photos of deceased loved ones and saints usually adorn the top of the table, to pay homage to those that they have lost and to call upon saints as intermediaries to help said loved ones pass on safely. Trinkets belonging to the passed loved ones also adorn the altar to offer things they loved while they were on Earth.
Water, fruit, & pan de muerto: Food, water, and bread (pan de muerto) are also placed about the altar. Water is a sign of life and purity, and will quench the thirst of passing spirits. Bread is baked as an offering to spirits passing by, and fruit is commonly laid out as a sweet treat.
Calavera (sugar skulls): Skulls made of sugar (named calavera) are intricately and beautifully designed and laid atop the altar in representation and honor of those lost. This tradition dates back to the Aztec people, who designed these miniature skulls as a representation of the goddess of death and resurrection, Mictecacihuatl.
Cirios y velas & marigolds: Candles, also known as cirios and velas, are used on altars to adorn crosses, and call upon the help of the saints to guide the souls of the deceased. Flowers – typically Marigolds- possess a bright color and fragrant smell that are thought to attract spirits.

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