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The Search for Knowledge
Sor Juana thirsted for knowledge from a very young age, but her gender limited her possibilities and access. She was sent to live with relatives in Mexico City, where she attracted the attention of the viceroy, Antonio Sebastián de Toledo. -
Birth
Juana Inés de Asbaje y Ramírez de Santillana is born on November 12th, 1651 in San Miguel Nepantla, México to Pedro Manuel de Asbaje and Isabel Ramírez. -
Lady-in-Waiting
The viceroy invites Sor Juana to court as a lady-in-waiting and later tests her knowledge by about 40 noted scholars. -
To Mexico City...
Sor Juana is sent to Mexico City to live with relatives. -
"Total disinclination to marriage" and "To have no fixed occupation which might curtail my freedom to study."
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz begins her life as a nun in the order of the Discalced Carmelites due to her "total disinclination to marriage" and her desire to "have no fixed occupation which might curtail [her] freedom to study." -
Santa Paula of the Hieronymite
Sor Juana decides to leave the Carmelites for a more lenient order, Santa Paula of the Hieronymite. Here, she finally takes her vows as a nun. She remains her for the rest of her life. -
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Sor Juana Comes into Her Own
Given her own apartment, Sor Juana studies and writes in her spare time. She becomes the Santa Paula's music and drama teacher for girls as well as the convent's archivist and accountant. -
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Unofficial Poet
Sor Juana continues her contact with other scholars and members of the court. The patronage of the viceroy and the vicereine of México allowed Sor Juana to maintain her freedom. They also had her work published in Spain. Though cloistered, Sor Juana became the unofficial court poet. -
"Pawns of a House"
This work was first performed on October 4th, 1683, during the celebration of the Viceroy Count of Paredes’ first son's birth. -
"Love is but a Labyrinth"
This work premiered on February 11, 1689, during the celebration of the inauguration of the viceroyalty Gaspar de la Cerda y Mendoza. -
The Letter
A letter of Sor Juana's criticizing a well-known Jesuit sermon was published without her permission under a pseudonym by the bishop of Puebla, who attached a letter of his own criticizing Sor Juana's entire body of work for not being religious enough. Sor Juana replied to the latter in her famous "Respuesta a Sor Filotea" (Response to Sister Filotea (the pseudonym the bishop used). Some hail this letter as the first feminist manifesto. -
"Primero sueño"
"Primero sueño," or "First Dream" is known as Sor Juana's most significant work. It is called "personal and universal." It is about the soul's quest for knowledge. It was published in 1692. -
Writing Ceases
Although there is no official proof, it seems that by 1693, Sor Juana ceases to write to avoid complete censorship. -
Forced Abjuration
After garnering widespread criticism for her feminist stances and work, Sor Juana is forced to abjure. She sells her books and musical/scientific instruments. -
Death
A plague hits the convent. Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz dies tending to her fellow sisters at around the age of 44. -
University of the Cloister of Sor Juana
In 1979, the government of Mexico founded a university at the San Jerónimo convent in Mexico City, where Sor Juana spent the last years if her life. -
Sor Juana Inés Services for Abused Women
This organization was founded in Sor Juana Inés' name to help survivors of domestic abuse. -
Official Recognition by the Mexican Government
Sor Juana's name was inscribed in gold on the wall of honor in the Mexican Congress in April 1995. -
Google Doodle
On 12 November 2017, Google Doodle commemorated her 366th birthday. -
Las Dos Juanas
The University of the Cloister of Sor Juana honored both Frida Kahlo and Sor Juana on October 31, 2018 with a symbolic altar for the Day of the Dead. The two figures seem to be connected by their feminist and artistic natures. -
