Consent and Bodily Autonomy as Fundamental

Sor Juana's body was subject to institutional control—religious discipline, medical interventions, surveillance. She could not claim full authority over her own physical being. Bodily autonomy is foundational to human dignity, yet children are uniquely vulnerable to violations. Adults touch children without consent, make medical decisions without input, punish physical disobedience, and normalize boundary violations as discipline or care. Teaching children consent—that they can say no to unwanted touch, that their bodily boundaries deserve respect—is essential protection. This includes: age-appropriate consent education, ending physical punishment, ensuring children's input in medical decisions, protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation, and creating cultures where children's bodily preferences (around food, sleep, physical affection) are honored rather than overridden. Sor Juana's life illuminates how denial of bodily autonomy is a tool of domination that erodes selfhood. Conversely, when children experience respect for their bodily autonomy—when adults ask permission before touching, when children's physical boundaries are protected, when consent is modeled and taught—children develop strong sense of self-ownership. This becomes foundation for resisting all forms of abuse and violation throughout their lives.