Reframing Dominion as Stewardship and Reciprocal Care

Traditional Western thought often interpreted human dominion over animals as permission for unlimited exploitation. Sor Juana's intellectual tradition, drawing on both European and indigenous Mexican thought, offers an alternative interpretation: authority exists to serve, not to dominate without constraint. Her own position as an intellectual woman working within restrictive institutions shows how one can exercise agency and authority differently, through service to knowledge and community rather than exploitation of power. Applied to animals, this reframes human dominion not as the right to use them arbitrarily but as a form of stewardship requiring responsible care. We are caretakers of a larger community of beings, not sovereign masters entitled to impose our will without consideration. Reciprocal care recognizes that animals care for their young, form communities, and maintain ecosystems that sustain human life; we are embedded in webs of mutual dependence. This framework accepts human authority responsibly, using knowledge and power to protect rather than exploit. It imagines a relationship with animals based on reciprocity and respect rather than extraction, transforming dominion from a license for abuse into an obligation to serve the flourishing of all beings.