Strategic Identity Performance and Authenticity

Sor Juana navigated the Catholic institution by performing acceptable femininity while secretly pursuing forbidden knowledge. This concept addresses the cisgender experience of performing assigned gender roles while questioning whether that performance reflects authentic self. For cisgender individuals, this means recognizing that gender assignment comes with scripts—expectations about behavior, ambition, sexuality, and presentation. The question becomes: which aspects of your gender identity are chosen, which are imposed, and which are authentic? Sor Juana's life demonstrates that strategic performance need not mean complete inauthenticity. Instead, it acknowledges that identity exists within power structures. Understanding this distinction helps cisgender people interrogate their own choices and resist unconscious conformity to assigned expectations.