The Right to Refuse Prescribed Parenthood

Sor Juana's choice to enter the convent was partly a strategic refusal of the only two paths available to women: marriage and motherhood, or spinsterhood and servitude. She asserted her right to intellectual life over reproductive duty—a radical act of resistance. This concept recognizes that parental identity becomes fraught when imposed by family, religion, or society rather than chosen. Contemporary applications include supporting those who choose childlessness, those grieving infertility, and those reconsidering parental commitments. Sor Juana teaches that refusing prescribed parenthood is not selfish but an assertion of justice and autonomy. Her example validates the difficult work of defining parental identity on one's own terms, challenging the shame and coercion that often accompany such refusals in patriarchal systems.