The Right to Solitude and Self-Determination

Sor Juana explicitly rejected marriage—the only 'respectable' path for most women—in favor of celibate religious life that granted her autonomy. Her choice asserted that femininity need not mean devotion to husband or children, and that women's self-determination matters. This concept challenges the construction of femininity as relational—defined through service to men and family. In contested femininity, this asks: whose needs matter? Can women prioritize their own intellectual and spiritual development without apology? Sor Juana's life demonstrates that the right to solitude, to refuse conventional feminine roles, and to direct one's own destiny is not selfish but essential. This framework validates women's autonomy as foundational to deconstructing constraining gender norms.