Strategic Retreat and the Limits of Resistance

Sor Juana's later renunciation of intellectual work—signing documents declaring she would abandon secular learning—appears to be capitulation. Yet scholars debate its meaning: was it coercion, strategic compromise, or mystical choice? This ambiguity is instructive. Libertarian justice often assumes clear victory and defeat, but lived freedom involves navigating impossible situations. When direct resistance invites destruction, accepting formal constraints while protecting inner autonomy may be survival. Sor Juana's retreat, whether voluntary or forced, preserves her dignity and internal sovereignty even if external circumstances impose limitations. For libertarian justice, this principle acknowledges that perfect freedom is often unattainable and that people strategically navigate oppressive systems while maintaining core autonomy. It resists both naive utopianism and cynical surrender. Applied today, this framework helps explain compromise, accommodation, and subtle forms of resistance as rational responses to structural domination, validating the agency of those in constrained circumstances.