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Born in San Miguel Nepantla, Viceroyalty of New Spain [now in Mexico], born out of wedlock to a Creole mother and a Spanish father. (date of birth is uncertain due to lack of documentation). -
La Cruz spent her early years living with her mother in Panoaya on her grandfather's property. Her father was absent from her life. -
At a young age, La Cruz thirsted for knowledge; as a female with little access to education, she was almost entirely self-taught, reading all of the books in her grandfather's library. When La Cruz grew older she was sent to live in Mexico City with her aunt. -
La Cruz attracted the attention of the Viceroy of New Spain, who functioned like the territory's governor. He had heard about her intelligence and was intrigued. He invited her to court, along with 40 noted scholars, to see if she was as intelligent as described. The Viceroy was impressed by La Cruz and then asked her to join his court as a lady-in-waiting, working for his wife, Vice Reina. (a female personal assistant at a court) -
La Cruz had several marriage proposals. Many expected her to marry and become a proper wife. But this is not what she wanted for her life. She didn't want to have a fixed occupation, which might restrict her freedom to study. -
Sor Juana enters the austere convent of the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of Saint Joseph, becoming a nun, but leaves after three months. -
To obtain an education, La Cruz wished to disguise herself as a male at 16. In doing so, she could attend university but was not given permission by her family to do so, so she continued to study privately. -
La Cruz enters the Convent of Saint Paula of the Order of San Jerónimo, where she remains for the rest of her life. This Convent is wealthy, and she amasses a library of over 4,000 volumes. -
The Marquis and Marquise de Mancera, end their
Viceregal term. Leaving La Cruz vulnerable without her protectors. The Archbishop of Mexico, Francisco de Aguiar y Seijas, particularly despised her work. Aguiar y Seijas were religious zealots and misogynists who refused to look upon women. -
Writing to her confessor, Antonio Núñez de Miranda of the Society of Jesus, Sor Juana defends her right, as a woman, to learn: “The cause of your anger . . . has been none other than the ability that God has given me in creating these wretched verses without asking permission from Your Reverence.” -
Her famous poem “Hombres necios” (“Foolish Men”) accuses men of the illogical behavior that they criticize in women.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sor-Juana-Ines-de-la-Cruz -
This is one of her best-known plays, a play that introduces her religious drama a blend of the Aztec and Christian religions.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sor-Juana-Ines-de-la-Cruz -
A response letter to the criticism of her scholarly activities was deemed inappropriate for a nun. In the letter, La Cruz defends her right as a woman to have intellectual freedom and to be a writer and a scholar, and she defends the values of having learned women in society. Often considered a landmark feminist text.
https://edsitement.neh.gov/sites/default/files/2018-08/Interactive-Timeline-Sor-Juana_0.pdf -
Recognized as La Cruzs most important work; it details the soul's quest for knowledge through a dreamlike journey, often interpreted as a metaphor for her own struggle to pursue learning as a woman in a restrictive society.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sor-Juana-Ines-de-la-Cruz -
Due to internal or external pressures, La Cruz writes El Libro de profesiones de la fé (Book of Vows) in her own blood; in it, she repents of “having lived so long without religion in a religious community.” Her books are all taken away. The book indicates that she gave up her intellectual pursuits.
https://edsitement.neh.gov/sites/default/files/2018-08/Interactive-Timeline-Sor-Juana_0.pdf
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Sor-Juana-Ines-de-la-Cruz -
A plague had arrived in Mexico City, La Cruz died while taking care of her sister's nuns.
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La Cruz's writing was influenced by the literary figures of the Spanish Golden Age, particularlyLuis de Góngora;she also drew inspiration from classical philosophers like Plato. Her poems covered a wide range of topics: love, religion, feminism, and social justice.
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The Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz Prize is a literary prize awarded to a book written in Spanish by a female author. Winners of the prize receive USD$10,000. The prize is named after La Cruz as she is considered the first great Latian American poet and one of the most important Hispanic literacy figures. Its held annually in Guadalajara International Book Fair.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sor_Juana_In%C3%A9s_de_la_Cruz_Prize#:~:text=External%-,History,Internacional%20%20Libro%20de%20Guadalajara). -
La Cruz is a national icon for Mexico, her image is displayed on the Mexican 200-peso bill. -
The Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz Recognition is an award given since 2003 by the National Autonomous University of Mexico. It is awarded to women of the institution for achievements in "teaching, research, or the dissemination of culture." Winners get a medal and a diploma with the image of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. The award is held annually on International Women's Day.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sor_Juana_In%C3%A9s_de_la_Cruz_Recognition#:~:text=The%20Sor%20Juana%20In%C3%A9s%20de,2003 -
At the age of three, La Cruz learned how to read and write Latin. By the time she was an adolescent, La Cruz had mastered Greek logic, and at thirteen, she was teaching Latin to young children. -
La Cruz's hometown was renamed Nepantla de Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz in her honor.