Off the Cuff / My Other Journal

Conquistadors, Misogynism & Today's Women Writers

I am reading Inés of My Soul (Inés del Alma Mia), Isabel Allende’s latest book. I love the book; however, it seems to me the women writers of today are writing historical fiction with almost accurate historical facts, but by giving a stronger voice to the women of older eras. Laura Esquivel, the writer of books like Like Water for Chocolate and The Law of Love, too, has written such a book called Malinche. Malinche was a real woman and a mythic figure as Hernán Cortés's interpreter and lover, and she accompanied the conquistador on his travels in the New World.

Malinche is on my reading list. The preliminary introductions to the book Malinche claim that Laura Esquivel, too, wrote her novel by making the woman heroine sound stronger than and almost as liberated as the women of today.

Yet, I doubt that these women could be as strong in those days. The understanding then was misogynistic in the entire world, because cultures deemed women to be nuisances and impediments to the success of men who were made to undertake “serious” tasks and responsibilities. True, in the literature of earlier centuries, women are sometimes thought of as being more compassionate and understanding of the suffering of others, but this was hailed as a weakness, not a virtue (Schopenhauer - "On Women")

If we remember the witch hunts of European nations between sixteenth and eighteenth centuries and the accusations of all kinds against women by the entire societal structure with men and women alike, Inés Suárez’s witty, knowledgeable, brave, and conquistador-like actions and her handling of men bordering on control appear to be wishful thinking by Isabel Allende.

This is not so bad if Inés Suárez were to become a role model; however, the concept in the novel feels to be very far from the truth and it may minimize the original problem. The question is: Wouldn’t it be more serving to women’s rights efforts to tell the truth as it was and show how women were underrated in history?

My belief is--inside the general apology of the Roman Catholic Church--Pope John Paul II’s apology for the actions against the dignity of women and minorities helped more than the fictionalized characters of strong women in history. Making a woman so strong--as she had not been in real life--may reflect a society’s tolerance for women. Yet, it wasn’t so in those days. There was no tolerance toward women's success. That is not to say that there weren’t strong women in those days, but maybe they used more cunning and wits to get their way; otherwise, they would be done away with.

Anyhow, I mean no disrespect to Allende’s writing prowess, and she is one of my favorite writers. The book is well written and I hate to put it down. I’ll write a book review as soon as I finish reading it, even if the characteristics of this historical heroine may be more fictional than real.