>Date: Tue, 12 Apr 2005 10:41:59 -0400 (EDT) >From: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Was Cervantes a feminist: from Dario Fernandez-Morera, Northwestern U >To: [log in to unmask] >X-Mailer: 6.0 sub 10578 >Original-recipient: rfc822;[log in to unmask] > >I suppose it would depend on one's definition of feminism. If one means >favoring women's freedom of choice in their lives regarding things like >love, marriage, and general way of life, I suspect Cervantes was a >feminist. At least his female characters are evidence of this. If one >means favoring equal pay with men regardless of work experience, the right >women have to abort their babies without interference from the community >in which they exist, their right to get equal money for high school and >college sports regardless of audience's interest, the right to keep the >children in case of divorce unless the woman is basically a criminal, and >other positions, one may doubt he would be a feminist given his historical >status as a Spanish man of the late sixteenth century. Besides, modern >feminism shares some basic assumptions but there are differences of detail >among those who call themselves feminists. They do not make a monolithic >block. Some of the views listed above are not shared by all >feminists. There are other views not mentioned that some feminists share >and others do not. So it is safer to say that Cervantes' feminine >characters are fairly good evidence of the views listed first above, but >not of the views listed afterwards. Beyond that, one is merely making >interesting analogies and transpositions that cannot be substantiated for >obvious reasons: one cannot ask Cervantes the man of flesh and bone. So >he cannot be characterized as a feminist tout court, but as a writer that >seems to favor some views which are associated with modern feminism, but >which as a matter of fact can be associated not only with feminism, modern >or not, but with freedom-loving viewpoints on human life that have existed >long before what one calls feminism, a relatively recent label in human >history anyway. Dario Fernandez-Morera __________________ Prof. A. Robert Lauer The University of Oklahoma Dept. of Modern Langs., Lits., & Ling. 780 Van Vleet Oval, Kaufman Hall, Room 206 Norman, Oklahoma 73019-2032, USA Tel.: 405-325-5845 (office); 405/325-6181 (OU dept.); Fax: 405/325-0103 (OU); Fax: 1-530-364-9575 (business) <http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/A-Robert.R.Lauer-1/vita.html>Vita / <http://www.peterlang.com/all/>IBÉRICA / <http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/A-Robert.R.Lauer-1/AITENSO.html>AITENSO / <http://www.mla.org/>MLA / <http://www.ou.edu/bcom/>BCom Vision: Harmonious collaboration in an international world. Mission: "Visualize clearly and communicate promptly" ___________________________________________________