"Dora" I

I think that this case study could be considered literature. It’s interesting to note that Freud thinks that this could be considered literature because “many physicians” may decide to read this as something “designed for their private delectation.” The introduction was difficult to read but this was due to my lack of knowledge of the technical terms that he used. Once he finished that and moved into the case history and analysis it became mush easier to follow. At times it was possible to forget that I was reading a psychoanalysis case study. As soon as this would happen there would be a mention of how the subject related to his analysis. I think that case studies need to read like literature in order to capture interest and keep people reading. If this had just been in technical terms without the detailed case history and explanation of how it applies no one outside of the psychoanalytic community would be able to read and understand this. The biggest way in which the case study differs from literature is the repetition. I understand that repetition is necessary to emphasize his points and that many different areas of the reading are interrelated and connect back to his points but it became monotonous to read the same thing multiple times.

While reading this I did notice some “blind spots” that seemed to be obvious things that he should have done in order to better analyze the study. Freud spends a section of the introduction explaining that since he “cannot make notes during the actual sitting with the patient” that he recorded the material that the conversation covered from memory. Furthermore, the case history “was only committed to writing from memory, after the treatment was at an end.” This practice could have led him to remember things incorrectly which could invalidate part of his results. I also noticed that Freud only talked to Dora and her father. He pieced together her relationship with her family members “from the accounts given by the girl and her father.” Did it not occur to him that they may be accurately portraying the remaining family members? I think that this is probably the biggest “blind spot” because this led me to believe that of the father hadn’t taken Dora to begin therapy that Freud wouldn’t have spoke to anyone besides her for a description of the history of her illnesses and her relationships with other people.

The Answer III

Throughout history writing poetry has been seen as an acceptable action for women to take part in. Part of the reasoning for this is because poetry doesn’t require as much education as another subject, such as science or math, would. Once a person learns to read and write poetry would come as a natural way to express themselves.

In many of her poems Sor Juana comments on the courting practices that exist between men and women, which reflect the purpose of the stories in The Disenchantments of Love. Much like Christine de Pizan and Maria de Zayas Sor Juana is trying to warn, and in a way prove to, women that men only think of themselves and their wants and needs and that they don’t stop to think about the future consequences of their actions.

In “Philosophical Satires (Poem 92)” she opens with “You foolish and unreasoning men who cast all blame on women, not seeing you yourselves are cause of the same faults you accuse; (165)” The rest of the poem explains how men set women up to fail in their eyes because no matter what women do they will do the wrong thing. (Poem 145) comments on the lack of meaning in portraits when she writes “this is an empty artifice of care (159.)” This speaks volumes about what men want of women when they compare them to paintings of beauty.

In (Poem 174) Sor Juana voices a radical opinion for her time. She wrote, “Your ignorance of your error I accuse, because both Fate and Love, of things like these, have given us not ownership, but use. (163)” In this phrase she is saying that women aren’t property and shouldn’t be treated as such. This idea very much goes against the normal values for the society. After all, no man wants a woman that has her own thoughts, ideas, and needs—it’s a woman’s job to do what her husband tells her without hesitancy or questioning his intentions.

Sor Juana’s poetry also speaks to the differences between men and women, and how men react to them. Men were allowed to have affairs and their wives couldn’t do anything about it, if she knew. At the first thought of infidelity on a wife’s part the men act viciously. “don’t let these tyrant jealousies torment you nor base suspicions shatter your repose with foolish shadows, empty evidence: (161)”  “You combat their firm resistance, and then solemnly pronounce that what you’ve won through diligence is proof of women’s flightiness… Women’s good favor, women’s scorn you hold in equal disregard: complaining, if they treat you badly; mocking if they love you well. (165)” These passages demonstrate that men are never happy with women.

The Answer II

“But this has merely led me closer to the flames of persecution, the crucible of affliction; and to such extremes that some have even sough to prohibit me from study. They achieved this once, with a very saintly and simple mother superior who believed that study was an affair for the Inquisition and ordered that I should not read… For although I did not study in books, I studied all the things that God created, taking for my letters, and for my books all the intricate structures of this world. (73)” This quote shows that Sor Juana was aware of how men felt about her position in society and her intent on learning. She is aware the Sor Filotea is attempting to discredit her intelligence and call for all people, men and women alike, to demand she stop studying. Her lack of books to study led to her studying the world around her. Sor Juana realizes that there is more to know than what is available in books. In this passage she implies that studying in books can help a person better understand the world God created.

“Instead, for lack of such learning and through the extreme feebleness in which they are determined to maintain our poor women, if any parents then wish to give their daughters more extensive Christian instruction than is usual, necessity and the lack of learned older women oblige them to employ men as instructors to teach reading and writing, numbers and music, and other skills. This leads to considerable harm, which occurs every day in doleful instances of these unsuitable associations… For this reason, many parents prefer to let their daughters remain uncivilized and untutored, rather than risk exposing them to such notorious peril as this familiarity with men. (85)” This excerpt attacks the practice of education for women at the time. All harm to a girls virtue and honor that comes from learning could be avoided if she was taught by an older woman. It’s a catch-22 because there are no older women that have learnt enough or been taught enough to be able to pass it on to a student. I think that Sor Juana want to make people realize that nothing will ever change if society remains so hostile towards intelligent women.

Throughout the last part of the letter Sor Juana maes many references to scripture and women in the Bible. She points out that these women were highly intelligent and no one thought poorly of them, instead they were celebrated. She also points out that commonly sourced quotes from scripture have been taken out of context in order to be applied to women and education. Sor Juana makes an effort to point out the mistakes and rectify them by pointing out the historical context in which they were meant.

The Answer I

In the beginning of her response Sor Juana uses sarcasm and personal anecdotes to convey her point of view. Sor Juana was aware that the letter of criticism she had received was from a man and was doing all she could to keep the illusion going. It is one thing to disagree with another woman and it’s another to disagree with a man who thinks he is superior because he is a man. Much like Christine de Pizan, Sor Juana says ridiculous things that nobody will believe. She uses this device to imply the opposite with humility. No one wants to hear anyone carry on about how remarkable they are—the people that are foolish enough to do this are thought of as conceded and people try to avoid them. This approach is especially evident when Sor Juana discusses her intelligence and education through the constant remarks that she doesn’t know anything. She stresses that it’s not because she doesn’t want to learn—it’s because of the constant interruptions and that she has to teach herself. I think that this description is important because it can be applied to all women at this time since educating women isn’t an acceptable practice.

“But this is the way of things, for when learned men fall prey to passion they burst out illogically in just this fashion.(65)” This quote can be read as a concealed criticism of Sor Filotea since Sor Juana is aware that she really is a man. This quote can apply to anyone whenever they feel a strong emotion. People don’t stop to think, they just act and do whatever their emotions tell them is the right thing to do.

“‘The advantages of intelligence are advantages of being.’… And thus, as no one wants to be less than another, no one will admit that another is more intelligent… (67)” I think that this is Sor Juana’s way of showing the importance of education for women. She continues to say that men are accepting when another man says that they are wealthier, nobler, etc, but they won’t stand to hear anyone say that they are more intelligent. She portrays the lack of education for women as another manner in which men keep them obedient and submissive.

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

Both men in the film, Ivan and Carlos, are similar. Neither of the characters are faithful to the woman that they are with, nor are they completely honest with them. Carlos isn’t nearly as bad as his father. He falls in ‘love’ with Candela while his fiancée is sleeping off the spiked gazpacho. Candela tries to stop his attention, but he persists. She isn’t comfortable with the way he is acting towards her while he has a fiancée. It is obvious that Carlos isn’t in love with his fiancée, but he doesn’t want to tell her. This may be because he doesn’t know if he will be able to find anyone else that will care for him. If Marisa had been awake, Carlos never would have acted that way towards Candela. Ivan is another story. He never seems to be happy with any woman. Pepa knows that he has been cheating on her lately. I think it’s quite likely that he had always cheated on her. His history speaks for itself. While he was with Lucia he was seeing Pepa. I don’t know what would make her think that he would be faithful to her.

While the telephone is functioning it provides a means of communication between people. While Pepa is waiting for the call from Ivan and while Candela is trying to reach Pepa there is a sense of loneliness and desperation because the characters aren’t getting what they think they need. I think it’s interesting that many of the discussions need to take place in person rather than over the phone. Pepa shouldn’t be telling Ivan about her pregnancy over the phone nor should Candela be relating her Shiite terrorist story through a phone. Both situations need the attention and support that come from talking face to face. The lack of telephone parallels the isolation that the characters feel. They don’t think that anyone can possibly understand and they almost feel vindicated within their beliefs when they are partly cut off from society.

Many of the women in this film are “on the verge of a nervous breakdown”. Things aren’t going favorably for the characters and they are becoming increasingly frustrated. This frustration is manifesting itself in irrational behavior. I think that many of these problems are represented in The Disenchantments of Love. Lucia is like all the main characters, who at one point or another, suffers from love sickness. She is convinced that Ivan is the love of her life and she doesn’t know how to deal with the fact that her love is unrequited. Pepa can be compared all the characters who create plan after plan to try to get what they want, only to realize that it isn’t what they want after all. The only difference is that Pepa realizes her mistakes before it all ends badly. Candela could replace any of the naïve characters which believe that men won’t use them, only to be devastated when they do. Candela managed to avoid their fate of death because she had help from people who care about her.

The Disenchantments of Love III

Blanca has an unhappy marriage despite her yearlong courtship that was meant to ensure her happiness. On the surface it would seem that Blanca has control over the situation, but she doesn’t. She agreed to the marriage at the recommendation of the King and her brother. There is no possible way for her go against her word given that she would be going against the wishes of the king. Throughout the year she has a persistent feeling of unhappiness, yet she doesn’t do anything to end this. She tries to deceive herself into believing that it’s because she doesn’t want to leave her home and family. The ‘love’ between Blanca and the Prince doesn’t exist. During the courtship they never have the chance to get to know each other—all the wooing is accomplished through song and letters.

An aspect of story 7 is “boundary-crossings”. I think the most important boundary is that of land. All of the sisters leave their homeland and this is where their problems begin. “The person who gets the greatest punishment is the Spanish woman who leaves her country thinking she’ll be regarded as a lady but instead becomes a slave to a man who’s unworthy of her (260)”. It seems logical to the Prince and his father that once Blanca leaves Spain she loses all her nobility and importance since that is where it’s based. Another ‘boundary’ that is crossed is that of sexuality. The Prince is having a love affair with his man-servant Arnesto. Although same sex relationships have always occurred they were never spoken of to anyone. This stigma about them gave Arnesto much power because he knew that the Prince would do his wll and masquerade as though it were his own. It is also why no one ever thought that Prince’s lover was another man.

In “Traitor to His Own Blood” there are many references to blood. Ana and Mencía died bloody deaths. Both deaths were likened to slaughters of innocent lambs. This would serve as a religious aspect to their deaths with the hope that they would be well taken care of and looked after in the afterlife. Alonso’s beheading was another bloody death. It’s likely that this was chosen because it was most similar to his crimes and was seen more socially appropriate. If he had mere conspirator like his friend he would have had a different punishment. There is also the idea of blood’s biological importance as a key to inheritance. The title likely refers to the fact tha Alonso betrayed his ‘blood’ when he murdered his sister and wife not when he married below his station, as his father had told him.

The Disenchantments of Love II

Filis’ introduction to the forth disenchantment is her attempt to explain women’s fatal flaw—why they are often the victim of deceit. “I wonder, however, if women are really deceived: it’s one thing to let oneself be deceived and it’s another to be deceived (139)”. I think that this is an important distinction to make. In the first three stories the women let their hopes take over their common sense. Filis also accounts for the expectations of women, not that there are many. Men want docile and beautiful women because they know if women were given the same education and training that as men that “they may well fear women will take some of their power away (140)”. The introduction serves as foreshadowing for the remainder of the story. Don Jaime let himself be deceived by the actions of a servant. He managed to convince himself that his relationship with Elena was too good to be true, so he sabotaged it himself.

I think that doña Inés didn’t know how to handle the situations that arose, and therefore didn’t do much more than hope that they would pass quickly. I find it interesting that she never acted to prevent any possible incident, but she had clever ways of handling them once they had occurred. When she discovered that her neighbor had tricked don Diego, and were tarnishing her name, she acted quickly. I don’t think that many women would have had the forethought to have the mayor witness their meeting so no rumors could be started. She was also clever when she had the widow bring both the mayor and the archbishop to rescue her. This provided no means of salvation for her tormentors since both the church and the government had seen her deplorable punishment.

While Esteban is Estefanía he may be dressed as a woman but he is still trying to court Laurela through his songs. It doesn’t seem as though he adopts another gender role. I think that people see what they expect to see as far as gender roles are concerned. “…among themselves they pondered every word and every act of the deceitful Estefanía, noticing now what they should have noticed before (234)”.  I think that this topic is so widely used because there seems to be a gap between the genders. Situations like these remind people that the genders aren’t as different as we think they are, after all the people acting like the other gender are able to succeed without people finding out the truth before it is revealed.