El veinticinco de mayo/May 25th

Photo from eltecolote.org. Click HERE. 

¡Feliz cumpleaños a Rosario Castellanos! (1925-1974)

A poet and author who is considered one of the most important Mexican writers of the 20th century, Castellanos was known for representing the struggles of women, of the poor, and of the indigenous peoples of Mexico. Her work has influenced feminist theory and inspired a generation of feminist leaders in Mexico. Born into a privileged family in Mexico City and raised in the southern state of Chiapas, Castellanos lost her brother to appendicitis when she was only seven. She then lost her parents when she was 16, one year after the family lost most of its land under reforms instituted by President Lázaro Cárdenas.  Castellanos went on to study philosophy and literature at UNAM. After graduating, she wrote extensively. Her first novel, Balún Canán,  published in 1958, dealt with the struggles between indigenous Mexicans and European landowners. Today, it is considered part of a trilogy on indigenous issues, with the other two books in the trilogy being Ciudad Real (1960) and Oficio de Tinieblas (1962). Castellanos also wrote poetry, with her collected work appearing in Poesía, no eres tú (1972) (read more about the feminist nature of her poems HERE), wrote a weekly column for the newspaper Excelsior, and taught at an assortment of universities. Her book of essays Mujer que sabe latín (a play on the sexist saying "Mujer que sabe latín, ni encuentra marido ni tiene buen fin"), published in 1974, is often cited as a hallmark work of the feminist movement (see this commentary HERE). She was the ambassador to Israel from 1971 to 1974, and she died  there from an accident at the age of 49. Castellanos and husband of 13 years Ricardo Guerra, who had been a professor of philosophy at UNAM, had one son, Gabriel, born in 1961. See the Google Doodle published to honor her in 2016 HERE and watch a short biography (in Spanish) HERE.

For resources for teaching Spanish, Level 1 through AP, CLICK HERE.