MODERNITY, MATERNITY AND NATION: THE WRITINGS OF CLORINDA MATTO DE TURNER by JENNIFER SUZANNE FRASER B.A., The University of Victoria, 1995 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS i n THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Department of French, Hispanic and Italian Studies) We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA December 1998 © Jennifer Suzanne Fraser, 1998 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Depa^en, of ftttth , Wl^-V^ The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada DE-6 (2/88) II Abstract This thesis explores the meaning of Clorinda Matto de Turner's writing in the context of late nineteenth-century concepts surrounding femininity, domesticity, citizenship and the emerging modern state in Peru. Utilizing theoretical modes suggested by Benedict Anderson, Hommi Bhabha, Doris Sommer, and others, it is argued that Matto de Turner's fictional works should be read as national allegories outlining the appropriate roles for women within the Peruvian state. Complex contradictions in Matto de Turner's life and work are also considered, and the challenges faced by women writing in the nineteenth century are explored. Chapter one provides an overview of Matto de Turner's life, and focuses attention on her connections to the intellectual and governing elite of Peru. Her views on women, the church, and the state are examined, as are her professional accomplishments and personal life choices. Chapter two provides both the historical and literary background needed to contextualize Matto de Turner and her work within the larger debate concerning women and their ability to write. The tensions set up by conflicting social and gender expectations are touched upon, and related to the production of Matto de Turner's fiction. Chapters three and four engage in a discussion of the novels Aves sin nido, and Herencia, and address the constructions of femininity and citizenship presented in them by Matto de Turner. Emphasis is given to the role of domesticity and the depiction of women as 'angels of the house.' This thesis concludes with a call for Matto de Turner's work to be reconsidered, and recognized for its contributions to the discourse of modernization and to the nation-building project of nineteenth-century Peruvian intellectuals. Ill TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Table of Contents iii Acknowledgements iv INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1 Clorinda Matto de Turner: A Biographical Sketch ... 20 CHAPTER 2 Reflecting and Resisting Domestication: Women and Writing in Nineteenth-century Peru 39 CHAPTER 3 Prescriptions for Angels: Reading Aves sin nido as a Manual for Motherhood 66 CHAPTER 4 Inheriting Virtue or Vice: How to Educate a Daughter 98 CONCLUSION 149 Bibliography 155 iv Acknowledgements I am indebted to many people for their help throughout the preparation of this thesis. I owe a special debt to Rita De Grandis for all the opportunities she has made available to me during my time as a graduate student at the University of British Columbia. I gladly extend my thanks to her for her many hours of conversation, reading, encouragement and last, but certainly not least, for funding my research trip to Lima. Antonio Urrello deserves credit and recognition for the time he spent reading drafts of this work, and for providing many insightful comments. For all of these, I thank him. I would also like to express my gratitude to Judith Payne at the University of Victoria for introducing me to the works of nineteenth-century Latin American women writers, and for spending such considerable quantities of time discussing many of the ideas I have attempted to develop in this project. The librarians at the National Library of Lima merit recognition for all their efforts in locating the texts and articles I relied upon in researching my thesis. I would also like to extend my appreciation to the researchers at the Centro Flora Tristan for pointing me in the right direction, and for showing me how to navigate the streets of Lima. Joel Freedman's help, patience, support and many long hours of editing have been profoundly important during the preparation of this work, and I thank him for the occasions he dragged me from my desk for diversions. Also, for their assistance in editing and proof-reading this document, and for their unflagging encouragement, I would like to thank Meg Walker and Ruth Underhill. Lastly, it is with pleasure that I acknowledge the invaluable support my family and fellow students have given over the past two years. 1 Introduction Since Clorinda Matto de Turner began writing and publishing novels in 1889, many literary critics have debated the place of her works within the discourse of indigenismo.1 Recently, some academics have shifted the basis of this debate, and focused on discussions of the gender constructions in Matto de Turner's writing.2 At the same time, research has emerged that examines the cohesive imperatives of the young nation- states of Latin America. This new body of knowledge has brought into question the role of women as resisters and reflectors of prevailing 1 The intellectuals involved in the discourse of indigenismo sought the vindication of the Indian within Peru's social, political and economic systems. Well known Peruvian proponents include Manuel Gonzalez Prada (1844-1918) and Jose Carlos Mariategui (1894-1930). While the movement also had counterparts in many other Latin American countries, especially in Mexico, Efrafn Kristal suggests that it was the most important literary genre in Andean countries from the end of the nineteenth century until the 1960s (2). 2 Mary Berg has headed the growing debate in this area. The following is a list of her relevant publications: Mary Berg, "Clorinda Matto de Turner: periodista y critica," Las Desobedientes Mujeres de Nuestra America, eds. Betty Osorio and Marfa Mercedes Jaramillo (Bogota: Panamericana, 1997) 147-159, "Feminism and Feminist Perspectives in the Novels of Clorinda Matto de Turner (Peru 1852-1909)," phoebe 2 (1990): 10-17 and "Writing For Her Life: The Essays of Clorinda Matto de Turner," Reinterpreting the Spanish American Essay: Women Writers of the 19th and 20th Centuries, ed. Doris Meyer (Austin: U of Texas P, 1995) 80-89. 2 prescriptions for femininity in the nineteenth century.3 By juxtaposing these research interests, questions surrounding the relationship between gender and the politics of national formation are brought into greater focus. For Peru's emerging modernizing elite,4 maternity and domesticity were the roles most appropriate for women, who were seen as the symbolic bearers of the nation. This thesis examines the difficulties faced by women writers in Peru as they struggled to participate actively in the discourses of nation-building while, at the same time, maintaining their social positions. It also engages with Matto de Turner's conception 3 Jean Franco, Francine Masiello, Mary Louis Pratt, and Doris Sommer each engage in discussions regarding the links between women and state formation. The reader may wish to consult the following seminal texts on the issue: Jean Franco, Plotting Women: Gender & Representation in Mexico (New York: Columbia UP, 1989); Francine Masiello, "Estado, genero y sexualidad en la cultura del fin de siglo," Las culturas de fin de siglo en America Latina, ed. Josefina Ludmer (Argentina: Beatriz Viterbo Editorial, 1994) 139-149; Mary Louise Pratt, "Criticism in the Contact Zone: Decentering Community and Nation," Critical Theory, Cultural Politics and Latin American Narrative, ed. Steve Bell (Notre Dame: UP, 1993) 83-102 and "Women, Literature and National Brotherhood," Women, Culture and Politics in Latin America, Seminar on Feminism and Culture in Latin America (Berkeley: U of California P, 1990) 48- 73; Doris Sommer, Foundational Fictions: The National Romances of Latin America (Berkeley: U of California P, 1991) and "Irresistible romance: the foundational fictions of Latin America," Nation and Narration, ed. Hommi Bhabha (London: Routledge 1990) 72-98. 4 This socio-economic class is referred to differently by various academics. Francesca Denegri uses the term 'modernizing elite' and makes reference to intellectual elites (among whom she situates Matto de Turner) who form part of this class (74). Efraln Kristal refers to this same group as the 'industrial elite' (20). He claims the title 'industrial' not because those he names were involved in industry, but because they were interested in industrialization by any means possible (20). Paul Gootenberg also traces the rise of this class, but refers to them as 'liberals' (27-31). He suggests that their emergence as a class coincided with the guano boom. He further claims this elite group, who founded its economy on an export empire, was significant in shaping new discussions of national progress. He claims that this desired progress hinged on Peru's entrance into the world economy (59). This thesis will make use of the Denegri's terms 'modernizing' and 'intellectual elite'. The author also recognizes that this class used much of the discourse of European liberalism without actually embodying liberal socio• political ideals. 3 of an internally consolidated nation, and with her vision for women within this entity. In studying her work, questions about the new elites' prescriptions for women arise. Additional questions as to how these expectations were pushed and tested by the act of writing similarly come to the fore.