Chronicling Women's Containment in Bartolomé Arzáns de Orsúa y Vela's History of Potosí

Bartolomé Arzáns de Orsúa y Vela's Historia de la Villa Imperial de Potosí (1705–1736) offers a unique lens on the precarious social status of women in colonial Potosí, revealing how societal anxieties about honor and reputation shaped their lives. The chronicle contrasts 'good' women—dutiful wives, nuns, or daughters—with 'bad' women—adulteresses, sorceresses, or prostitutes—reflecting broader humanist and Counter-Reformation influences. Arzáns' focus on female deviance mirrors Spain's efforts to contain wayward women through legal and institutional means, such as workhouses and prisons, while also reflecting the heightened control over African, indigenous, and mixed-race populations in colonial Latin America. The study highlights how these binary categorizations reveal the lived experiences of women during the colonial period, offering insights into gender dynamics and social order.

Boyle, M. E. (2010). Chronicling Women’s Containment in Bartolomé Arzáns de Orsúa y Vela’s History of Potosí. Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture, 39(1), 279–296. https://doi.org/10.1353/sec.0.0053