Sor Isabel de Villena: Vida y Legado de una Escritora Femenina

Sor Isabel de Villena: Biography of a Female Writer

Early Life and Education

Sor Isabel de Villena, born Elionor de Villena around 1430, was the illegitimate child of Enrique de Villena and an unknown noblewoman. She was raised by Queen Maria of Castile of Valencia from the age of four. Educated at the court of Alfonso V of Aragon (the Magnanimous), she became a nun in the monastery of La Trinitat at the age of fifteen. This convent, founded by Queen Maria de Luna, was also the chief benefactor.

Career as an Abbess and Writer

In 1462, Isabel became the abbess of the convent and took charge in 1463. There was a rumor that there had to be divine intervention from the Archangel Michael that allowed Isabel to be elected as abbess, as illegitimate children were not usually eligible for such positions.

Isabel dedicated her entire life to the convent and to her writing. Her most famous work is her Vita Christi (Christ's Life), which was widely considered to be a response to the misogynistic book Spill o Llibre de les dones (The Mirror or Book of Women) by Vita Christi.

As a writer, Isabel was a proto-feminist who tried to change the negative image of women at the time through her writing. Her work has been rediscovered and studied more due to the increase in feminist studies.

Death and Legacy

It is believed that Isabel died during an outbreak of plague in 1490 at the age of 60. Her work, including Vita Christi, continues to be studied and appreciated for its feminist themes and its unique perspective on the life of Christ.

Influences and Comparisons

Isabel's work has been compared to that of another proto-feminist writer of the early modern period, Christine de Pizan. Scholars have noted that writing was a way for women to break the silence imposed upon them by men, even though it was discouraged greatly.

Works Cited

• Barnett, David. "The Voice of the Virgin: Accessible Authority in the Visitation Episode of Isabel De Villena's Vita Christi." La corónica 35.1 (2006): 23-45.
• Cantavella, Rosanna. "Intellectual, Contemplative, Administrator: Isabel De Villena and the Vindication of Women." A Companion to Spanish Women's Studies. By Xon De. Ros and Geraldine Hazbun. Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK: Tamesis, 2011. 97-107.
• Hauf, Albert G. D'Eiximenis a sor Isabel De Villena. Barcelona / València. IIFV / PAM. 1990. S. 323-397. (in Catalan)
• Piera, Montserrat. "Writing, Auctoritas and Canon Formation in Sor Isabel De Villena's Vita Christi." La corónica 32.1 (2003): 105-18.
• Twomey, Lesley K. "Sor Isabel De Villena, Her Vita Christi and an Example of Gendered Immaculist Writing in the Fifteenth Century." La corónica 32.1 (2003): 89-103.
• Twomey, Lesley K. The Fabric of Marian Devotion in Isabel De Villena's Vita Christi. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Tamesis, 2013.