The vindication of the female writer by women Spanish authors of almanacs in the eighteenth century

Abstract

Following the debate on the sexes in the eighteenth century, women tried to join the Republic of Letters, dominated by men. Successful minor genres such as almanacs offered that possibility, as revealed by three Spanish authors: Manuela Sánchez de Oreja, "la Gran Piscatora Aureliense"; Francisca de Osorio, "la Musaraña del Pindo"; and Teresa González, "la Pensadora del Cielo", which they published in the decade of the 40s, 50s and 60s, respectively. All three took advantage of the paratexts before the astrological prognostications (dedications, prologues, literary fictions) to claim their equal capacity and to show their preparation, obtained with effort, and from there, to vindicate their right to be writers despite the masculine misgivings. Their brief production exemplifies the existence of a female literary subject and the attempts to reformulate traditional social functions as early as mid-century.