The Cost of Complicity in Systems

Sor Juana navigated her own complex position within religious hierarchies that benefited her intellectually while constraining her freedom. She understood complicity not as simple hypocrisy but as the inevitable entanglement of individuals within systems larger than themselves. This realism applies to modern animal ethics: most of us participate in systems of animal exploitation while opposing cruelty in principle. We benefit from the convenience, cost savings, and cultural normalization of animal products. Sor Juana's intellectual honesty suggests we must acknowledge this complicity clearly rather than dismiss it or perform moral purity. The work is not to declare innocence but to understand how our choices participate in suffering, then to gradually reduce that participation. This framework avoids the paralysis of guilt while maintaining moral seriousness. We are implicated in systems we did not create; the question becomes how we recognize that implication and work toward justice within the constraints we inherit.