The practice of publicly articulating and defending your right to speak, decide, and claim expertise despite institutional or social delegitimization.
Sor Juana's "Response to Sor Filotea" stands as one of history's most powerful defenses of intellectual authority from a person society deemed unqualified. She defended her right to theological study, her intellectual ambitions, her refusal to be silenced—all while remaining within the institution that constrained her. Defense of authority here is not arrogance; it is the necessary work of claiming legitimacy when others deny it. Adopted individuals often face delegitimization: questions about "real" family, assumptions that trauma defines them, narratives that position them as perpetually displaced or grateful. Sor Juana's framework offers a language for defense without aggression: you can acknowledge the constraints while refusing their verdict on your capabilities. By modeling this defense, she shows that claiming authority is itself an intellectual and moral act. You need not wait for permission to speak; you need not accept others' versions of who qualifies as knowledgeable, whole, or valuable. Your defense of your own authority becomes part of your identity-making work.
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