The Economics of Care and Attention

Sor Juana's work addressed the value of women's intellectual and domestic labor that society ignored and failed to compensate. This insight applies directly to ethical consumption: care has economic value that market prices systematically suppress. A garment made with care, by fairly paid workers, with high-quality materials, will cost more than a disposable fast-fashion equivalent—but the market price of fast fashion doesn't reflect its true costs (environmental damage, worker suffering, landfill burden). Fair prices for ethical products aren't premium additions but accurate reflections of actual value. When we pay more for fair-trade coffee, we're not subsidizing virtue; we're paying what ethical production actually costs. When we pay more for durable goods over disposables, we're recognizing the value of quality and longevity. This requires retraining ourselves to see price not as a measure of worth but as an incomplete signal. Ethical consumption means accepting that care—environmental stewardship, worker dignity, quality craftsmanship—costs something real, and that willingness to pay is acknowledgment of genuine value. Sor Juana insisted her intellectual labor had value; ethical consumption insists the same for all human and environmental care embedded in products.