Ownership of One's Identity and Expression

Sor Juana navigated identity claims as a woman intellectual in patriarchal society, asserting her right to be recognized as a serious thinker despite social expectations that women should be passive, decorative, and subordinate. Her refusal to conform to prescribed gender roles while claiming authority in intellectual domains establishes identity ownership as a libertarian right. This extends beyond gender to encompass the freedom to construct and present oneself authentically, to pursue vocations regardless of categorical assignments, and to control one's public and intellectual persona. In terms of property and freedom, identity ownership means individuals hold the right to their own narrative, reputation, and self-representation. Institutional attempts to assign roles, constrain expression, or dictate identity violate this property right. Sor Juana's life demonstrates that genuine freedom requires the liberty to claim authority over who one is and how one presents to the world, resisting both social coercion and institutional control over human identity and expression.