Periagoge
Concept
1 min read

The Right to Know What We Buy

The principle that consumers have an ethical and intellectual duty to understand the origins, conditions, and impacts of their purchases before acquiring them.

Juana
Why It Matters

Sor Juana's relentless pursuit of knowledge across all domains mirrors the ethical consumer's responsibility to investigate what they purchase. She argued that ignorance cannot be excused when knowledge is available—a principle directly applicable to ethical consumption. When we buy without knowing labor conditions, environmental impacts, or supply chain injustices, we participate in systems we haven't examined. Sor Juana would recognize this as an abdication of intellectual integrity. True ethical consumption requires the same rigor she applied to theology and philosophy: asking difficult questions, seeking evidence, and refusing comfortable ignorance. This concept reframes shopping not as passive consumption but as an act requiring the same intellectual engagement we give to reading a challenging text.

Helpful guides
Juana
Identity & Justice
Peri
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