The Right to Questions as Disobedience

Sor Juana's approach to knowledge was fundamentally interrogative: she asked questions, pursued logical inquiry, and refused to accept doctrine without understanding. In systems of absolute authority—whether ecclesiastical, patriarchal, or political—the right to question is itself subversive. This concept elevates questioning from mere intellectual exercise to political practice. Civil disobedience traditions globally include those who practice what we might call "questioning resistance": scientists who publish findings that contradict state narratives, students who refuse rote learning, communities who demand accountability through relentless inquiry. The act of asking "why?" becomes disobedience when authorities treat obedience as a substitute for understanding. By centering questions, Sor Juana's tradition suggests that one need not have answers to resist; often, the refusal to stop asking—despite institutional pressure to remain silent—is itself the most durable form of civil disobedience.