Biography Essay

Elena Poniatowska has devoted much of her fiction and journalism to giving a voice to the anonymous masses that do not have access to the printed word or to other modes of communication. In her chronicles she has rescued from obscurity and oblivion aspects of Mexican society and politics related to the lower classes and has spoken out about certain facts the government has attempted to hide or ignore. Poniatowska includes women in the category of the oppressed, of those without a voice, because the female experience has been traditionally ignored or silenced, especially in societies such as Mexico's, which are overwhelmingly patriarchal. Females are often the protagonists in her fiction. Generally placed in disadvantageous situations by their age, social standing, or simply by being women, Poniatowska's characters are noted for their rebelliousness, for breaking the rules. Examples of such characters are the eponymous protagonist of...