SOURCE: "Subversion in Two Short Stories by Emilia Pardo Bazán, in Letras Peninsulares, Vol. 2, No. 1, Spring, 1989, pp. 55-64.

In the following excerpt, Durham discusses Pardo Bazán's use of the grotesque to explain the status of women in society.

Although Emilia Pardo Bazán was admired by her contemporaries for the ability to write "like a man," she often used her work to address the concerns of women. Her ability to synthesize diverse ideas and literary currents characterizes her work from the time of her rise to prominence as the author of La cuestión palpitante. Her reputation as a pacesetter was further confirmed when she assimilated the structure of the grotesque into her short stories. The grotesque especially suited works dealing with the status of women. Two stories, "Posesión" and "Los pendientes" are typical of the literature produced by women writers in the nineteenth century...