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Course: World History Project AP® > Unit 4
Lesson 3: 4.2—Transoceanic Empires: Empires and Resistance- READ: Survey of Transoceanic Empires, 1450 to 1750
- READ: Yasuke – Graphic Biography
- READ: Overview of New Economic Systems
- READ: European Colonies in the Americas
- READ: Amonute – Graphic Biography
- BEFORE YOU WATCH: The Spanish Empire, Silver, and Runaway Inflation - Crash Course World History #25
- WATCH: The Spanish Empire, Silver, & Runaway Inflation
- READ: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz – Graphic Biography
- READ: The Transatlantic Slave Trade
- READ: The Disastrous Effects of Increased Global Interactions c. 1500 to c. 1600
- BEFORE YOU WATCH: Impact of the Slave Trade - Through a Ghanaian Lens
- WATCH: Impact of the Slave Trade - Through a Ghanaian Lens
- READ: Domingos Álvares – Graphic Biography
- READ: State Centralization and Resistance
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READ: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz – Graphic Biography
We are told that colonial society in America was hierarchical, with race playing a big role in who ruled, and who was ruled. We also learn that these were societies with pretty rigid gender roles and only limited opportunities for women. The story of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz suggests things were a bit more complex than this generalization suggests.
The Graphic Biography below uses “Three Close Reads”. If you want to learn more about this strategy, click here.
First read: skimming for gist
This will be your quickest read. It should help you get the general idea of what the graphic biography will be about. Pay attention to the title, headings, images, and layout. Ask yourself: what is this graphic biography going to be about?
Second read: understanding content
For this reading, you should be looking for unfamiliar vocabulary words, the major claim and key supporting details, and analysis and evidence. You should also spend some time looking at the images and the way in which the page is designed.
By the end of the second close read, you should be able to answer the following questions:
- When and where was Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz born?
- When Juana was a young girl, what did she first learn?
- Where was Juana working and living when she was seventeen years old? What controversial writing did she complete at this time?
- What decision did Juana make so that she could continue studying? How did this decision cause problems for her later?
- How does the artwork help us to understand the unique circumstances that shaped Juana’s unique life, particularly her dual heritage?
Third read: evaluating and corroborating
In this read, you should use the graphic biography as evidence to support, extend, or challenge claims made in the course.
At the end of the third read, you should be able to respond to these questions:
- Using evidence from this graphic biography, explain how Sor Juana’s story supports, extends, or challenges the social categories and roles you’ve learned about in this era?
- What evidence does Sor Juana’s biography provide about how people lived in the colonial Americas in this period? How does this evidence support, extend, or challenge what you have learned about the impact of the Columbian Exchange in this region?
- Compare and contrast Sor Juana’s biography with that of Domingos Álvares that you’ll read later in this lesson. In what ways were their lives similar? In what ways were they different? What accounts for those similarities and differences?
Now that you know what to look for, it’s time to read! Remember to return to these questions once you’ve finished reading.
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (Graphic Biography)
Writer: Lindsay Ehrisman
Artist: Helia Miller
We are told that colonial society in America was hierarchical, with race playing a big role in who ruled, and who was ruled. We also learn that these were societies with pretty rigid gender roles and only limited opportunities for women. The story of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz suggests things were a bit more complex than this generalization suggests.
Download the Graphic Biography PDF here or click on the image above.