Malinche; the Latin American Strong Woman
In the interpretations of the Nauhua figure, Malinalli through history, she has been cast in several roles. These include but are not limited to; * “Dona Marina,” the great lady of Hernan Cortes. * “Malintzin,” the noble prisoner/captive of Cortes. * “La Malinche,” the embodiment of treachery against the Latin people.
While there are many portrayals of her, there is an underlying theme in all of them. That she is a compelling force in events despite the traditional roles of women of the time. For example when comparing Laura Esquival’s, “Malinche” Malinalli variant to the one found in Gary Jennings “Aztec,” readers will find two different portrayals her but with the same dominance. Due to this extraordinary puissance, it leads me believe that she is a strong woman. Due to the diversity of works that showcase her I will be focusing on the following two representations of her as seen in Esquival’s novel, “Malinche” and Jose Limon’s ballet, “La Malinche.” Let’s begin by examining Laura Esquival’s interpretation in “La Malinche.” Written in 2006, I believe this novel characterizes Malinalli as a strong woman. Furthermore, as an ambassador and a genius. She is a woman struggling between the remnants of her native Aztec civilization and the culture of the invading Spaniards.
Through these trials and tribulations, her character grows from the naïve slave girl to the mother of a new civilization. She didn’t begin as a strong woman. In the novel, Mallinali is constantly suppressing her of doubts Cortes nefarious nature, hoping that her intuition was incorrect until one faithful night, she confronts him upon realization that this vileness will never cease. It is this confrontation that facilitates her transformation into a strong woman.
There were strict gender roles in this time period. Particularly for women who were expected to be submissive to men regardless of their objections. Following these roles, Mallinali was supposed to accept the nature of Cortes and support his wishes indefinitely. Instead, we see that she broke her gender roles to combat the vile nature of her lover, presenting him with an ultimatum; stop his depravity or lose her adoration. Here she is finally taking control of her life and destiny. She is being proactive in seeking relief for her internal struggles through confrontation of them over her previous reactive sentiments of repressing and denying her turmoil. This is the nature of a strong woman; being dominant rather than being submissive.
This isn’t an isolated occurrence, Esquival’s Malinalli continues to develop into the paragon of a strong woman through the rest of the novel. Looking at the next two major instances of her vigor, it is clear that she is continuing to fight the expectations of her predisposition role. A woman much less a slave, would never be expected to go against the orders of her master. Yet, she did; flexing her metaphorical muscles to show Cortes that she wasn’t going to simply obey his commands. As stated earlier, a woman of her time would have been expected to obey without question. Demanding her freedom from her bonds and she takes the liberty to break the shackles; she continues to exemplify the qualities of a strong woman. The next instance is what truly transforms her from showing the qualities of to being a strong woman.
She confronts the demons of her youth to become the mother to her son that she never had. A woman can have a strong and willful exterior but still be haunted by the traumas of their past. Malinalli does this when she does visit her son Maltin, after leaving him with a surrogate family. She knows the errors of her mother and musters the strength to not abandon her kin like she did to her. After a fierce display of emotion, she is able to communicate this to her son. Essentially, a strong woman is able to exert her dominance in the world around her and have control over her spiritual dominion. She was able to control her environment but not her fears until this point. In the actions, Malinalli becomes the strong woman that Esquival is portraying her to be.
I agree with Esquival’s interpretation of Malinalli. This concept of Malinche as a strong woman is further reinforced and built upon in Cordelia Candelaria’s essay “La Malinche, Feminist Prototype.” Rather than focusing on the novelization of Malinalli’s character, Candelaria views her in the scope of the accepted gender roles of women of the time period. Through this, she presents her as a precursor to the contemporary feminist.
Ignoring the novelization of her life, Malinalli was the sole emissary of the Aztec people to the Spaniards. Using her knowledge of native language variants, she coordinates battle plans and delivers messages to the entire spectrum of Aztec hierarchy. I personally see her as the Manuela Saenz to Cortes’s, Simon Bolivar. She takes a key role in the conquest and downfall of a civilization. The role of Malinalli during these events do make her a “feminist prototype.” She embodies the characteristics of a feminist such as intelligence, initiative, adaptability and leadership. These are the qualities of strong woman.
This concept of Malinalli, the strong woman is not solely seen in literature but in the performing arts as well; particularly in Jose Limon’s ballet, “La Malinche.” This ballet reflects Malinalli’s transformation from bowing, suppressed slave to independent vindicator in an ocular fashion. The character arc presented through the performance, an observer sees a woman breaking her chains of male tyranny to cast out her tyrant and vanquish him in vivid fashion. In simple dance and props, this transformation clearly depicts her as a strong woman. Whereas people who would have lesser will and capacity would have broken or become comfortable in their chains, she doesn’t. In this feeling, she rips the power from Cortez; taking control of her destiny and planting the seed of a new civilization. If that doesn’t indiciate how much a strong woman she is, I am not sure what will. Overall, the historical figure of “La Malinche” is as significant or more than that of her male companion Hernan Cortes. While the scarcity of her history has left an absence of the depth of her character, her effect on Latin American history can’t be ignored. She is the quintessential strong woman whether she was a traitor to her people or the catalyst of a new era.
Regardless of her portrayals and interpretations, she excelled in the role typically reserved for men. Showing initiative through her discovery of betrayal, intelligence in gathering opposing forces, adaptability in learning languages, or leadership in aiding Cortes with battle plans, she inadvertently placed herself in the high ranks of men throughout the fall of the Aztec Empire. Thus opening the doorway for women to escape the shells of misogyny and oppression to become productive, equal members of society. For that, she will always have power and might in my eyes; she will always be the Latin American strong woman

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[ 1 ]. More on the former than the latter depiction.
[ 2 ]. According to St. Augustine, “The woman is subject to man on account of the weakness of her nature."
[ 3 ]. During Cortes visit to demand her loyalty and her visit to see Malzin, respectively.
[ 4 ]. Manuela Sáenz (1797-1856) was an Ecuadorian noblewoman who was the confidante and lover of Simón Bolívar before and during the South American wars of Independence from Spain. In September, 1828, she saved Bolívar's life when political rivals tried to assassinate him in Bogotá: this earned her the title "the Liberator of the Liberator." She is still considered a national hero in her native city of Quito, Ecuador.
[ 5 ]. I am avoiding labeling her a feminist due her not explicitly being an advocate for women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.