The Lieutenant Nun: Transgenderism, Lesbian Desire, and Catalina de Erauso

by Sherry Velasco

Catalina de Erauso (1592-1650) was a Basque noblewoman who, just before taking final vows to become a nun, escaped from the convent at San Sebastián, dressed as a man, and, in her own words, "went hither and thither, embarked, went into port, took to roving, slew, wounded, embezzled, and roamed about." Her long service fighting for the Spanish empire in Peru and Chile won her a soldier's pension and a papal dispensation to continue dressing in men's clothing. This theoretically informed study analyzes the many ways in which the "Lieutenant Nun" has been constructed, interpreted, marketed, and consumed by both the dominant and divergent cultures in Europe, Latin America, and the United States from the seventeenth century to the present. Sherry Velasco argues that the ways in which literary, theatrical, iconographic, and cinematic productions have transformed Erauso's life experience into a public spectacle show how transgender narratives expose and manipulate spectators' fears and desires. Her book thus reveals what happens when the private experience of a transgenderist is shifted to the public sphere and thereby marketed as a hybrid spectacle for the curious gaze of the general audience.

Genres: History, LGBT, Nonfiction, Research, Queer

248 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Professor of Spanish and Portuguese and Gender Studies at the USC Dornsife college of letters, art and sciences.

Reviews

[Ruthie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely essential reading in trans studies.

[Tabi · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Catalina de Erauso (1592-1650) was a Basque noblewoman who, just before taking final vows to become a nun, escaped from the convent at San Sebastián, dresses as a man, and, in her own words, ‘went hither and thither, embarked, went into port, took a roving, slew, wounded, embezzled, and roamed about.’”
It was fascinating to read their swashbuckling life story, and equally interesting to read about the compiled works based on Erauso’s life, and how they addressed (or didn’t) the trans* and/or lesbian parts of her nature. The study also spoke a bit on the larger historical context of Erauso in queer history and Spanish history. As always, I highly recommend anyone to read about queer history. So much of what is learned through schooling is cishet and white. We must take it upon ourselves to learn where we come from, and it benefits everyone to learn about anyone from a different walk of life.