Till Impotence Do Us Part: Defining Sexual Normalcy in Seventeenth Century Mexico
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Authors
Vitella, Josephine
Date
2024-05-16
Type
thesis
Language
eng
Keyword
Sexuality , Mexico , New Spain , Impotence , Impotency , Impotence trials , Annulment , Honor
Alternative Title
Abstract
In 1699, Thomasa Josepha Garate y Francia filed a marriage annulment against her husband, Pedro Antonio Marroquin de Monte Hermoso before the Bishop of Puebla, Mexico. Thomasa claimed Pedro was impotent and that throughout their four-year marriage, he was never able to have sex with her and consummate the marriage properly. However, like any lawsuit involving the sacrament of marriage, the bishop overseeing the case needed to gather witness testimonies for the plaintiff and defendant. Over the course of the year-long case, both Pedro and Thomasa along with dozens of friends, family, community members of Puebla, doctors, and midwives shared details of the marriage, and in doing so, also shared ideas of what they believed to be normal conduct in the bedroom for men and women. “Till Impotence Do Us Part” explores ideas of ‘normal’ sexuality through abnormal circumstances. Pedro and Thomasa were a normal couple by colonial standards — wealthy, upper-class, and heterosexual. They did not engage in sex for pleasure or try to have sex in devious ways. And yet, despite their normal status, their sexuality was still abnormal. Using both the original annulment suit as well as the appeal Pedro filed upon losing the initial case, “Till Impotence Do Us Part” will consider individual, communal, and medical definitions of normal sexuality.
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ProQuest PhD and Master's Theses International Dissemination Agreement
Intellectual Property Guidelines at Queen's University
Copying and Preserving Your Thesis
This publication is made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner.
Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International