Scandal At The Church Of 1872 New Spain

Injustice in 18th Century Mexico In the inconclusive court case on the “Scandal at the Church” of 1872 New Spain (Mexico), José de Alfaro fights in court to save his wife, Josefa Cadena, his unborn child, and his family’s honour by taking her attacker doña Theresa Bravo, her daughter, her sister, her woman deposited (her ward) and her husband to trial for their wrong doings. It was after mass at church that Mrs. Cadena brushed up against Mrs. Bravo; resulting in a violent outburst from the high class lady and her family. The six month pregnant Mrs. Cadena was brutally beaten. With the possibility of losing both his wife and child due to bleeding, Mr. de Alfaro seeks justice from those who harmed his family. Mr. de Alfaro brings his wife’s

Infidelity was punishable with death; according to one source “even suspicion merited death”. In the court case, the witness Don Manuel Delfin admits to hearing Mrs. Bravo calling Mrs. Cadena a “whore”. This is not only a disgraceful word to her honour, but also implies that Mrs. Cadena can be seen as a threat. As a proud woman of high class, any threat to Mrs. Bravo’s husband is a threat to her as well. This (in some ways) merits her violent reaction as it spurs from overwhelming jealousy. When Mrs. Cadena brushed up against Mrs. Bravo, it could have been interpreted as a challenge. This would explain why Mrs. Bravo went for Mrs. Cadena’s face. During the eighteenth century in Mexico, any markings created on person’s face by another were viewed as a sign of revenge. Though there are no indications that either woman had met before, one can only speculate on whether or not they had some form of relationship (no matter how distant) prior to the incident. The symbolic scratching of the face further suggests that Mrs. Bravo felt threatened by Mrs. Cadena – despite her showing obvious signs of pregnancy. The insecurity spouses had about each other caused many problems, though jealousy itself was seen as a perfectly normal by-product of marriage regardless of how extreme it was. As infidelity was punishable by death, and Mrs. Bravo displayed signs of jealousy, the accusation that Mrs. Cadena

Though the court case of the “Scandal at the Church” has no documented resolution, historical fact and conjecture leads to the belief that Mr. de Alfaro would not only lose the case, but family as well. From class and honour, to gender norms, race and maritally acceptable jealousy, there is nothing to support Mr. de Alfaro’s plea to convict this wife’s attackers. Knowing that Mr. Bravo had several other pending court cases and no prior convictions further suggests that the Bravo family was virtually untouchable, while Mr. de Alfaro’s family was simply expendable. Though 18th century Mexico was an extreme time, elements of such places have remained though the years as illustrated by prejudices and discrimination in the modern day world, leading to – similar to the court case – many injustices going unpunished due to vastly similar factors. With class and race are subtle factors in the modern day court system, the system does not seem to be on a path of change, though things have bettered over the years. Had this case occurred during the 21st century, Mr. de Alfaro may have had a better chance of receiving the justice he and his family