On March 5, 1694, Sor Juana signed her act of repentance in the convent’s Book of Vows.
On March 5, 1694, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz capitulated to mounting ecclesiastical pressures by writing an act of repentance in the convent's Book of Vows. In a dramatic gesture, she wrote this declaration in her own blood, renouncing her pursuit of secular knowledge and intellectual independence, as demanded by the Church hierarchy. This act symbolizes the intense conflict she experienced due to institutional constraints on women's roles within the Catholic Church. While it marked a personal concession, it also underscored the broader societal control exerted over women's intellectual capacities during the 17th century.