Foreign Travelers’ Accounts and Fanny Calderón de la Barca’s Life in Mexico

Abstract

Abstract Foreign travelers arrived in large numbers in Mexico, especially after Mexican War of Independence, to see the country and access its commercial potential. Each of them talked about the Valley of Mexico, its richness and human diversity. The way these travelers wrote about their “gazes” over this valley—in particular Fanny Calderón de la Barca—is key to understanding the politics of their trips. After their initial viewing, foreign travelers described the Mexican social and political situation as ripe for exploitation and improvement. The chapter presents anecdotes and accounts of foreign travelers in Mexico during the nineteenth century. It primarily focuses on Fanny Calderón de la Barca and her work, Life in Mexico: Residence of Two Years in That Country. Calderón de la Barca’s work is relevant because she was the wife of the first Spanish minister of independent Mexico and had the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the country. Moreover, the work is considered to be a crucial text in terms of history, politics, and literature, despite her tendency to disseminate gender stereotypes and racist and classist assumptions. The work of Fanny Calderón de la Barca, and her gaze as it falls upon the Valley of Mexico, reflect the politics of mid-19th-century Mexico.