Mary, Mother and Warrior: The Virgin in Spain and the Americas

by Linda B. Hall

Book Overview

A Mother who nurtures, empathizes, and heals... a Warrior who defends, empowers, and resists oppression... the Virgin Mary plays many roles for the peoples of Spain and Spanish-speaking America. Devotion to the Virgin inspired and sustained medieval and Renaissance Spaniards as they liberated Spain from the Moors and set about the conquest of the New World. Devotion to the Virgin still inspires and sustains millions of believers today throughout...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0292705956
• ISBN13: 9780292705951
• Release Date: November 2004
• Publisher: University of Texas Press
• Length: 382 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.1" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Re-presentation at its best

Another great book by Dr. Hall. She describes the many "re-presentations" of Mary as a mother, a healer, a warrior, and a protector in Spain, Latin America, and the US from the conquest to the present. During the conquest and colonization of the New World, she describes how Marian devotion synchronized with indigenous beliefs and rituals. While I have read about these ideas in other books, I think the book really comes into its own when she looks at national cults of the Virgin in Mexico, Bolivia, and Argentina, which were tied to independence movements. Her chapter on how Eva Perón linked herself with Mary is by far her most interesting examination in the book. And of course, Dr. Hall drives her point home by discussing the Virgin in the borderlands by discussing examples of her devotion and symbolism in New Mexico and Texas.