Post #2: Luciana vs Juan de la Cruz vs Cristina vs Victor Manuel

Hey guys! I have decided to talk a little today about how El Privilegio de Amar has so far fulfilled the Cenicienta style. It's something I noticed a little early on and really clicked when we talked about it in class. I really want to talk about this in my essay at the end of the semester. First, a little background. Luciana was a maid working for the family of future priest Juan de la Cruz. Luciana was completely in love with Juan de la Cruz and he wanted to make sure he experienced all of life before devoting himself to God. The night before Juan de la Cruz left for the convent, he and Luciana spent the night together and Luciana ended up pregnant. Fired and thrown out of the house by Juan de la Cruz's mother, Luciana is forced to abandon her newborn daughter if they are to survive. Years later, Luciana still suffering from the loss of her first daughter, she brings her troubles into her marriage with her actor husband Andres and their children's lives, stepson and expert womanizer Victor Manuel and rebellious Lisebeth. Luciana buries herself in her work as a famous fashion director. The trouble begins when orphan Cristina, an aspiring actress, begins to work for Luciana and catches the eye of Victor Manuel. Long story short, there are a lot of affairs, secret loves, blackmails and love triangles.  In here there are two main Cenicientas, Luciana and Cristina. Luciana starts out as a maid, pure of heart and kind. She then vows to become a powerful woman who will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Here, there is a simple woman who looses her kind demeanor after she is "corrupted" by her night with Juan de la Cruz. Now, she is even more powerful and wealthy than her husband, a theme very present at all times. On the other hand, Cristina (who is very obviously Luciana's lost daughter) is defined by her life as an orphan because, although she was happy, she longs to know why she was abandoned by her family. She worked various jobs and is now an aspiring model for Luciana's company. She shares her apartment with a couple other girls (who have their own roles in the drama) and her strong demeanor catches Victor Manuel, of course the eldest in a very wealthy family. There are a lot of parallels between Cristina and young Luciana. They are both complemented by their natural beauty and "pure" eyes. Both characters navigate through the plot solely on how the characters around them act. They're not defenseless women, if they were they would not have made it this far, but they are often described on basis of their looks and less often, their stubbornness.  So far, I think they've done a really good job of taking those well known character traits and giving them new depth especially since they show the after in the Cenicienta transformation. Luciana is seen struggling in her role of powerful woman. There is a complex discussion of sexism, especially when Andres starts to fall from grace and Luciana continues to grow in fame and wealth. Andres often expresses his unhappiness, saying that it's due to Luciana's workaholic nature but when they argue, his true feelings emerge. When Luciana talks to Lisebeth, she often hints at the disadvantages and extra obstacles women face in their careers. This is something that I, at least, have never seen. The idea that Cinderella would have too much fame, more than her husband, plays out in a very interesting way. I think this specifically is what I'm going to keep focusing on. I like the subtle discussion about inequality in the workplace and how it transfers to society. So far I've focused on Luciana but I'd like to focus more on Andres and Cristina. From Andres' perspective,  there is the conversation about rivalry between spouses and on the other hand, Cristina is a Cenicienta but the twist is that she has a mother role model in Luciana. I think this is all very key in the development of the plot.
Until next time!
Pamela