Women Making Space in Chile 1800-1900: Santiago and the popular poet, Rosa Araneda

This article analyses the verses of the popular poet, Rosa Araneda, between 1860 and 1900 to trace her urban experience as a working woman at the end of the XiX century and to expand the sources used to write the urban and architectural history of the city of Santiago. This article responds to the call of Chilean sociologist Julieta Kirkwood to make visible the experiences of all women who fought to have a space in the public sphere in order to inspire other women. While Kirkwood defines the 1900 as the start of feminism in Chile –connecting it directly to the creation of women-led centres– this article proposes that the cultural practices and texts by women during the 1800s “made space” for the political and urban participation of women in Chile. Through the analysis of 90 prints with poems written by Araneda, this text explores how the poet created a space for a woman’s voice within the printed media, sharing her perspective of the city of Santiago and becoming part of the construction of the capital of the new Chilean republic.