In and out of the history: the soldaderas of the Mexican Revolution

Although the iconography of the Mexican Revolution witnesses the active presence of women (generally defined soldaderas), historiography has long ignored their role and functions and even today there are not many studies dedicated to them. On the contrary, the literature has reported their existence since Los de abajo (1915) by Mariano Azuela up to the works of Elena Poniatowska, author of a classic text of testimonial literature (Hasta no verte Jesus mio, 1969), as well as editor of two collections of images (Las soldaderas, 1997 and La Adelita, 2006, in collaboration with Fernando Robles). The essay aims to analyze the importance of the participation of the soldaderas in the Mexican Revolution through the modes of representation that can be identified in the fiction on the subject, with incursions in painting, photography, cinema and theater.