Aurora Rodríguez Cabaliera is a controversial historical figure whose life and the tragic death of her daughter Hildegarde have inspired countless works of literature and film. Aurora's story not only reflects her personal beliefs and utopianism, but also reveals the tragedy and forgetfulness of her time in the asylum.
Aurora's Early LifeHer story is seen as a challenge to the boundaries between science and humanity, showing the distortions and extremes of maternal love.
Aurora was born in Ferro, Spain in 1879 and grew up in an upper-class family. From an early age, she showed reformist and eugenicist tendencies. Her daughter Hildegard is seen by Aurora as a product of scientific experiment, and she is expected to become a model for future women. Aurora's understanding of women's rights and her pursuit of the perfect woman made the relationship between the two extremely distorted.
Aurora was arrested for her daughter's murder in 1933 and subsequently committed to the Ciampozuelos Mental Hospital in Spain. Being in a mental hospital, she, due to her distorted beliefs, is more controlling of her daughter and suspicious of the outside world. Her life is not only one of physical confinement, but also of spiritual doubt and anxiety.
Her medical records are filled with hallucinations and delusions, and surprisingly she has never expressed remorse for her crimes.
Aurora, in a mental hospital, faces a single life pattern day after day. The long period of isolation made her mind more paranoid, but also made her more obsessed with self-defense and artistic creation. The closed environment and the students playing music aroused countless associations and thoughts in her heart. Aurora often wrote in her diary about her desire for freedom and her deep reflection on her past relationship with Hildegard.
Aurora's life and murder have attracted great attention in the literary and film circles, and many works have been adapted from her story, allowing this tragedy to continue to be explored in different forms. Hildegard's name became an integral part of the feminist movement, and Aurora was seen as a symbol of the distortion of maternal love.
Blood Aurora is one of the most famous works, exploring Aurora's life and her complex relationship with her daughter.
Even though Aurora died in a mental hospital in 1955, her story was never truly forgotten. As time goes by, there are still differences in evaluation and interpretation of her. Many saw her actions as a defense of her ideals, while others criticized her for being irrational and cruel. It wasn't until 1977 that her medical records were discovered and public concern for her was reignited.
Aurora's life in a mental hospital shows the tragic consequences of deprivation of freedom. Her story is not only about a mother, but also a microcosm of an era.
Aurora's story makes us think, between the pursuit of ideals and the control of personal freedom, which one is more important?