Doña Marina and India Catalina: Parallel lives with Hernán Cortés and Pedro de Heredia. A multimedia reading from the contents of two historical fiction series

Abstract

Comparative study of two historical and legendary Indian women: Doña Marina (Malinche), who accompanied Hernán Cortés in the colonization of Mexico, and Catalina, partner of Pedro de Heredia, founder of the city of Cartagena de Indias. Both have generated numerous documents in all media: text, audio, iconography, literature, video, etc. This article presents some of these contents, and dwells on the great parallelism of their lives. In the framework of what we understand as critical reading, this discussion offers many possibilities for the exploration of the characters’ personal and historical contexts, as well as a research learning tool for university students. The basis for reflection is provided by two television series of historical fiction.