In my thesis, I argue that the 1 ih -century Spanish writer, Maria de Zayas y
Sotomayor, in a unique form of 'mimesis,' uses elements of magic to transform the
popular concept of the Spanish witch. Drawing on theories from Jacques Lacan's
mirror phase, Homi Bhabha and Barbara Fuchs's notion of mimesis, and Judith
Butler's idea of gender performitivity, I demonstrate how Zayas frees the witch from
the subjugated language constructed by the Catholic Church and society of her time.
I examine six of the short stories in her two novels to show how the author alters the
role of the witch associated with the devil, transforming her to a saint associated with
"lo magico de los cielos, " assigning the diabolical role to the man.