Disenchantments of Love 4-6

In the introduction the narrator claims that if women didn't focus so much on beauty and appearance, but instead of education that they would excel men. Women are known to be looked down upon when compared to men because the truth of the matter is that men are actually nervous about how much greater women are in reality. Men take pride in knowing that they have more power over women, but its no secret that women could out beat them any day, if given the chance. Instead of women being able to pursue in learning or engage in activities that only men usually perform, they are forced to only partake in motherhood and chores. Just like Filis states, "Because of men's fears, women are put down and obliged to do only household tasks" (p 140). I think its both unnecessary and downgrading for women to not be able to pursue their own dreams just because men don't want to humiliated or overruled. If women had more say, then they would not be mistreated or disenchanted, which is the factor of the stories. Instead, it would be the men who would learn the hard way and "get wounded by their own sword."
The skull in story 4 clearly resembles the love and affection Elana had for the cousin. She may not have been in love with him, but she was close to him and they shared a tight bond. He was killed for no reason except out of jealousy, and the skull was given to Elana to torture her. It is obvious the skull did not scare her or haunt her in any way because she drank out of it on a daily basis. I would say that is unusual, but at the same time I believe she did this to show both her and the cousin were innocent and his death should be repayed out of loyalty. The cousin was known to be a traitor and had lies made up about him, but in reality he was as honest as he could be and was not harmful. If anything, he was going to tell don Jaime about the Negress and her obsession, so that shows he was both caring and watchful for his "friend." His head was in a good place, but this was not well known until the end, when by then it was, too late.
I feel bad for Dona Ines because she was portrayed to be a deceitful woman even though everyone learned of the truth, and knew she was innocent. She did not willingly partake in the affair, but instead she was under a cruel spell. She was seen as a monster and not the loyal woman she really was. She was torn apart by the three closest people in her life, including her own husband and brother, and she did nothing wrong. She was outcasted and treated unfairly for years. Dona Ines didn't know the circumstances about the dress and the other woman who portrayed her, but when she found out she immediately came forth with the truth that wasn't her. Then after the spell took place she was humiliated again and instead of being secured, she was tormented and locked away. If she was of no wrong, then why would the husband, brother, and sister-in-law be out to get her, the innocent, and not the guilty?