Rosario Castellanos (1925-1974) was a writer, poet, essayist, diplomat, and one of the most important literary voices in Mexican literature. Her 1950 essay, "Sobre cultura femenina" [On feminine culture] is considered a turning point for modern Mexican women writers and her works Balún Canán (The Nine Guardians), Oficio de tinieblas (The Book of Lamentations), and Ciudad Real (City of Kings) are classics in their portrayal of the injustices carried out against indigenous people. While Mexico's Ambassador to Israel, Castellanos died at the age of 49 in her hotel room in Tel Aviv when, switching on a lamp, she was electrocuted.