Mora

**Mora**, portrayed by Polyana López, is a main character of the First Story (season 3) of *Chiquititas*.

## History

### Backstory

Mora was adopted in Brazil, were she was born, by a German couple who moved to Argentina and abandoned her after they decided to move back to Europe.

### Season 3

#### Arrival at Rincón de Luz

Mora's first appearance at the show is in the ninth episode. After Sol complains to Belén that there are too many orphans at the manor and that she misses having all the attention to herself, Mora is left with just a letter at their door. The letter says they had 7 kids and couldn't keep them all, leaving the girl behind as they would know what do to with her.

Mora shares with the other kids that they her adoptive parents were blond and since she has dark skin she thought that she was ugly, implying that they thought that because of the color of her skin. Belén tells her that she's beautiful and precious. Caro says that she's not ugly, but she's not white also. Sol quickly befriends Mora, leaving Nadia a jealous behind and alone, who reacts negatively to Mora. Sol asks Mora to sleep in the bed besides her where Nadia usually sleeps, and Nadia pushed her during the night. Little by little the three girls start to play together.

Although Mora's skin color is constantly being mentioned and acknowledge in the show as a prejudice, with the girl being self-aware and afraid of rejection because people don't like a "negrita" or find her to be pretty because of her race, Belén reassures her that she's pretty and loved. For instance, When Facundo is cold one day, she shares her fear that he doesn't like her because of her skin color. Belén always reassures her of that not being the case.

Mora feels welcome and safe at the manor and with Belén and the orphans and dreams of living there permanently and attending school with the other girls. When Georgina is gifted with the Magic Mirror where they can see their wishes and dreams, Mora sees herself on her school uniform living at Rincón de Luz with the other kids. Mora's biggest wish is to belong.

#### Mora is taken by the court to return to Brazil

Meanwhile, Belén is waiting for an answer from the Court authorizing her to integrate Mora as a part of Rincón de Luz, but since the girls is Brazilian and the house is harboring too many orphans without the proper funds, Belén has a hard time obtaining the document authorizing her stay. Belén and Facundo go on a trip to the border of Brazil to fix Mora's documents. On Episode 23, during Georgina's birthday, that also happens to be a Halloween party at the manor chaperoned by Piojo and Tomy, a court agent comes to take Mora away in a heavy heartfelt scene ending the episode with Mora crying as she's taken away.

#### Belén takes Mora back to Rincón de Luz

When Belén and Facundo returns from their trip with the authorization, she finds from Saverio, Piojo and Sol that Mora was taken and she arrived too late. Belén rushes to the court but the girl is gone with an agent accompanying her on a bus trip to Brasil. Belén rushes to the bus station to look for the girl and the agent responsible for her. Belén and Facundo intercept the bus and they are able to get the girl back for good.

## Personality and Traits

Mora is extremely lovely and sweet. She's a quiet, kind and innocent and tries to get along with the other girls. Her biggest desire is to be accepted.

## Racial Issues

Even though the show makes an attempt do address racism and to be inclusive, its treatment in the 90's of Race is extremely problematic and insensitive in the way it is treated. It can unheartening and awkward to see this little girl being singled out. Belén could also recognize and address racism as a form of instruction, but many times the way the issue is addressed is clumsy and blunt.

## Trivia

* Polyana López leaves the show by the end of the third season to join the Brazilian version of Chiquititas as Poliana, being amongst the very few actors to be part of different versions and play different characters of Chiquititas (such as Felipe Colombo, who was part of the Mexican and Argentinian version of Chiquititas).
* Polyana López is extremely versatile in playing a sweet girl in the Argentinian version and a spoiled brat later in the Brazilian version.
* The actress Polyana López joined the group As Crianças Mais Amadas do Brasil and lived with Renata Del Bianco for a while when her parents had some financial problems. She now lives at Spain.

## Other versions

### Chiquititas Brasil

#### Nadia

Very much like Mora, Nadia is introduced in the third season of the show, abandoned in front of Rincón de Luz carrying only a letter from her. Different from Mora, who seems happy and not traumatized, Nadia is crying and afraid. The letter says that a german couple adopted Nadia in Manaus, where she was born, and loved to São Paulo were they lived for a while, and left her when they decided to move back to Europe. Nadia says that they use to fight all the time, and that the husband blamed the mother for not being able to have children. She says they never really loved her. She was brought to Rincón de Luz by Nathalia, the maid, who has 7 kids and can't keep the girl. Maria, much like Sol feels about Mora when she arrives, is jealous of Nadia.

Different from Mora, the Brazilian Nadia stays on the show for the fourth season, as her character storyline is a blend of the Argentinian Nadia (played by Nadia di Cello) and Mora (Polyana López).

## Reception and Commentaries

### Racial Issues and Sistemic Racism

When Mora arrives at Rincón de Luz, she shares that her german and blond adoptive parents thought she was ugly because she was dark. Caro comments that she's not ugly, but she's not white either. There is acknowledgment of racism and racial issues and Mora is portrayed sympathetically in an attempt to address racism as wrong, however there are many problems with the way her character is introduced in the story.

The show treats Argentina as a place absent of black people. There's an exoticism in addressing the racial issue as a foreign problem. Mora is from Brazil, and her character stays in the show for less than a whole season, with a dimensional storyline that treats her as a supporting character to other main characters, such as Sol and Nadia. She's part of Rincon de Luz, but absent from some of the music videos featuring the orphans. For example, she's part of the songs Rinconcito de Luz and Chiquititas, but doesn't sing parts of those songs like Jime, Mili, Georgina, Pato, Sol and Nadia.

We could argue that Nico and Lucia are not featured in a few of these music videos, but Nico and Lucia, besides being introduced later in the story, have important storylines with personal songs (Papa and Lu Lucita), and they both remain in the story for its fourth season. It's speculated that Mora left the Argentinian version to join the Brazilian cast as Poliana (a mix of Pilar and Santiago's personality), Chico's (Saverio's) niece and nephew who become orphans during the second season of the show, living in the manor for a while.