DISCLAIMER:This isn't an analysis. It is merely my thoughts and feelings on the
book, please be guided before any criticism. THANK YOU.
When I first started reading women at point zero I was somewhat excited or eager to find
out how the story would play out. It probably is the first african book i have read and the
first time i heard of the name Nawal el Saadawi. That is not to say that I wasn’t familiar
with African works, I was but not so much. I was familiar with the way African authors
or writers would describe crucial important scenes, how they would introduce their
characters needed for the plot to progress. It was simply different from the western
authors or the western authors I have read. Though eager at the beginning, my eagerness
soon dissipated into self doubt. Like always, I questioned my ability to read the book and
grasp at least half of the morale, the lesson, the reason why the book existed. What
secrets of life was the book going to reveal to me? Most people would say if you read a
book you need not grasp its full meaning in an instant or immediately after you have bid
farewell to its last page, after all isn't that why we had literature - to not only be able to
critique but see from the author's eyes and mind. But from the praise the book had
received before handed over to me I had to try to move on even if Nawal's description of
specific events were too vivid for me to imagine. Even if the secrets, secrets which
weren’t so much as secrets to me proved too raw for my liking. I plunged into the eyes of
a woman, a woman who like any other under this sun strived to pave a way for her
existence. It didn’t really mean making some big name for yourself , just being able to
live in some freedom was fine.
Firdaus is a woman who at a young age was exposed to the elements of sex or rather put
was “trained to be a prostitute” though not literally. To me when reading such a book it is
essential that you know the era in which the story is set- a step to seeing through the eyes
of the author if you knew the era you could see what they all see, maybe even feel what
they felt. This came as a struggle to me. It wasn’t that I couldn’t identify the era or pick
an era which resembled the one in the story, it was that I wasn’t sure if I had the right
era- I set the era to be in the mid years before the early years of modernization in Africa.
Was I right? Well I was close enough seeing as it actually took place in 1970. While
reading I was oblivious to the story being a real story, a woman’s life. Not to belittle any
of the events but they simply happened averagely to every woman back then, maybe the
reason why I struggled with the book earlier was primarily because it was a woman's life
detailed and raw to be witnessed. The book wasn't just based on assumptions of the era or
little information and tales. It was almost like an autobiography and I felt I should
experience some emotion; sympathy, pity or even sadness but I could not and even so I
doubt Firdaus would do likely with those emotions anyway. But I do feel sharper, my
eyes see clearer. My mind understands more than it should. I share the same hatred and
anger Firdaus does towards “them.” Their existence disgusts me, their talk of patriotism
never fails to amaze me, I too have hated the very one who thorough him I was born.
However like Firdaus I’ve come to love him and reminisce about the good memories
embedded deep into my soul. The thing is no matter how big the scar one can create on
you, your relationship with them determines how you react to the scar, how you treat the
scar. Are you scornful throughout? Wondering why you would even bear a relationship
with someone like that. Or do you accept the scar and move past the trauma?
Nawals use of imagery and repetition and above all the dialect is impeccable, though it
was a struggle reading I have to commend. Funny enough though I missed her use of
repetition and only realized towards the end of the story. To me the repetition powers
everything else it emphasizes immensely on the emotions of Firdaus and the mark certain
events left on her. Her encounter with miss Iqbal replicates itself when she meets
Ibrahim, i noticed also for two specific events that were repeated though the characters
were new and different from the previous scenes there were some similarities in their
names., i.e Iqbal and Ibrahim then Fatheya and Wafeya. Even the characters' roles dont
change; it's almost as though they have just been reintroduced. The repetition of this
event to me draws more light on the topic of love. Firdaus in school looks to have fallen
in love with her teacher as suspected by her friend Wafeya. ¨Have you fallen in love with
Ms Iqbal¨ Her engagement with Ms Iqbal has impacted her so much that the sudden
distance from Ms Iqbal causes her to wonder if she has ¨forgotten¨. This primarily goes to
show how devoid of love Firdaus is. Throughout the story her character doesn't seem to
receive any sought of love and when she does it ends in pain for her. To feel such a
connection or to feel such an array of emotions for Ms Iqbal points at the lack of
motherly love in Firdaus' life. Though aware she had a mother she has little memory of
her and only remembers one thing a constant factor in this book: her eyes. These same
eyes look to be the ones Ms Iqbal bears: they gleam, pure white signify purity unlike the
other eyes she sees throughout her life- they seem to hold no judgment only pure love,
they embrace her, and empower her, almost assuring her of some goodness in the tainted
life she lives. Her encounter with Ms Iqbal is one of the significant events of the story to
me as we see the characters embrace their emotions through one another, they connect
emotionally without having to speak at all, it's a pure moment that Firdaus would never
forget. I do admire a woman who strives, fights who bounces back, but Firdaus she´s
special.
Throughout this book the main aim of Fridaus is to seemingly climb up the patriarchy
ladder, to reach the top, in my opinion she does long before she was arrested, but like
every woman who has succeeded in daring and reaching such a mark she meets chaos.
The thing is I think some things are just meant to be, I am a feminist proud and strong but
this isn't the first time, I could just be naive, and negligent basing such a statement on a
minute piece of evidence or I could be on to something. For literature, we studied a
prose- The tower by Marghanita Lanski, the main aim of the two protagonist is the same,
in the tower Caroline (protagonist) makes a journey towards a tower, along the way there
is the usual hurdles, but different i.e broken steps, incredibly dangerous steps and the
emotional turmoil of having to face the activity. She reaches the top. Then the chaos
commends, upon descending, she’s even more distressed than before, she misses her
steps, and it seems even longer to reach the end that it was to reach the top, but obviously
there is something much more prominent than her being emotionally unstable. She
doesn't gain anything, I mean one would at least have some form of pride, joy, something
to show appreciation for the ‘achievement’, instead she is left to worry about how she
would make her journey down, alone. What should have been joy is replaced with fear
and angst. Same thing occurs for Firdaus, all she is taught to serve men , not her husbandmen. She's been taught that she is beyond a man which is why when she married for
example she succumbed to her husband Sheikh´ greedy nature- constantly staring at her
place as she eats despite having a full plate of food, in fact twice as much food as Firdaus
has. Despite him having the whole meal and her barely indulging in the little remains of
the meal.
I often wonder why women are treated the way they are, why they are always the
subordinates. Sure woman was made from man, a woman was behind her husband but
why have people mistaken this an opportunity to disrespect women. Why do people
equate women to weakness? Why did women have to be the people to make
indescribable sacrifices? Why did they need to be the ones to carry all the pain in a
situation? For example: the continuous sacrifices she has to make because of the men i.e.
underfeeding herself when she gets married. The fact that as a prostitute she can't even
do her own work but is rather forced to enlist the aid of a pimp, who will do nothing but
try to suppress her. There is continuous suppression from males. There is a distinct bias
in what is regarded as respect in society. Women are thought to serve men, be submissive
to men, to please men and this is exactly what Firdaus and Sharifa do. Even if it isn't in
the traditional way they nonetheless give the men the satisfaction they so desperately
need, however they aren't respected. One would think they would at least they would
regard to some extent but they do not. They see them as prostitutes, women who sell their
body for men, shameful women with completely no moral values but how is this so- how
is this possible. Their work, their ́profession´ wouldn't exist if those needs were not
exposed. The only reason Sharifa and Firdaus make a living and thrive of prostitution is
because they have customers, they have people willing to spend their money on such a
cause, yet they criticize the ones who give them what they carve and desire. It is awfully
clear in the book that prostitution is not a job Firdaus enjoys, apart from the money, the
luxury, the ability to live according to her own terms there really is nothing appealing
about the job. It is monotonous, and only benefits one part even though it is a two party
job, she constantly has to bear the ¨weight¨ on her body, the weight which ironically has
been pushed on her since her birth only now it is physical. Even Di’aa, her close
friend(and customer) who has seen and been with her long enough is unable to respect in
fact he is the one who makes the revelation to Firadaus. He is the one who tells her that
regardless of how successful she is she will never earn the respect she thinks she has.
Maybe I'm being biased, and they do expect her but that respect is diminished due to her
work. If that's the case why do they keep going to Firadaus why do they seek that
satisfaction from people whom they should not. If women deny them attention we
become difficult, strong headed and disrespectful and when we succumb to their
propositions we become cheap, and easy with no values. Can a woman ever really be
enough in society?
They were men of ´high values´ begging Firadaus, men who were in charge of the
wellbeing of their country. Here they were neglecting those just for their selfish needs,
stooping so low as to arrest Firdaus because she simply said NO. Because she simply
didn't share the same interest as those men. I find it sad that it is these same men who are
deemed capable of taking care of nations, of other people, yet somehow the women who
cater for their needs are deemed as unworthy. Take Ibrahim for example, why exactly did
he not marry Firdaus, I witnessed a spark, there was love from both parties not he doesn't
marry but marries a rich man's daughter. He marries somehow of a higher status because
he doesn't see Firdaus as worthy and even though he sees her again it is not out of love
but merely lust, he needs her services to ease himself. Firdaus has been betrayed,
disrespected, alone, abandoned and forsaken by them all, but she continues to walk with
her head held high. She looks them in the eyes when talking, she shows them she is
neither afraid nor intimidated but them or their status. She equalizes herself when she is
able to work on her own terms, decide for herself, and put her needs first. To me she
becomes eternally free when she finally hits back at Marzouk, it was the final freedom,
the final step for her. It was final, ironically this is when her story seems to end. When
she finally strikes back she is taken away but she is content, she is happy and even desires
her death quickly, she has satisfied herself and other women, she has broken away from
the shackles which have slowly embedded themselves into the ways of society. When she
kills Marzouk it is as though she is killing all of them she is ending all their lives, she is
showing just how useless the power which they so desperately wish to expand is. She is
showing that power is useless if it is abused and used wrongly. Firdaus should have
striked back long ago, but the timing all gives it a dramatic climax- finality. I´ve always
known not all criminals are guilty not just on the basis that some are wrongly accused,but
because some do it out of helplessness or better put- self defense, which is why i desire to
practice criminal law- such cases occur everyday, every hour, every minute, but we are
blinded by societal rules and are quick to judge picking the sides we find best. Rules
which were put in place by society itself are constantly bent and evaded to please
whomever seems fit.