The Novel Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi

The novel Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi and the article “With Tasers and placards, the women of Egypt are fighting back against sexism” by Laurie Penny can be connected both internally in regards to the text and outwardly to the time and place surrounding the novel and article. Although Woman at Point Zero provides a fictional journey, one that is at heart and by inspiration very genuine, the ideas incorporated into this novel are just as authentic as those provided by the first hand account given by Laurie Penny. Woman at Point Zero follows the story of one woman, Firdaus, who is forcibly raped on numerous occasions. Firdaus later finds security by means of prostitution, which leads her to be targeted on a more authoritative scale. Ultimately Firdaus finds strength to retaliate against the men who have harmed her, as can be seen when she defends herself, killing her pimp. Penny documented her experience at a women’s march in Egypt, after interviewing after obtaining views of the social injustices occurring in this region. The very similar infrastructure for these texts allows one to easily draw connections. Both article and novel can be connected through the familiar settings of the authors, the techniques used to convey the situation of Egypt, and the direct intentions that the authors held and ultimately saw into fruition.
The first essential means by which the writings can be connected is through the settings of both the authors and the writings presented. Some basic research of both Nawal El Saadawi and Laurie Penny will expose the underlying beliefs held by both authors, namely feminism, or essential human rights in general. The society and culture of both Britain and Egypt provide ample opportunity for one to conn...

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...hem, and share these ideas with people who are less familiar with them. The settings of both authors allowed them to easily produce a work expressing their experiences. The techniques that the authors used placed the reader directly in the situation of these women. The inventions that the authors had for their writing were met by showing the misogyny in Egypt and encouraging the revolution that was occurring. Through the authors’ setting, the techniques used throughout their writing, and the similar goals that they set in their journey, both authors were able to produce written work in which one could draw many connections.

Works Cited

El Saadawi, Nawal. Woman at Point Zero. London: Zed Books Ltd, 2007. Print.
Penny , Laurie. "With Tasers and Placards, the Women of Egypt are Fighting Back Against Sexism." New Statesman. 142.5145 (2013): n. page. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.