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Woman at Point Zero
Woman at Point Zero
Description:
Nawal El Saadawis highly acclaimed feminist novel, Woman at Point Zero, follows the life of
Firdaus, an Egyptian peasant girl, from her childhood of incomprehensible cruelty and neglect to
her end in a grimy Cairo prison cell.
From her earliest memories, Firdaus suffered at the hands of menfirst her abusive father, then
her violent, much older husband, to finally her deceitful boyfriend-turned-pimp. After a lifetime of
abuse, she at last takes drastic action against the males ruling her life.
Still as beautiful and cutting as it was when it was first published, this new edition will continue to
resonate powerfully with readers for years to come.
About Author:
Nawal El Saadawi (Arabic: ) was born in 1931, in a small village outside Cairo. Unusually, she and
her brothers and sisters were educated together, and she graduated from the University of Cairo
Medical School in 1955, specializing in psychiatry. For two years, she practiced as a medical
doctor, both at the university and in her native Tahla.
From 1963 until 1972, Saadawi worked as Director General for Public Health Education for the
Egyptian government. During this time, she also studied at Columbia University in New York,
where she received her Master of Public Health degree in 1966. Her first novel Memoirs of a
Woman Doctor was published in Cairo in 1958. In 1972, however, she lost her job in the Egyptian
government as a result of political pressure. The magazine, Health, which she had founded and
edited for more than three years, was closed down.
From 1973 to 1978 Saadawi worked at the High Institute of Literature and Science. It was at this
time that she began to write, in works of fiction and non-fiction, the books on the oppression of
Arab women for which she has become famous. Her most famous novel, Woman at Point Zero
was published in Beirut in 1973. It was followed in 1976 by God Dies by the Nile and in 1977 by
The Hidden Face of Eve: Women in the Arab World.
In 1981 Nawal El Saadawi publicly criticized the one-party rule of President Anwar Sadat, and was
subsequently arrested and imprisoned. She was released one month after his assassination. In
1982, she established the Arab Women's Solidarity Association, which was outlawed in 1991.
When, in 1988, her name appeared on a fundamentalist death list, she and her second husband,
Sherif Hetata, fled to the USA, where she taught at Duke University and Washington State
University. She returned to Egypt in 1996.
In 2004 she presented herself as a candidate for the presidential elections in Egypt, with a
platform of human rights, democracy and greater freedom for women. In July 2005, however, she
was forced to withdraw her candidacy in the face of ongoing government persecution.
Nawal El Saadawi has achieved widespread international recognition for her work. She holds
honorary doctorates from the universities of York, Illinois at Chicago, St Andrews and Tromso. Her
many prizes and awards include the Great Minds of the Twentieth Century Prize, awarded by the
American Biographical Institute in 2003, the North-South Prize from the Council of Europe and the
Premi Internacional Catalunya in 2004. Her books have been translated into over 28 languages
worldwide. They are taught in universities across the world.
She now works as a writer, psychiatrist and activist. Her most recent novel, entitled Al Riwaya was
published in Cairo in 2004.
Other Editions:
Books By Author:
-
- Memoirs from the Women's Prison
- The Veil and the Male Elite: A Feminist Interpretation of Women's Rights in
Islam
- Chaka
- The Deadbeats
- American Knees
- Petals of Blood
- Song of Lawino & Song of Ocol
Rewiews:
Mariam
Perfect review for such a wonderful book! I loved the way Firdous connected prostitution to
freedom, whereas many people would find that to be a huge
Perfect review for such a wonderful book! I loved the way Firdous connected prostitution to
freedom, whereas many people would find that to be a huge paradox. Her existentialist attitude
was also extremely appropriate in relation to her increasing awareness of the reality of the
situation. She is definitely a character that will stick with me as well.
Rowena
Mariam wrote: "Perfect review for such a wonderful book! I loved the way Firdous connected
prostitution to freedom, whereas many people would find tha
Mariam wrote: "Perfect review for such a wonderful book! I loved the way Firdous connected
prostitution to freedom, whereas many people would find that to be a huge paradox. Her
existentialist attitude was also e..."
Thanks, Mariam! I so agree, it was such an interesting way of looking at it. I just love how Firdous
grew and took ownership of her own life, so powerful :)