Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Woman at Point Zero, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Pervasive Sexism and Oppression
Prostitution and Transactional Relationships
Fear and Survival
Religious Hypocrisy
Summary
Analysis
Nawal El Saadawi, an Egyptian psychiatrist, states that what follows is the true story of Firdaus, a woman Saadawi meets in Qanatir Prison. Saadawi is there to research neurosis in female inmates; Firdaus has been convicted of murder and is scheduled to be hanged in a few days. Saadawi asks to meet Firdaus. She understands that Firdaus is much different from the other women—she refused to sign an appeal for her life that the prison doctor made on her behalf. The doctor tries to convince Firdaus to speak to Saadawi, but she refuses. She won’t speak to anyone
Saadawi’s claim that Firdaus’s story is true sets the novel within the bounds of creative nonfiction. While the story it is based on is true, Saadawi narrates from Firdaus’s point of view and includes such detailed accounts of some experiences that they must be creative liberties used to flesh out the story and arguments. Firdaus’s position as an inmate establishes her as a woman who exists in opposition to society.
Themes
Saadawi is disappointed. When she returns the next day to try to see Firdaus again, the female warder acts protective of Firdaus, and charges that “they” sent Saadawi, though Saadawi doesn’t know who “they” even are. She returns several days to try to see Firdaus, but each day the doctor or the warder tells her that Firdaus still refuses. In her rejection, Saadawi feels that Firdaus must be a great individual, and she feels small in comparison, like an “insignificant insect.” The rejection feels personal. She has trouble sleeping and feels like a failure. It reminds Saadawi of the feelings she felt when she loved a man who did not love her back. These feelings don’t suit a researcher.
The warder’s accusation suggests that she believes in some element of conspiracy, that some collective, external force wants to destroy Firdaus. Saadawi’s sense of anticipation and feelings of smallness suggest that she intuits that Firdaus will be one of the most significant people she ever meets in her life.
Themes
Saadawi gets in her car, prepared to leave the prison for good, when the warder runs up to her, shouting that Firdaus wants to see her. Saadawi feels “elated,” the way she did the first time she fell in love with a man. Saadawi’s thoughts run quickly until the moment she looks into Firdaus’s eyes. Her eyes are sharp, and Saadawi thinks, “I died the moment her eyes looked into mine.” Firdaus is steady, unmoving. She commands Saadawi to close the window blinds and sit on the floor. Saadawi does so. She thinks Firdaus’s eyes and voice are like something out of a powerful dream. But Firdaus is real. She is here.
Eyes function symbolically throughout the novel to reflect a person’s innermost character. However, Firdaus occasionally misreads people’s eyes, suggesting that they represent her perception of that person’s character more than their character in actuality. Firdaus’s conduct toward Saadawi is immediately authoritative, suggesting that she is powerful and self-assured.
Themes
