Fighting Patriarchy in Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi

Abstract

This study is aimed to discover why the main character of Woman at Point Zero choose to be a prostitute to fight against patriarchy and how the society, especially men, respond to her opposition. Patriarchy shows men's power to keep women in a secondary status. Patriarchy is divided into two categories: private patriarchy which is related to the rule of husband and father in the family and public patriarchy which occurs outside the family in Firdaus' life. This research found how both private and public patriarchy made Firdaus an object instead of a human being and how her suffering ultimately led her to choose prostitution as her means of fighting against male dominance. Her struggle for taking control over men carries her to death, because the patriarchal society considered her a dangerous figure who can inspire other women to resist men's authority.