Woman at Point Zero

The Subjectiveness of Guilt and Innocence emerges as a major theme in the brief final chapter of Woman at Point Zero as Firdaus asserts her innocence and notes that men are the guilty ones, continually committing crimes against women, so women can’t possibly be criminals for fighting back. In addition, this chapter illustrates the aftereffects for Saadawi of meeting Firdaus and hearing her story of enslavement and resilience. Saadawi chose to write Firdaus’s story as a novella, avoiding the common drawing-out of facts and stories and including only as much as she was given. The author felt as if she was in a dream while listening to Firdaus, as if she had been transported elsewhere, because Firdaus showed courage unlike anyone else.