Woman at Point Zero

by Nawal El Saadawi
 Understanding Paper 2

➢ This is a comparative essay so students should always bear in mind that

explicit comparison and contrast of works are the key to paper 2.

➢ Students should use in-depth knowledge of the works they have studied
and show how the meaning is shaped by authorial choices.

➢ Successful essays will answer and remain focused on the question.

➢ Interpretations and conclusions need to be supported by detailed references

to the works

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➢ The focus of the discussion should be text-based rather than on broader
issues such as context or global issues.

➢ Teaching specific pre-established essay structures is unlikely to lead to

good results: focus should be on students structuring their essays in a way
meaningful to them instead.

➢ The identification of literary features for its own sake is inappropriate –

they should always be used to show how meaning is shaped.

➢ Students need to develop their written expression and personal voice.

➢ Students develop their written expression and personal voice.

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➢ Even though questions may not address the analysis of formal features specifically, an
exploration of how authors’ choices create meaning is a key feature of the paper, which is
evaluated in criterion B, “analysis and evaluation”

➢ Paper 2 is the same paper for both SL and HL, and for both literature and language and
literature, and it is assessed with the same set of assessment criteria.

➢ Beyond any kind of preparation, practise, research or memorization, reading and thinking
about the works is the most important work a student can do. Reading and responding will
create a more intimate knowledge of the works than available in any study method and will help
to increase flexibility when approaching unique questions.

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1. Sample Question Paper

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2. Sample Question Paper

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Comments in relation to the assessment criteria

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Comments in relation to the assessment criteria

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 Critical Reactions
✘ Some critics like George Tarabishi have criticised El Saadawi for abstracting her
men and women in Woman at Point Zero and reducing them to “one dimensional”
characters. Such characterisations, he argues, fail to illuminate complex human
relations and therefore “do not make for good literature”. How would you respond to
this statement?

✘ Afif Farraj faults El Saadawi for imposing an ideological discourse on the world of
literature by shifting between the polemical essay and narrative for presenting her
opinion through self-evident statements rather than through layers of events. Other
critics have concurred, pointing out that the commitment to women’s liberation
overshadows the story, that at times the characters’ statements and thoughts seem
inappropriate and forced. Did you feel Firdaus’s narrative was ever unnatural or
strained?
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 GROUP DISCUSSION
Episdoes that elevate drama and issues
that arise from the narrative of Woman
at Pont Zero.
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 Good Reads…
https://theconversation.com/woman-at-point-zero-nawal-el-saadawis-radical-african-feminism-was-
ahead-of-its-time-158651

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330114454_Nawal_El_Saadawi's_A_woman_at_Point_Zero_
A_critique#:~:text=Abstract,general%20and%20Firdaus%20in%20particular.

https://prometheusschoolnoida-
my.sharepoint.com/:b:/g/personal/atchula_subrahmanyam_prometheusschool_com/ESW9j5eQXJ9NpJ
T_WqRLAj8BxagMmxGLTolKJxzGeBI8bw?e=a7nfUk

https://prometheusschoolnoida-
my.sharepoint.com/:b:/g/personal/atchula_subrahmanyam_prometheusschool_com/ESVuidw6KFdHuQ
fyU53AoUUBR7vB_4lPJyRbits2tdBojQ?e=kliGGO
 Firdaus and her problems
Formative Assessment 1
➢ Is Firdaus’ prostitution a result of the oppression she
experiences as a woman? List all the problems Firdaus
faces and circumstances, landing to be a prostitute.
➢ What is Saadawi’s role in examining female oppression?

➢ Upload to a word document answering the two question

above in about 200-300 words. Aim to create your voice.
Issues and Themes in WAPZ

Sexual
Patriarchy FGM
Politics

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Issues and Themes in WAPZ

Fear of
Existential
Religious Society
crisis and
Hypcricy Expectaion
battles
s

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Issues and Themes in WAPZ

Transactional
Oppression
Sexual Politics Relationships
and
and sexism and
Victimisation
Prostitution

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Issues and Themes in WAPZ

Freedom Morality
Radical
and and
Feminism
Liberation Values

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 MINI Presentations
15 minutes preparation time

Formative Assessment 2
Take an issue or theme and prepare at presentation
(no design and appealing effects required on any slide)

Slide 1: Give a title and construct an inquiry question

Example of Inquiry Question: Does the novelist present Firdaus as a symbol of victimisation in a male
dominated society?
Slide 2: FIVE phrases or lines that make striking meaning about the issue.
Slide 3: FIVE Authorial choices (plot based and language based) that stand out for you to explain and
analyse.
Slide 4: Explain one phrase or sentence chosen in your own voice in two or three sentences only (as in
Paper 2)
Slide 5: THE END
 The Symbolism of STREETS in
Woman at Point Zero
What circumstances and reasons that push Firdaus to
run away and appear on the streets?
Let us create a working document online FA 3 LINK
Run away episode 1:
Run away episode 2:
Run away episode 3:
Run away episode 4:
Run away episode 5:
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Characterization of Male Characters
In what ways does Saadawi portray the male characters in the novel? Find
adjectives that describe their actions and attitudes. Read any sources to
get better understanding of these characters.
Let us populate this on a working document online FA 4
➢ Father
➢ Uncle
➢ Sheikh Mahmoud
➢ Bayoumi
➢ Police Officer
➢ Pimp
➢ Diáa
➢ Ibrahim
➢ Fawzy
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 THANK YOU…
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