In both A Doll's House and Point Zero, the female protagonists are forced to suppress their identities. Henrik Ibsen and Nawal El-Saadawi hide the individualities of Nora and Firdaus respectively in their play and novel from the other characters, however, the audience is able to see the characters fulfill the expected gender stereotype of the societies they lived in through lies and deceptions. to keep their identity hidden. The relationship between Nora and Torvald was typical of a Norwegian upper-middle-class home in the late 19th century. The primary role of a married woman in Norway during the 1800s was to be submissive to her husband. Influenced by her experiences in Qanatir Prison as a psychiatrist, El-Saadawi questions ancient Egyptian traditions from the 1900s that dehumanize women. The novel portrays Firdaus, who is subjected to patriarchal oppression as a victim of financial, mental and physical abuse and is forced to live by conforming to a controlling male society. Although Woman at Point Zero and A Doll's House are different genres and are set in two different cultures a hundred years apart, they share the theme of the mistreatment of women in society and the need for women to hide their authentic identity in order to survive. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Similar to women of the Victorian era, Nora is not her own person, but the person Torvald and other members of society expect her to be; his true self is hidden beneath the facade he constructs to adhere to society's expectations. As a result, in Woman at Point Zero Firdaus is treated immorally throughout the novel, due to society's expectations in Egypt during the 1900s. Ibsen and El-Saadawi present the characters of Nora and Firdaus in disguises. Nora's character is shown as childish, irrational and naive until she reveals her true character. This is indicated when Ibsen uses zoomorphism to show Torvald's manipulation of Nora. Torvald dehumanizes her by using nicknames such as "squirrel", "lark", and "songbird". The animals described all imply disrespect and contempt on Torvald's part, as they are small, weak and helpless, however, the irony is that while squirrels are weaker, they are notably more intelligent than most others, as they hide the their food to survive, as Nora hides it. amaretti and, ultimately, its individuality. Secondly, Torvald reinforces his role in their relationship by belittling Nora by using condescending language such as “my little Nora,” “it's that little squirrel of mine who gets busy.” Torvald's use of the possessive adjective "my" defines his inferiority in their relationship. Ibsen provides some justification for his "nicknames" and allows the audience to believe that Torvald has an accurate assessment of Nora, the audience accordingly judges his actions and this makes them complicit. Many commentators, such as Ibsen's biographer, had a similar perspective on Nora's character: “she is denounced as an irrational and frivolous narcissist; an abnormal woman, a hysteric; a vain, unloving egoist who abandons her family in a paroxysm of selfishness.” In 1879, when the realistic opera was first performed, it shocked conventional morality. Women were not allowed to share their opinions and ideas, demonstrating the social pressure on women to hide their individual differences. Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar argue that the two stereotypes of women created by men are “the angelof the house”, or the devoted and submissive wife, and “the madwoman in the attic”, or the unconventional woman, who does not seek the approval of a man. This concept is used in El-Saadawi's text; “A virtuous woman should not complain about her husband,” as it was clear that a woman was forced to keep her thoughts to herself, “supposed” to suggest that women had an obligation to conform to their husband's opinions. Furthermore, the adjective "virtuous" further insinuates that if women were to fight for their rights they would not be religious and pure, however the irony is that Firdaus' own husband raped her but no one questioned whether he was virtuous , once again reinforcing the prejudicial approach of the late 1900s, which favored men and rejected the existence of women. Furthermore, in A Doll's House, society viewed women as unfavorably compared to men, which is why they tried hard to hide their individualities. Ibsen showcases the arrogance and crudeness that women would have to endure due to their disrespected role in society, exposing the undeniable sexist nature of men of the time through Torvald's infamous "like a woman" attitude towards of Nora, considering her a typical domesticated woman with no real opinion. Ibsen conveys how contradictory sexism is through A Doll's House. "You know I could never act against your will." Nora is expected to follow Torvald's commands, to the point that she is forbidden to purchase a macaroon for herself, as Torvald felt it was not in her best interests. Firdaus believed that her "duty was perfect obedience" to her husband, similar to Nora, when she neglected to tell the truth to Torvald. Ironically, "Firdaus" means "heaven" in Arabic, which has the implications of heaven on earth, despite the reality being that his life was hell. Women were “slaves” to the men in their lives and the domestic abuse suffered by women was ignored. Firdaus' husband subsequently struck her "with his heavy stick until the blood flowed." The adjective 'heavy' underlines the brutality of the action, carried out by the phallic stick, as well as the fact that she herself was a sexual object of men as a prostitute. Furthermore, the verb 'ran' indicates a large quantity of blood and therefore underlines the destructive act. The inhuman description emphasizes the brutal living conditions in which Firdaus was confined and enlightens the audience about her fear of being treated like the "madwoman in the attic". El-Saadawi deliberately presents men's brutal behavior towards women in the squalid patriarchal society, to show that this forced women to suppress their unique personalities under a religious and emotional veil. The female protagonists in the two texts did not support each other, according to Firdaus the mother went through the intense nature of being repressed by men and allowed her daughter to go through the same pain instead of supporting her. Not only did her mother beat her, but she also allowed a woman to “cut a piece of meat between” Firdaus' thighs. The images are indicative of an act of consumption and the clear use of the noun "meat" is implied by meat. The phrase "a piece of meat" implies that the act is common and easily ignored; however, the reader is aware that this removed "piece" is fundamental to preventing the woman from enjoying the sexual act as such: the female subject is simply the object of the sexual act and not a participant. El-Saadawi also suggests that the barbaric ritual is a form of taking away a part of a person to which she herself has been subjected. At that time, genital mutilation was an Orthodox ritual for those who followed the Islamic religion in Egypt. El-Saadawiargues through her non-fiction novel The Hidden Face of Eve that the use of religion as an “instrument of fear, oppression and exploitation” is “the reasons for the low status of women” in most Islamic and Arab societies. . In Woman at Point Zero religion is strongly associated with patriarchy and the exploitation of power. Obioma Nnaemeka believes that "the abuse of the female body is global", women are not treated like human beings but like pets, this level of abuse can cause long lasting hysteria in a woman's life suggested by Freudian theory. A similar theme of women not supporting women is in A Doll's House between the two characters of Kristine and Nora. Typically, women, once married, were expected to be merely housewives and mothers who charitably devoted themselves to serving their husbands and families. Kristine abandoned her love with Krogstad to marry a man with a stable income to support his family, their relationship failed “simply for money”. It was as if money governed relationships and society itself. Love is a modern construct, financial gain was the primary purpose of marriage. At the end of the 19th century Norway had just experienced a major economic boom and an opportunity for prosperity for the upper middle class. Ibsen portrays his first-hand observations in A Doll's House through Torvald's obsession with money and increasing stress to maintain his "bourgeois respectability." It could be said that Kristine also followed a Marxist perspective in life, as her limited choices were a result of her economic situation. Nora's father financed her needs as a child and then Torvald took over the responsibility, Nora has always been indebted to the men in her life. Kristine automatically assumes that because Nora has always been financially supported, she understands "little of the worries and difficulties of life." Further suggesting that financial problems are the only ones that cause disturbances in a person's life. To survive, Firdaus was pushed into the prostitution industry by her supposed friend Sharifa. She knew how women are exploited by men, yet instead of supporting her friend, she extorted money from her. “A woman is a woman's greatest enemy,” this common phrase is demonstrated through the relationships between women in Woman at Point Zero, though not only the relationship between Firdaus and her mother, but also Firdaus and Sharifa. Firdaus had never created an independently chosen relationship, even a small choice such as choosing, to her surprise, whether to prefer “oranges or mandarins”. When Bayoumi asks Firdaus what she prefers, she realizes that this is the first time anyone has asked her opinion. This is the starting point from which Firdaus learns that he has self-esteem and that he has the right to his own opinion and his own informed choices. This is similar to when Nora felt that working and earning money “was like being a man” and realized that men have the power she craves. El-Saadawi, a women's icon and activist, said that "all women are prostitutes of one kind or another." Women sold themselves to their husbands for convenience of life, or became prostitutes and earned money to survive independently. At the time they had to obtain a position in society to live, Firdaus was obliged to find any means necessary to survive, so when she got an opportunity from Sharifa she simply could not afford to refuse. “I would rather be a free prostitute than a slave wife.” The verb “enslave” insinuates that Firdaus believed that wives were held captive in marriages, that being married was much worse than being a prostitute. Most women in the.