A Daughter of Isis: The Autobiography of Nawal El Saadawi

Dr. Nawal ElSaadawi is an outstanding author. The autobiography of her childhood and adolescence is both moving and horrifying. I compared it with the autobiography of Fay Afaf Kanafani [Nadia, Captive of Hope]. Both women grew up in the Middle East and it was very enlightening to see the societal differences of Egypt and Lebanon/Palestine. [If you look further at the autobiography of Edward Said you will see pictured yet another class - Christian Palestinians living in Egypt].The brutality with which Egyptian women were treated by villagers, as opposed to what is seen in Egyptian old films and what we read in Mrs. Kanafani's book. Part seems to be class differences, part society differences, part rural vs urban. The physical brutality described in her book, which we know to be true even today to a lesser degree, is heart-rending. Her fight to give her intelligence a chance to help society in several ways is very important. First as an example to other girls and women, then to her extended family, and lastly as a doctor in villages where doctors are non-existence or scarce. Dr. ElSaadawi must be respected for her resistance as a child to backward standards and to what she accomplished in getting women an equal role in Egyptian society.I think the book is a must for studies of women's rights.It is very important as it brings to light fearlessly the harsch treatment of women. We should all thank Dr. ElSaadawi for her fearless book.

A Daughter of Isis is an autobiography that reveals much more than the tumulteous life of its author in a very thrilling and gripping style. The book is a document about the status of women in Egypt as well as all of the Middle East. From an Arab or Islamic point of view, the book is simply shocking and subvertive. But despite its scathing virulence, the book is authentic and is based on a sad reality in its depictions. Virulence, however, skews its objectivity, clearly antagonizing some of its readers, and alienating others. The book is a must read for people with a good background about Egypt and the Arab World. However, the book is not a good introduction because of its heavy polarization toward a frustrated feministic diatribe against a culture. It is important to note that the majority of Egyptians would not agree with the author's hostile feministic wholesale denunciation of Egyptian sosiety. Personally, I take issue with the author's approach to culture. Other cultures could be objectionable to us in some of their practices, but they are never totally 'evil'. Good and evil are irrelevant in a genuine critique of a culture, especially of a culture with an identity crisis.