Ebook Memoirs of a Woman Doctor Nawal El Saadawi Catherine Cobham Books
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Rebelling against the contraints of family and society, a young Egyptian woman decides to study medicine, becoming the only woman in a class of men. Her encounters with the other students mdash; as well as the male and female corpses in the autopsy room — intensify her dissatisfaction with and search for identity. She realizes men are not gods as her mother had taught her, that science cannot explain everything, and that she cannot be satisfied by living a life purely of the mind.
After a brief and unhappy marriage, she throws herself into her work, becoming a successful physician, but at the same time, she becomes aware of injustice and hypocrisy in society. Fulfillment and love come to her at last in a wholly unexpected way.
". . . Memoirs of a Woman Doctor by Nawal el Saadawi, one of the leading Egyptian feminist writers, reveals the contradictions embedded in women's self-oppressive struggle against patriarchy." —Khadidiatau Gueye, Research in African Literatures (Indiana University Press)
Nawal el Saadawi, born in 1931 in Kafr Tahla, Egypt, is an Egyptian physician, psychiatrist, author, and activist. She is the founder and president of the Arab Women's Solidarity Association and co-founder of the Arab Association for Human Rights. In 2004 she won the North-South Prize from the Council of Europe. In 2005 she won the inana International Prize in Belgium. In 2010 she won the Sean MacBride Peace Prize from the International Peace Bureau. She has written and published other novels, memoirs, plays, non-fiction, and short stories including Woman at Point Zero , The Hidden Face of Eve, and The Fall of the Imam.
Ebook Memoirs of a Woman Doctor Nawal El Saadawi Catherine Cobham Books
"The descriptive words of the author breathe life into this work and paint a portrait of a smart, beautiful woman struggling to find herself and her place in the world. I would recommend this to my friends for an enlightening and soul searching read. I feel it ended much too soon, I find myself wanting to continue her journey after she's found so much of herself finally."
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Tags : Memoirs of a Woman Doctor (9780872862234) Nawal El Saadawi, Catherine Cobham Books,Nawal El Saadawi, Catherine Cobham,Memoirs of a Woman Doctor,City Lights Publishers,0872862232,Middle Eastern,Personal Memoirs,Arabic (Language) Contemporary Fiction,Biography Autobiography / Personal Memoirs,Egyptian writing in translation; women in medicine; faults of science; Egyptian feminism; unhappy marriages; society's hypocrisy; struggle against the patriarchy,Egyptian writing in translation;women in medicine;faults of science;Egyptian feminism;unhappy marriages;society's hypocrisy;struggle against the patriarchy,FICTION / General,FICTION / Literary,FICTION / Women,Fiction - General,General,Literary Collections,Literary Collections / Middle Eastern,Literature Classics,MEDICAL / History,Modern contemporary fiction (post c 1945),Modern fiction,Fiction
Memoirs of a Woman Doctor Nawal El Saadawi Catherine Cobham Books Reviews :
Memoirs of a Woman Doctor Nawal El Saadawi Catherine Cobham Books Reviews
- The descriptive words of the author breathe life into this work and paint a portrait of a smart, beautiful woman struggling to find herself and her place in the world. I would recommend this to my friends for an enlightening and soul searching read. I feel it ended much too soon, I find myself wanting to continue her journey after she's found so much of herself finally.
- I haven't read anything from Dr. Saadawi that I haven't loved yet. She isn't afraid to broach difficult topics and expose provoking realities and experiences.
- This author meant to make a change in the lives of women in the middle east. This book is a wake-up call to all women all over the world. it is not only for middle east women. You will understand how men think through this book written by this pioneer psychologist.
- I feel a little silly now admitting that when I first picked up this book I mistook it for an actual memoir, having missed the part where it says "a novel" right on the front cover. *Facepalm* I also had the initial thought, "Man, this seems pretty short for a memoir!" (the whole thing is only 101 pages) but I thought maybe it was just a quick look back at a few moments within a few years time. Nope, it's actually a quick little novella read about an Egyptian female doctor just out of medical school, trying to get her career started up.
Egyptian author Nawal Saadawi originally penned this novella (originally published in 1988) in her early 20s (30 years before the publication), when she herself was a recent medical school graduate. It was originally printed in serial form in an Egyptian magazine. Saadawi mentions in the foreword that when she decided to print it in book format, the Egyptian government actually censored parts of the full manuscript. She also mentions that while this novella is now sometimes used in feminism & women's studies courses, she herself had never read any feminist literature prior to writing her book. She simply observed cultural and gender issues around her and her frustrations compelled her to write and bring light to them. Hence, this novella.
Memoirs Of A Woman Doctor, told in first person (I'm not even sure the narrator is given a name) illustrates the life of a young woman who grows up under the traditional perception that she is to marry and be a mother. Our narrator, however, believes a woman should be thought of more than just a housekeeper or baby factory. To prove this, she bucks convention and works her way into a male-dominated medical school. She's initially proud of her accomplishments but after a time runs into some heartaches. She realizes that by age 25 she's focused SO hard on her academics that she's never gotten around to even having her first kiss. Having successfully nabbed that DR. after her name, our narrator suddenly discovers she wants to really experience life and relationships, but still on her own terms. She comes to have an appreciation for her body after years of being taught to be ashamed of it. Through this, she also slowly comes to accept that it's not a sign of weakness to admit that you want someone next to you in life.
It's also interesting to read this character learning the nuances of human relationships. In the early parts of the book there's a sort of cold disconnect in her interactions with others, maybe as a way to protect herself from falling into the type of bondage she so feared being locked into. With her patients she is very much distanced and uber-clinical until she has one patient who touches a nerve in her, reminding her that there's a soul behind the name on the form. When it comes to personal relationships, like many of us, it takes a few misses for her to figure out what she really wants out of a partner and what a balanced relationship should consist of.
It's a quick read, with a quietness to it. While not gripping or action-packed, it does illustrate some social and cultural struggles that do need attention and discussion. The problems brought to light in this story aren't entirely a thing of the past yet, so the more angles we expose ourselves to, the better.
Note To Readers This edition of this novella, produced by City Lights Books of San Francisco, has been translated from the original Arabic by Catherine Cobham. - In most societies in this world, it is a positive to be born a man. Being born a man will automatically give a person more chances in life than being a woman. 'Memoirs of a Woman Doctor' is the story of an Egyptian girl planning to become a doctor. She lives in a society where a woman's chances of climbing the socio-economic ladder are slim to none. Being the only woman in her medical school, she constantly tries to denegrate men and sometimes scolds humanity in general. She feels men are not the "Gods" that her mother thought they were. She tries to rationalize humanity, saying they are no better than animals. In all this time, she seems to have no attachment to humanity; all she seems to care about are her studies and her career. The ending of the book can be interperted in two ways. Some will feel it is a cop out (like I did) and others will feel she learned a very important lesson about this life. Nonetheless, it is a facinating read into the heart and mind of a smart, but frustrated woman living in a socitey dominated my males.
- Met my expectations
- Wonderful, inspiring
- Interesting and well written.
