The Hidden Face of Eve

Women in the Arab World

By: Nawal El Saadawi

Narrated by: Raghad Chaar

Bloomsbury presents The Hidden Face of Eve by Nawal El Saadawi, read by Raghad Chaar.

This powerful non-fiction account of the oppression of women in the Muslim world remains as shocking today as when it was first published, more than a quarter of a century ago.

Nawal El Saadawi writes out of a powerful sense of the violence and injustice which permeated her society. Her experiences working as a doctor in villages around Egypt, witnessing prostitution, honour killings and sexual abuse, including female circumcision, drove her to give voice to this suffering. She goes on to explore the causes of the situation through a discussion of the historical role of Arab women in religion and literature. Saadawi argues that the veil, polygamy and legal inequality are incompatible with the essence of Islam or any human faith.

The Hidden Face of Eve remains a classic of modern Arab writing.©2024 Nawal El Saadawi (P)2024 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

What an incredible book.

This book is an exceptional overview on women’s rights, the role of capitalism, imperialism, and religion on the oppression of women. Everyone should read this. Chef’s kiss.

Inconsistent conclusion, contradicts herself

Book was very well read.

Author has valid points, but contradicting herself occasionally weakens her defense of said points. For instance, at one point the author claims that female circumcision makes women obsessed with the act of reproduction & men, then a few chapters later says how it's the fault of female circumcision that circumcised women are frigid and uninterested in the act of reproduction.

At one point she mocks how stupid Arab men are, later she contradicts herself by implying that they are intelligent and devious enough to be afraid of sexually experienced women. Those are two of several contradictions that I found confusing.

Whole this book is a fascinating, tragic glimpse into the lives of these women, it's understandably definitely written with clear biases. While her culture is obviously very repressive and unfair to women, at times she writes with such vitriol and loathing that the premise she's presenting loses clarity and cohesiveness. She seems to head off into an emotional morass, instead of presenting the facts calmly and clearly, and offering a solution.

She understandably writes very passionately about the gross inequality between Arab men & women, but in my opinion, her editor should have pointed out the author's flawed arguments, inconsistencies and off point venting. That would have made for a better written, more cohesive book that doesn't weaken the power of it's message with a poor writing/editing style.