Remapping Feminism in Egyptian World: Psychological and Existential Crisis of Female protagonist in Nawal El Saadawi’s Novel "Searching"

Abstract

The psychoanalytical feminism explores the new dimensions that play vital role in defining feminine identity by challenging the traditional western epistemology. This lens renders a novel meaning to Saadawi’s fictional work that depicts an Arabic woman who is struggling psychologically to find a meaning in the world. The author has depicted a realistic picture that is fragmented and alienated self of her female protagonist in her psychological fiction. Her protagonist seems to project her individual identity that is not linear rather it is a product of complicated interaction with different members of society from both genders.  The views of traditional psychoanalytic theories are challenged that is phallocentric. “Penis envy” is replaced by “womb envy” and identity configuration is driven by mother rather than father figure.  This study is an attempt to analyze the individual voices of major and minor male and female characters from various range of societal background with their own ideological bearing. It also makes an effort to position these voices in dialogue with each other through which power dynamics are being challenged, exchange of ideas occurs, and marginalized members of society are being armored with the epistemological strategies to face structural inequalities. A dialogue occurs even between different discourses: tradition psychoanalysis that is male dominated and psychoanalytic feminism to deal with stereotypical gender configuration.