Chapter 2, pages 11-19 Summary and Analysis

Firdaus instructs Saadawi not to interrupt her because she does not have much time; she will no longer be here tomorrow morning. The journey to an unknown place fills her with a pride that she has been searching for her entire life in order to make her feel superior to everyone else. She always spits on the pictures of men in newspapers, though she does not know them, as no single woman can know all of the men in newspapers.

Firdaus was a successful prostitute, and every man fills her with the desire to strike him, though she never had the courage because she is a woman. Because she is a prostitute, she hides this fear under layers of expensive make-up. Her make-up, hair and shoes are upper-class, while her secondary school certificate and suppressed desires designate...