L’éducation territoriale de la petite Ferdaous Imraʾat ʿinda nuqṭat al-ṣifr de Nawāl al-Sa‘dāwī

According to Peter Hitchcock, the perspective developed by El Saadawi in his portrayal of Ferdaous the prostitute’s misadventures is a first in Arabic literature. The whole of Ferdaous’s life questions the real distance that separates her from the Other. This article examines Ferdaous’ childhood based on the principles of Edward Hall’s proxemics. Excision is a decisive factor in the imposition of a discriminatory organization of territory and the constitution of an interpersonal space monitored by the Homme-Gardien.