Reclaiming the Self: Gender, Performance, and Resistance in Latifa al Zayyat’s The Open Door

Abstract

This paper examines The Open Door, a 1960 novel by Egyptian writer Latifa al-Zayyat. It is a book that explores a middle-class girl’s coming of age against the background of struggling with societal expectations, gender norms, and oppression. Al Zayyat, who was a forward-thinking writer, used her works to challenge patriarchal societies and give voice to the voiceless women. This is what continued to influence other Arab writers, while tackling the same feminine issue. Accordingly, through this bildungsroman, the paper traces Layla’s journey toward self-actualization, highlighting her defiance of patriarchal structures, stereotyping, and marginalization. Through her resistance, Layla challenges restrictive social norms, ultimately asserting women’s agency in the public sphere. Employing Judith Butler's concept of performativity, alongside with Josephine Donovan’s Images of Women approach, the analysis reveals how Layla’s experiences reflect the multifaceted oppression that women endure and their capacity for resistance, showing how her transformation challenges traditional depictions of women as passive and submissive, asserting the power of female self-determination.