Woman at Point Zero tells the story of a reluctant prostitute who is sent to prison in Cairo, Egypt, for murder of her pimp Marzouk and who is preparing to be murdered. Border Crossing is very similar to the story of how women are treated in El Paso, Texas. In Dahlia's Lounge, the main character of the story is a prostitute who is murdered by her former partner. Nadal El Saadawi, the author of Women at Point Zero, and Nelia Padilla, the author of Border Crossing, illustrate the fermented and oppressed lives of Firdaus and Magdelana. The author constructs these two stories by asserting that they are similar to possession. The main characters Firdaus and Magdelana are very similar in that they both have identity issues, lack of power, and sexuality issues. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay In both stories, the characters both struggle with their identities. In Border Crossing, Magdalena said, "I lived in two worlds and they were strangers, never able to find each other." Padilla uses irony in this story to show an example of identity issues. The quote describes how Magdalena feels like she has two minds in two worlds that cannot find each other because they are trying to cope with the reality that she is facing cruel and unjust treatment. Women at Point Zero, Firdaus said: “They are not afraid of my knife, it is my truth that scares them.” Saadawi showed that Firdaus could not be herself because Egyptian men would not exploit and accept the truth about how women are treated. Both Padilla and Saadawi depict the loss of power between the characters. Magdelana said: “I walked, passed myself and returned to my mother's womb where my mother's sound sheltered until it was covered in blood.” Magdelana had the misfortune of her influence when she was executed by her spouse, she had external bodily involvement as her body was dead on the bed and under his influence she could do nothing about it. Women at Point Zero, it was quoted “she plunged the knife into his neck”. Once Firdaus plunged the blade into Marzouk, she lost her ability as she realized she was going to be imprisoned for killing a man. Likewise, women were mistreated by Cairo's men, allowing them to commit homicide even though they defended themselves. They both lose their identity because of the power of men. Border Crossing and Women at Point Zero show sexual disorders. In the story, Dahlia said, “Yeah, that’s my daughter; The soldiers are crazy about her.” This quote defines that Magdelana is a prostitute and Dahlia is her pimp. Magdalena has no control over her sexuality because it belongs to Dahlia. Magdalena turned to prostitution because the men she loved were using and abusing her and she felt prostitution was her only way out. The women of Point Zero Firdaus said, “I would rather be a free prostitute than an enslaved wife.” While being a prostitute, Firdaus attempts to separate her spirit from her body. As she lies down with men, Firdaus closes her eyes intending to expel herself from the experience entirely, leaving only her physical body, a minor shell of her reality. The ability of men to pay Firdaus in exchange for sex is clearly a strategy used by the man to enslave Firdaus, placing her beneath him and lowering her self-esteem by focusing.