Problem Formulation Objectives of the Study

According norm in Moslem society, if a girl wants to marry, there should be permission from her father. A father may marry off her daughter with a man even she does not love at all. Nurhayati,2012:XIV. It can be seen in Firdaus life. Firdaus as a girl in Egypt, which her father has died, then she is under controlled by her uncle. She is very submissive to him. When her uncle wants to marry off her with Sheikh Mahmoud, Firdaus accepts that marriage although she does not like him at all. Khalid Abou Fadl as a Moslem thinker said that although the society praise women role as a mother, women are portrayed as ones who are imperfect and disobedient. So a wife should serve and be controlled by her husband. As a child, a girl is controlled by her father and as a society member a girl is under controlled by all men. Fadl,2005:308. Firdaus also experience this. She is controlled by her husband, Sheikh Mahmoud. She is unhappy with her marriage. Firdaus often gets physical abuse from her husband but she just silents and accepts that bad treatment. She tries to complain to her uncle but it is useless. ”Her uncle said that all husband beat their wives and my uncle’s wife said that her husband often beat her. I was said a respected Sheikh, well versed in the teachings of religion, and, he, therefore could not possibly be in the habit of beating his wife. She replied that it was precisely men well versed in their religion who beat their wives.The percepts of religion permitted such punishment. A virtous woman was not supposed to complain about her husband. Her duty was perfect obedience.”Pp.46-47

B. Review of Related theories

The writer uses two kinds of theories to explore deeper the work. The writer uses theory on character and characterization, and theory on feminism. The writer will combine the theories from many experts to support the analysis.

1. Theories on Character and Characterization

The writer focuses the analysis on the main character both of the two novels. Character plays an important role in a literary work, such as in a novel. Abrams defines character as the person presented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as being endowed with moral and disposition qualities that are expressed in what they say-the dialogue-and by what they do-the action Abrams, 1981:20. Here, Abrams stated that to know the character of a person in dramatic or narrative work, we can see from how the person act and say. The chief character in a plot, on whom our interest centers, is called the protagonist or alternatively, the hero or heroine, and if the plot is such that he or she is pitted against an important opponent, that character is called the antagonist. Abrams,1999:224 Here, Abrams states that there are two kinds of character, which are protagonist and antagonist. Protagonist is a character that observed many times and the central of the story. Anatagonist is a character which has the opposite attitude with the protagonist character. A broad distinction is frequently made between alternative methods for characterizing. There are two methods of characterization, which are