The Power of the Saudi Woman's Novel From Silence to Empowerment

Abstract

Against the backdrop of an extended history of Arab women’s silence in general, and Saudi women’s in particular, in the field of literature, this paper seeks to introduce the development of the Saudi female novelist’s voice and its progress. It traces the improvement of the Saudi female novelist chronologically, demonstrating how writing is an essential tool for self-identification and self-expression. An analysis is made of how novels by Saudi women writers have changed through recent decades and how Prince Mohammad Bin Salman's 2030 Vision initiative might be said to have empowered these voices expressed in fictional words. It introduces the significance of Saudi female novels and how they create new fictional environments that uncover the inner strength of women and highlight their individual and collective empowerment. This paper demonstrates how Saudi female novelists have been fully aware of the significant influence of novels as one artistic means of expression. Today, they can openly express their previously unspoken thoughts and feelings. Moreover, the paper addresses the important implications of their writing, i.e. the remarkable progress achieved in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.