A Semiotic Reading of the Cover of the Short Story Collection "AL-Mukahla'' by Ahmed Youssef Aqila

Abstract

The research aims to dismantle the semiotic structure of the cover, as a visual interface that carries in its sleeve a lot of signs and semantics, and work to analyze it semiotically, and how it works in producing the meaning of the text according to an integrated critical approach that works in the corridors of the cultural context, which produces the text and sets its features. The study also dealt in detail with the distinguishing signs and semantic features that distinguish duality (title and cover), in the narrative collection (Al-Makhla), and then work on deciphering the codes and symbols of the text, and the function entrusted to it, through meaningful and conscious reading by the recipient, based on the aesthetic and media dimensions The summary of the study emphasizes the importance of the cover as the first parallel text that faces the reader, and plays a proactive role in guiding understanding and interpretation through (the picture, font colors), which contributes to guiding the reader's understanding and framing his expectations about the literary text.