Textual Thresholds and Their Connotations in the Novel Al-Nammas: The Journey of Departure and Staying (The Story of Maimun bin Harun)

This study aims to explore the textual thresholds in the novel Al-Nammas: The Journey of Departure and Staying (The Story of Maimun bin Harun), written by the Saudi author Balqis Al-Mulhim. These thresholds act as guidelines that assist the reader in exploring the text more deeply and understanding its messages. This process reveals the meaning of the text and evaluates how it affects interpretation. This study adopts a semiotic approach and is organized into three main sections, preceded by an introduction and followed by a conclusion. The first section explores the concept of thresholds by discussing their different types and functions. The second section examines external thresholds, which include elements such as the book cover, the author's name, the title, the author's gender, and the publishing house. The third section focuses on internal thresholds, specifically addressing the dedication, preface, and acknowledgments. The finding of the study reveals that the thresholds in this novel effectively create a reading horizon for the audience by attracting them to engage with the text. Most of the textual thresholds in Al-Nammas are closely connected to the narrative and to one another. They serve functions such as clarification and explanation, or they present implicit questions that encourage the reader to seek answers either in subsequent thresholds or within the narrative itself. The textual thresholds in Al-Namas play a crucial role in shaping the narrative structure and guiding the reader's experience. To fully engage with the novel's narrative world, readers must first pass through these thresholds, which serve as initial indicators and provide essential connotations. This is particularly evident in the title and the paratexts, which create a rich semantic meaning. This meaning arises from a deliberate tension between the information presented at the beginning and the developments that occur later in the story, ultimately allowing for multiple layers of interpretation.