Paratexts in Yahya Al-Hamadi,s Collection of Poetry Foam of Embers: A Semiotic Study

Abstract

This study is aimed at identifying the most important semiotic signs of paratexts in the collection of poetry Foam of Embers (Raghwat Al-Jamr) by the Yemeni poet Yahya Al-Hamadi. The study includes a brief conceptual introduction, definition of the concept of paratexts, their functions and importance, followed by a brief biography of the poet. The study is divided into two sections: The first section discusses the external paratexts in Foam of Embers (Raghwat Al-Jamr), and the second section discusses the internal paratexts. The researcher uses a descriptive analytical approach. The study arrives at the following findings: first, the poet takes care of the paratexts to convey important messages that the text does not provide. Second, studying paratexts in literary texts using the semiotic approach performs multiple functions that are inspiring and useful for both the author and the critic-reader, such as motivation and suspense, promotion and marketing, excitement and illumination, and making the reader understand the dimensions and extensions of the text. Third, the paratexts in the collection of poetry Foam of Embers (Raghwat Al-Jamr) contained many strange paradoxes that astonish the critic-reader with their magnificence and their combination of contradictions in strange harmonies; arousing the curiosity of the critic-reader to uncover the secrets of the texts.