Ideological Conflict in the Iraqi Rural Novel: A Study in Textual Thresholds

Aim: The study aims to analyses the main and sub-textual thresholds in the Iraqi rural novels, with a focus on the title and cover thresholds, and their impact in directing the connotations of the narrative text and anticipating its ideological content. The study also seeks to reveal how the ideological conflict is embodied within the novels, and its impact on the narrative structure, characters and events. Methodology: The analysis is based on a semiotic approach that addresses textual thresholds as interpretive keys that contribute to guiding the reader towards a deeper understanding of the text, as well as employing the ideological critical approach to examine representations of class and political conflict in the Iraqi rural novel. Results: The study found that the title threshold represents a key entry point for understanding the structure of the ideological conflict, as it often reflects the social and economic forces in the Iraqi countryside, whether through direct connotations or symbolic allusions.