The aim of this study is to propose an alternative methodology of reading classical Arabic narratives, which forgrounds the effect of reading such narratives on the readers, instead of the traditional concern with questions like : what is the context of classical Arabic narratives within an overall historical context of such texts. The focus in this new proposal is not on what these texts say, or how they say it. Rather the focus is on questions like: What happens to the Reader when he/she reads? In other words, what is the impact of the narrative text on the reader? In our attempt to answer these new questions, we will try to provide an answer to an everlasting question which is : is the narrative text that is critiqued or read good or bad? This question has always been addressed through the identification of reading patterns. This study, however, is not merely an approach to the reading of classical narrative texts. It is rather a study of some patterns of reception of such texts. The aim is to discover the significant role played by reading and reception in the creation of text and in determining its value and meaning.