Functional spectrum of bem (well) and bom (good) in spoken portuguese: instances of grammaticalization

Edair Maria Gorski
PDF XML

Abstract

In a functionalist approach to grammar (cf. GIVÓN, 2001; 2018), the work aims (i) to present a qualitative and quantitative description of the range of functions performed by bem (well) and bom (good), considering both the prototypical grammatical status of adverb and adjective, respectively, as for the discursive uses as markers and other possible uses, from the examination of dialogical contexts in 72 sociolinguistic interviews (VARSUL Project); (ii) to treat comparatively the discursive uses, seeking contextual patterns of behavior; and (iii) to analyze the changes involved such as instances of grammaticalization (cf. HIMMELMANN, 2004; TRAUGOTT, 2010a; DIEWALD (2011b). Among the results we highlight: (i) in terms of frequency, the adverbial use of bem is greater than the adjetival use of bom; as a discourse marker, bom is more widely used than bem; and in other uses, bem presents a more polysemic behavior than bom; (ii) as discourse markers, the items share a general textual / interpersonal property and they signal a double movement (of discursive structuring and negotiation), with significant occurrence introducing immediate responses, but they present contextual specificities of use: while bom predominates in opening shifts, introducing particularly preamble, bem prevails in intraturn positions, in contexts of topical organization, especially of sequencing and resuming the discursive flow, focusing on the informant's own speech; (iii) the markers present different contextual patterns in the informant's speech and in the interviewer's speech. It is concluded that the functioning of the items is dependent on the type of communicative situation and the need for the analysis to consider textual / discursive genres and their particularities is pointed out, especially in comparative studies.

Full-text of the article is available for this locale: Português (Brasil).

References

AQUINO, M.C.; ARANTES, P.C.C. Partículas modais em alemão e seus equivalentes funcionais em português brasileiro: proposta de análise e classificação para o uso. Pandaemonium Germanicum, v. 23, n. 40, p. 166-190, 2020. DOI: 10.11606/1982-88372340166. Acesso em: 15 julho 2020.

BRINTON, L. J.; TRAUGOTT. E. C. Lexicalization and language change. Cambridge University Press, 2005.

BYBEE, J. Mechanisms of change in grammaticization: the role of frequency. In: JOSEPH, B. D.; JANDA, R. D. (eds.) The handbook of Historical Linguistics. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2003, p. 602-623.

DE FINA, A. An analysis of Spanish bien as a marker of classroom management in teacher-student interaction. Journal of Pragmatics, v. 28, p. 337-354, 1997.

DEFOUR, T. A diachronic study of the pragmatic markers well and now: Fundamental research into semantic development and grammaticalisation by means of a corpus study. 2007, PhD dissertation. Universiteit Gent, Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte, Vakgroep Engels, 2007, 339p.

DEGAND, L.; EVERS-VERMEUL, J. Grammaticalization or pragmaticalization of discourse markers? More than a terminological issue. Journal of Historical Pragmatics, v. 16, n. 1, p. 59-85, 2015. DOI:10.1075/jhp.16.1.03deg. Acesso em: 15 julho 2020.

DIEWALD, G. Pragmaticalization (defined) as grammaticalization of discourse functions. Linguistics, v. 49, n. 2, p. 365-390, 2011a. DOI 10.1515/LING.2011.011. Acesso em: 15 julho 2020.

DIEWALD, G. Grammaticalization and pragmaticalization. In: NARROG, H.; HEINE, B. (eds.). The Oxford handbook of grammaticalization. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011b, p. 450-461.

DU BOIS, J. W. The stance triangle. In: ENGLEBRETSON, R. (ed.). Stancetaking in discourse: subjectivity, evaluation, interaction. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 2007, p. 139-182.

GIVÓN, T. Syntax. v. 1. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 2001.

GIVÓN, T. On understanding grammar. New York, Academic Press, 1979.

GIVÓN, T. On understanding grammar. Revised edition. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 2018.

HALLIDAY, M. A. K. An introduction to functional grammar. 2. ed. London: Edward Arnold, 1994 [1985].

HEINE, B. On discourse markers: Grammaticalization, pragmaticalization, or something else? Linguistics, v. 51, n. 6, p. 1205-1247, 2013. DOI 10.1515/ling-2013-0048. Acesso em: 15 julho 2020.

HERITAGE, J. Well-prefaced turns in English conversation: A conversation analytic perspective. Journal of Pragmatics, v. 88, p. 88-104, 2015. DOI 10.1016/ j.pragma.2015.08.008. Acesso em: 18 julho 2020.

HIMMELMANN, N. P. Lexicalization and grammaticization: Opposite or orthogonal? In: BISANG, W.; HIMMELMANN, N. P.; WIEMER, B. (eds.). What makes grammaticalization: A look from its fringes and its components. Berlin/New York: De Gruyter Mouton, 2004, p. 21-42.

HOPPER, P. On some principles in the grammaticalization. In: TRAUGOTT, E. C.; HEINE, B. (eds.). Approaches to grammaticalization, v. 1. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 1991, p. 7-35.

HOPPER, P.; TRAUGOTT, E. Grammaticalization. 2. ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003.

MARTINS, L. ‘Bom’ e ‘bem’ e suas multifunções na fala da Região Sul do Brasil. (2003). 106f. Dissertação (Mestrado em Linguística) – Programa de Pós-Graduação em Linguística, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, 2003.

RISSO, M. S. Aspectos textuais-interativos dos marcadores discursivos de abertura bom, bem, olha, ah, no português culto falado. In: NEVES, M. H. de M. (org.). Gramática do português falado, v. VII. Novos estudos. São Paulo: Humanitas/USP; Campinas: Editora da Unicamp, 1999, p. 259-296.

RISSO, M. S. Marcadores discursivos basicamente sequenciadores. In: JUBRAN, C. C. A. S; KOCH, I. G. V. (orgs.). Gramática do português culto falado no Brasil, v. 1. Campinas/SP: Editora da Unicamp, 2006, p. 427-496.

SAKITA, T. Discourse markers as stance markers: Well in stance alignment in conversational interaction. Pragmatics & Cognition, v. 21, n. 1, p. 81-116, 2013. DOI 10.1075/pc.21.1.04sak. Acesso em: 18 julho 2020.

SERRANO, M. J. Bueno como marcador discursivo de inicio de turno y contraposicion: estudio sociolinguístico. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, v. 140, p. 115-133, 1999.

TAVARES, M. A. Um estudo variacionista de AÍ, DAÍ, ENTÃO e E como conectores sequenciadores retroativo-propulsores na fala de Florianópolis. (1999). 175f. Dissertação (Mestrado em Linguística) – Programa de Pós-Graduação em Linguística, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, 1999.

TRAUGOTT, E. C. The role of the development of discourse markers in a theory of grammaticalization. Manchester: Stanford University, p.1-29, 1995.

TRAUGOTT, E. C. From etymology to historical pragmatics. In: MINKOVA, D.; TOCKWELL, R. (eds.) Studying the history of the English language: Millennial perspectives. Berlin/New York: De Gruyter Mouton, 2002, p. 19-49.

TRAUGOTT, E. Constructions in Grammaticalization. In: JOSEPH, B. D.; JANDA, R. D. (eds.) The Handbook of Historical Linguistics. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2003, p. 624-647.

TRAUGOTT, E. C. All that he endeavoured to prove was...‟: On the emergence of grammatical constructions in dialogic contexts. In: COOPER, R.; KEMPSON, R. (eds.). Language in Flux: Dialogue Coordination, Language Variation, Change and Evolution. Londres: Kings College Publications, p. 143-177, 2008.

TRAUGOTT, E. C. Grammaticalization. In: LURAGHI, S.; BUBENIK, V. (eds.) Continuum companion to historical linguistics. London/New York: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2010a, p. 269-283.

TRAUGOTT, E. C. Revisiting subjectification and intersubjectification. In: DAVIDSE, K.; VANDELANOTTE, L.; CUYCKENS, H. (eds.) Subjectification, intersubjectification and grammaticalization. Berlin/New York: De Gruyter Mouton, 2010b, p. 29-70.

TRAUGOTT, E. C. Dialogic contexts as motivations for syntactic change. In: CLOUTIER, R. A.; HAMILTON-BREHM, A. M.; KRETZSCHMAR, W. A. (eds.) Variation and change in English grammar and lexicon: contemporary approaches. Berlin/New York: De Gruyter Mouton, 2010c, p. 11-27.

TRAUGOTT, E. C.; DASHER, R. B. Regularity in semantic change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.

TRAUGOTT, E.; HEINE, B. Instroduction. In: TRAUGOTT, E.; HEINE, B. (eds.) Approaches to grammaticalization, v. 1. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 1991, p. 01-14.

TRAVIS, C. Bueno: a Spanish interactive discourse marker. In: BERGEN, B. K.; PLAUCH´E, M. C.; BAILY, A. C. (eds.), PROCEEDINGS OF THE 24TH ANNUAL MEETING OF THE BERKELEY, LINGUISTICS SOCIETY, February, 14-16. Berkeley: University of California, Berkeley, p. 268-279, 1998.

VALLE, C. R. M.; GÖRSKI, E. M. Por um tratamento multidimensional da variação estilística na entrevista sociolinguística. In: GÖRSKI, E. M.; COELHO, I. L.; NUNES DE SOUZA, C. M. (Org.). Variação estilística: reflexões teórico-metodológicas e propostas de análise. Florianópolis: Insular, 2014, p. 93-121.

WALTEREIT, R.; DETGES, U. Different functions, different histories. Modal particles and discourse markers from a diachronic point of view. Catalan Journal of Linguistics, v. 6, p. 61-80, 2007.

WIERZBICKA, A. Semantics: primes and universals. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996.