A construção modalizadora [(Suj) + ficar de + infinitivo] sob o viés funcionalista

Abstract

In this work, we investigate the construction [(SUBJ) + FICAR DE + INFINITIVE], in order to describe it formally and functionally, taking into account structural, semantic, cognitive and pragmatic aspects underlying in the use of its instantiations. We based on the Linguística Funcional Centrada no Uso, as dealt by Furtado da Cunha, Bispo e Silva (2013), in alliance with Construction Grammar, defended by researchers as Goldberg (1995), Croft (2001), Traugott e Trousdale (2013) among others. With regard to methodology, the research presents an eminent qualitative approach, with a basis on quantitative support and has a descriptive and explicative nature. The database is made up of occurrences taken from the website Reclame Aqui, that showed to be very favorable for the instances of use of the construction under investigation. As results ficar loses its properties of full verb, predicator, and become an auxiliary one, and can be used in different verbal forms (person and tenses), such as ficou de enviar, fica de retornar etc. and the SUBJECT slot of the construction can be filled by different forms. As to semantic aspects, there is no constraint in the type of verb gathered to fill in the INFINITIVE slot and its use is related to the notions of modality in its deontic and or epistemic aspects. We also observed that the instances of use of this construction are related to metonymic processes and questions of subjectivity and intersubjectivity in such a way that expresses the attitude of the speaker in relation to what he or she says (if he/she is sure or not, for example) and the effects he/she intends to cause to addressee (to persuade, to commit, to require an action, to assign to other person a given commitment etc.).