Article published in:
Asymmetric EventsEdited by Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk
[Converging Evidence in Language and Communication Research 11] 2008
► pp. 227–243
12. The Portugese inflected infinitive and its conceptual basis
Augusto Soares da Silva | Catholic University of Braga
This paper offers a conceptual analysis of the Portuguese inflected (or personal) infinitive. The analysis makes use of a few concepts of Cognitive Grammar. The inflected infinitive is described as an objective construal of the main participant of a process type. This conceptual import is consistent with the grammatical behavior of the inflected infinitive. After giving an overview of the structural properties of the inflected infinitive in modern Portuguese, the paper will describe the continuum of event asymmetry in which the inflected infinitival clause holds an intermediate position between the subordinate finite clause and the infinitival clause. The meaning of the inflected infinitive is therefore characterized by imagery dimensions that are specific to subordinate constructions, namely independence, specificity, grounding, prominence and objectivity/subjectivity. Finally, some aspects relating to the distribution of inflected infinitival (complement, adverbial and subject) clauses will be analyzed in terms of semantic compatibility.
Keywords: adjunct clause, adverbial clause, adverbial constructions, causation, causative and perception verbs, clausal grounding, Cognitive Grammar, complement clause, declarative and epistemic verbs, event asymmetry, event integration/asymmetry, factive verbs, finite construction, grounding, imagery, impersonal constructions, indicative/subjunctive alternation, inflected infinitival construction, inflected infinitive, Langacker, modal verbs, nominal grounding, nominalization, objective construal, person category, Portuguese, sequential scanning, subject clause, subjectification, subjective construal, summary scanning, Though Raising construction, uninflected infinitival construction, viewing arrangement, volition verbs, word order
Published online: 15 May 2008
https://doi.org/10.1075/celcr.11.15sil
https://doi.org/10.1075/celcr.11.15sil
Cited by
Cited by 3 other publications
Rivas, Javier & Esther L. Brown
Vesterinen, Rainer
Álvarez de la Granja, María
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