RCAAP Repository

In this article, we present the poem Província, written by Cecília Meireles, considering its traditional resources. We also study the images of the city and the time changes. The theoretical approach includes Hegel and Adorno.

Manuel Bandeira has been considered by critics the introducer of free verse in Brazilian poetry as well as the forerunner of our modern lyrics. Nevertheless, the author seems not to consider this position given to him. This artricle aims to discuss this issue and show the characteristics of Banderian poetry that put him at the forefront of the Brazilian modernist movement.

Dès les premiers ouvrages de Cecília Meireles, il est possible d’identifier dans certains des poèmes l’allusion périodique à un “centre” (axi mundi), un lieu intermédiaire, temporairement atteint par le Moi-lyrique, qui contient en soi la plénitude et l’énergie de la source de la Vie et permet l’intuition de l’Intelligible ou de l’Absolu. Henry Corbin nomme ce point d’intersection mundus imaginalis; il se vaut du latin pour traduire l’expression arabe du soufi andalou Ibn Arabî. Ce monde intermédiaire – des idées-images, des figures-archétypes, des corps subtils, de la “matière immatérielle” – se situerait entre l’univers saisissable par la pure perception intellectuelle (l’univers des intelligences chérubiniques) et l’univers perceptible par les sens. Les poèmes Medida da significação [Mesure de la signification] du livre Viagem (1939) et O enorme vestíbulo [L’énorme vestibule) de Retrato natural (1949) illustrent cette figuration propre à l’auteur, particulièrement présente dans son dernier ouvrage: Solombra (1963).

This study examines Mario Quintana’s work, highliting, in his poems, the presence of a kind of theory of poetics, a distinctive element of modern poetry. The analysis has shown that in his work the poet theorizes, particularly, about the communication with the readers, reacting against the – also modern – phenomenon of lack of communication.

Le Poema sujo [Poème sale], de Ferreira Gullar, est le corps lyrique à partir duquel est spéculée l’existence de la voix d’un sujet historique transformée en un langage qui accueille en même temps le passé et le présent. Cette voix possède l’apparence du réel sans l’être, elle est porteuse de signes qui attestent de l’objet temporel tout en le rendant éternel. En partant du régime esthétique de l’art proposé par Jacques Rancière et l’idée de mémoire engagée – une synthèse théorique des propositions de Jean-Paul Sartre et Paul Ricoeur – ce travail analyse le double caractère de ce poème jusqu’alors simplement perçu comme mémorialistique, en affirmant le dasein d’une poétique mêlant pensée et langage.

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The concept of journey relies on two bases. The first one consists in being in movement, the periplus itself. The second basis aims the self recognition through the knowledge of others, which also includes a collective identification, inserted in the idea of nationality and the universalist project, as occurred in the 1920s. Considering the identitary aspect involving the act of travelling, it was adopted the habit of writing letters as a procedure of approach and exchange of news, experiences and sensations. These bases were not left out of account by Ronald de Carvalho (1893-1935), a writer who incorporated a part of the modernist project platform in the diplomatic exercise. In this context, he wrote Toda a América (1926), a book of poetry. Dialoguing with some subjects of the literary tradition, the apprehended poetic speech suggests displacements, not only in space, but also includes a more extensive and symbolic dynamics, which points out the sensorial comprehension of Brazil integrated to the American characteristics. Being the subject conducted in this direction, this current essay has the purpose of examining Toda a América. The aim is not to define it but to submit it to the requirements of the modernist program in progress.

Cet article étudie une partie de la production poétique d’Ana Cristina Cesar dans le but d’analyser de quelle manière elle effectue certaines opérations pour réinventer le lyrisme dans sa pratique.

Some questions about Linguistics, Psycholinguistics and Neurosciences interfaces are presented and discussed, specially the ontological incommensurability and the granularity problem (Poepp el and Embick, 2005), which gains new outlines when they are analyzed under a Reduction Problem of the Philosophy of Mind perspective (Heil, 1998; Teixeira, 2000). From this point of view, both problems can be investigated from the solutions of this problem which were formulated in the identity theories, reductionism, functionalism and supervenience philosophical theories fields. The relevance of these proposals is evaluated concerning incommensurability and the granularity, whose study is considered fundamental in the research of possible interfaces between language sciences.

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This work discusses some ideas of language acquisition borne in the beginning of the Generative enterprise and still quite alive today such as the concept of Universal Grammar (UG) a constant among the various phases of the Theory.

Chomsky and Pinker have been involved in a debate on issues concerning the nature of human language, its history, how it is acquired and how it develops. Although both represent a biological understanding of language, Chomsky with the idea of an innate universal grammar and Pinker with the vision of an evolving form of instinct, there are many differences between them, culminating in one of the most recent clashes cast, centrally, in Chomsky, Hauser & Fitch (CHF) (2002) e Fitch, Hauser & Chomsky (FHC) (2005) vs Pinker & Jackendoff (PJ) (2005a) e Jackendoff & Pinker (JP) (2005b). The items in dispute, especially about how language emerges in the human species, has caused impacts on the direction of the field of Linguistics and Evolutionary Psychology devoted to natural language. The following text describes and evaluates the debate on the agenda regarding their most specific aspects and most important consequences.

The contribution of neuroscience findings for the study of human language is an ever-present reality. Professionals in the field of literacy can find explanations on these findings and possible applications in their teaching practice. The goal of our work is to present a holistic view on human cognition and engage with the acquisition of language. For this we offer a brief description of the enactive theory (holistic). The relations established between the issues discussed can contribute to a different perception of the language acquisition process.

The present work claims that what studies have taken to be L2 syntax can be attributed to L1 influence at the SM interface, to morpho(phono)logy and phonology and a reanalysis of the phenomena is needed.

In light of the predictions of two competing approaches to adult L2 acquisition – Full Access (FA) (e.g., White 1989, 2003; Schwartz & Sprouse 1996) and Failed Features (FF) (e.g., Hawkins & Chan 1997; Liceras & Díaz, 1999) – the present study examines the acquisition of inflected infinitives by English and Spanish/English bilingual adult learners of L2 Portuguese. Target-like acquisition of inflected infinitives requires the resetting of both a syntactic parameter (the Null Subject Parameter) and a morphological parameter (the Infl-parameter) for these learners. Since FF approaches maintain a post-critical period failure to acquire new L2 features lacking from the L1, target-like acquisition is predicted to not be possible. Conversely, FA approaches, which maintain adult parameter resetting is possible, predict that native-like competence of inflected infinitives is attainable, but not inevitably so. The data we present support FA approaches, demonstrating that advanced adult learners achieve native-like interpretative knowledge of Portuguese inflected infinitives. We also consider the role of L1 transfer and its possible implications, as they differ for both groups.

This study presents an experiment on the L2 acquisition of the Overt Pronoun Constraint (OPC), a universal principle that refers to the fact that null subject languages do not allow for an overt pronoun to be bound by a quantified antecedent (e.g. *Ninguémi acha que elei é estúpido). The objective of the experiment was to test the knowledge of this principle by native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese (BP) and speakers of English and English-Spanish bilinguals, L2 and L3 learners of BP, respectively. The central question of this research is whether native BP speakers are more likely to observe the principle or not, but also whether L2 and L3 learners of BP would behave like native speakers, like speakers of a typical null subject language or according to their native language. Assuming Universal Bilingualism by Roeper (1999) and using an experimental task based on Kanno (1997) and Rothman and Iverson (2007 a-c), it was found that native BP controls did not behave like typical null subject language speakers with respect to the OPC. Moreover, the L2 and L3 learners of BP behaved similarly to the controls, independently of their previously acquired languages.

The purpose of the present paper is to compare the use of hedges among Brazilian speakers of Portuguese and Portuguese learners, who speak Mandarin as L1. A definition for hedges was suggested and a listing of occurrences of this phenomenon in the linguistic system of Brazilian Portuguese and Portuguese as Additional Language was presented. Then, a methodology for the compilation of the two oral corpora was presented, by means of a longitudinal study that lasted nine months. The data analysis was based on the new classification of hedges, with the aim of comparing the productions in Brazilian Portuguese and Portuguese as Additional Language. This study is an attempt to analyze hedges utilizing Corpus Linguistics and the aim was to contribute to a methodology for the acquisition process of Portuguese as an Additional Language.

Currently, there has been a large number of studies involving pronunciation and pronunciation teaching. However, the role of explicit instruction has received very little attention in this field. This research study aims to investigate the effects of explicit instruction on the production of the voiceless plosive /p/ in word-initial position in English. We have carried out quantitative analyses involving 12 Brazilian native speakers who have been studying English as a second language. Participants were divided in 2 groups: (a) an Experimental Group, which received contextualized pronunciation classes on aspiration; and (b) a Control Group, which did not receive any kind of instruction. Prior to classes, participants took a production test both in English and in Portuguese, which allowed us to measure their Voice Onset Time (VOT) values in milliseconds (ms). Following the instruction classes, participants took the same test again, so that their progress could be assessed. The tests consisted of a list of words with word-initial /p/ as well as distracters. Our data show that explicit instruction contributed to an increase in the averages of VOT produced by the participants in the Experimental Group. On the other hand, the Control Group did not produce the aspirated /p/ in a target-like manner. Overall, explicit instruction with contextualization has proved to have a positive effect on the acquisition of aspirated /p/ by Brazilian speakers.

Integrated to acts of reference, metadiscourse refers to those reflexive movements made by speakers on their own statements or on others' statements during interaction. Referential metadiscourse occurs in order to signal the construction of social meaning and the way conversation is organized and managed. Two hypotheses guide this article: i) referential acts constitute an important way to give visibility to the relationship between language and cognition; observing these acts, we can understand how interactants contextualize and construct social meaning; ii) the two types of referential metadiscourse – textual and interactional (acc. Jubran, 2002, 2005) – make evident different reflexive actions performed by individuals with aphasia and Alzheimer's disease.

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