La modalidad deóntica en webcomentarios: un estudio Funcionalista en lengua española

Abstract

In the field of linguistic studies, the linguistic category model occupies a great space. Namely, the linguistic model works as an expression of subjectivity and can be defined as the attitude of speaker respect to what they say. Unlike the logic system, which considers mainly the notions of possibility or necessity of the truth of a proposition and works as an evaluation of them, the linguistic model extends beyond the notions of possible and necessary embracing, then, different portions of content and any possible linguistic means by which the speaker articulates his speech, according to its commitment to the truth of what is being stated. However, many writers comment the little attention has been directed to the interrelationship between the linguistic category model and the discursive construction. In this linguistic category model, the deontic modality deserves attention that works for the notion of conduct by the speaker, and is linked to the obligation, permission and prohibition of values. Regarding the argument, the deontic modality has a large field of action, since the deontic modality also plays a role in the construction of conviction. Based on this principle, we address a study of deontic modality in the Spanish language, analyzing, then, texts from the webcomments genre with an argumentative character. Facing the need of a study aimed at expressions identified in real situations of discourse processing, we adopted a functionalist analysis, once, in perspective, the language is seen as a flexible system whose main function is the interaction and can not be studied outside its communicative context. For this, a quantitative and qualitative analysis of online comments, extracted from two Spanish journals, was developed, thus constituting a corpus of study of approximately 20,000 words, in order to observe how native speakers of Spanish language conduct their speeches in a way to argue and build persuasion strategies, and to evaluate how it’s used or not expressions of deontic context. This study also aims to observe and explain the discursive construction of the Spanish language, in order to obtain, in the future, a possible understanding of the communicative orientation of the language, as well as to provide assistance to Spanish teachers (as a first or second language), and to finally fill possible gaps in communicative understanding, offering subsidies for future studies in the areas of linguistic knowledge. Through our studies, we come to a conclusion of a frequent use of the modal obligation in webcomment genre, using de auxiliary modals, expressed primarily in Present Time and Indicative Mode, in order to provide a value of eternal true of discourse, with a fountain in speaker and target no specified in order to preserve the reader. The results prove great usefulness of deontic modality in construction of the persuasion in webcomment genre.