Interpretação de pronomes de primeira pessoa do plural

Abstract

In Brazilian Portuguese, first person plural pronouns (nós and a gente) codify  referents with higher or lower degree of comprehensiveness, encompassing a gradation between the edges generic <-> defined. On one edge, the class of humans is cited in a general way, on the other, the reference is set to the speech act, referring to both the speaker and the interlocutor (I + you ”“ tu/você). Because of its nominal base origin, the form a gente tends to be associated with more generic referents, i. e., higher comprehensiveness. However, sociolinguistic studies have evidenced an increase in the use of a gente in contexts of lower comprehensiveness, signaling a loss of semantic distinction. We argue that the variants nós and a gente present the same semantic value, co-occurring in al referential contexts. In order to demonstrate the loss of semantic restriction in the expression of first person plural, a discussion on the grammatical properties involved in the interpretation of pronouns is needed. The purpose of this squib is to present the interaction of the semantic categories person, number, definiteness, specificity, and genericity in the interpretation of the pronouns nós and a gente.