The perception of imperative forms from the comics of Turma da Mônica Jovem and Chico Bento Moço

Abstract

In this article, we present a research on the perception of linguistic variation of indicative and subjunctive forms in the expression of imperative mood in Brazilian Portuguese. Based on studies by Scherre (2008; 2012), an increase in the use of indicative forms in Turma da Mônica magazines can be seen, from 7% in 1970 to 81% in 2010 and, based on this result, the hypothesis is that the participants of this experiment mostly prefer the forms in the indicative, both in choosing which forms the characters would use and the forms that the participants would use.We applied a questionnaire, carried out on the Google forms platform, with clippings from the magazines Turma da Mônica Jovem and Chico Bento Moço, both written by Maurício de Sousa, so that the participants indicated, at first, which forms the characters would use and, then, which ones they would use themselves. The responses of 875 participants were analyzed, most of whom were young, female and residing in the southeastern region of Brazil. The results achieved in this study demonstrate a greater tendency to choose the form associated with the indicative in contexts that show the rurality trait of the characters, in the presence of the vocative after the verb, in the immediate temporal context, in affirmative sentences and when the negation is post-verbal. On the other hand, the subjunctive form is favored in communicative situations in which the context of authority is highlighted, in the non-immediate temporal context, in sentences in which the negation is pre-verbal and in the presence of the vocative before the verb.