A metáfora e a crítica social em O Quinze, de Rachel de Queiroz: um enfoque da Linguística Sistêmico-Funcional

Abstract

The purpose of this doctoral dissertation is to examine the social criticism in Rachel de Queiroz's novel O Quinze, which deals with the great drought occurred in 1915, experienced by the author herself as a child. The analysis, when dealing with the lexicogrammatical choices of the text, considers these structures within the framework of a metaphor that not only permeates and dominates the whole plot, but also forms the center of its argumentative structure. In this context, lexical choice is an eminent aspect of the text in which hidden opinions and ideologies can surface. Lexical choice for cohesion builds meanings in discourse that transcend the referential meanings of each word through the interaction of lexical items that relate semantically and pragmatically. This view is consistent with the conceptual theory of metaphor. As an ontological and epistemic mapping through conceptual domains (from source to target), metaphor is not only a matter of language, but also a concept closely linked to thought and reasoning, which has sociopolitical consequences. On the other hand, the research also deals with the some of the mechanisms by which narrative works on the reader — enabling him to "feel with” the characters. The research takes into consideration the notion of bakhtinian dialogism, through wich the text dialogues with readers, involving them in the processes of both persuasion and criticism. These processes require a “relational” reading, which, relying on linguistic resources, provides emotion and ethics in a specific way to co-create complexes of higher-order meaning, or metarrelations, which position readers to adopt specific attitudes toward characters. The research relies on the theoretical-methodological proposal of Systemic-Functional Linguistics (SFL), a multiperspective model, designed to give analysts complementary lenses for the interpretation of the language in use, as well as other theories that deal with intersubjectivism, metarrelation and appraisal. This research answers the following questions: (a) How is the relationship between language and literature made by the SFL in O Quinze? (b) What is the role of metaphor in social criticism in the novel? (c) What is the role of transitivity and appraisal in the persuasive process in the discourse?