Dimensions of Possession - elchacocomoarealinguistica

(In)alienability and (in)determination in Portuguese 229Subject (11.9%)O seu rosto de porcelana, com olhos dum azul incandescente e cabelos cor depalha, era um modelo de perfeição [. . .].(J. de Melo, Gente feliz com lágrimas,194)‘His china face, with incandescent blue eyes and straw hair, was a model ofperfection’Indirect Object (1 item)Os olhos piscavam mais intensamente por detrás dos óculos redondos e brancos,sob a intrincada cabeleira que lhe roubava espaço à testa. (A. Faria, Emenda esoneto, 195)‘The eyes were blinking more intensely behind the round and white spectacles,beneath the knotty hair which was robbing him of space on the front’2.2 Syntactic functions of the PossessorYet, if we examine the syntactic functions of the NP denoting the possessor ofthe respective body part(s) (‘NPP’), it appears that the Portuguese languagediffers clearly from French and Spanish. In Portuguese the NPP is expressed inorder of preference by: 14Subject function (56%)O Escritor ri, encolhe os ombros e abre os braços [...]. (M. Alegre, Jornada deÁfrica, 157)‘The Author laughs, shrugs the shoulders and opens the arms’Indirect Object (24.4%)Amei-lhe as grandes mãos [. . .].(J. de Melo, Gente feliz com lágrimas, 420)‘I loved him the big hands’Pragmatic/discursive factors (10%)Recusa-se a revê-la assim, figura de barro mirando-se na água enegrecida pelasnuvens. Procura os olhos azuis de outrora, os negros cabelos vivos [. . .].(J.deMelo,Gente feliz com lágrimas, 313)‘He refuses to see her again like this, a figure of mud contemplating itself inthe water darkened by the clouds. He searches for the formerly blue eyes, thedark and lively hair’