Eckhard Bick - VISL

demais [demais] DET M/F S/P @>N ‘other’
brasileiros [brasileiro] N M P @P< 'Brazilians'
(6b) historiadores [historiador] N M P @N ‘the’
sertão [sertão] N M S @P< ‘wilderness’
de [de] PRP @N< ‘of’
o [o] DET M S @>N '-'
Arkansas [Arkansas] PROP M/F S/P @P< ‘Arkansas'
(6d) vende entre os roqueiros
assim=como [assim=como] ADV @COM @#AS-N ‘-’
jazz [jazz] N M S @AS< 'jazz'
entre [entre] PRP @N< @N ‘the’
jazzófilos [jazzófilo] N M P @P< 'jazzophiles’
(6e) Segundo [segundo] ADV @COM @#AS-ADVL> ‘according to’
sua [seu] DET F S @>N ‘his’
estimativa [estimativa] N F S @AS< ‘estimate’
$,
In all of (6), the clause-internal function of the complementiser is that of comparator
(@COM), embodying the juxtaposition of what is compared and what it is compared to
in much the same way as a copula predicator (which is one of the arguments in favour
of a clausal analysis). Like copula verbs, however, such juxtaposing complementisers
can either predicate a “how” or a “what”. Compare (7a) an (7b), where the English
translation, ‘like’ and ‘as’, respectively, shows the difference. For Portuguese, CG-rules
can exploit article clues: como/like usually governs a non-definite NP, while como/as
usually governs an NP without an article.
(7a) Ele trabalhava como @COM um escravo. (‘He worked like a slave’)
- Ele é como um escravo. (‘He is like a slave [“slavish”]’)
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