Modern Portuguese: A Reference Grammar
by Mario A. Perini
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List Price: $60.00
Our Price: $47.99
Your Save: $ 12.01 ( 20% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Yale University Press
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 469.798
EAN: 9780300091557
ISBN: 0300091559
Label: Yale University Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 592
Publication Date: 2002-05-01
Publisher: Yale University Press
Studio: Yale University Press
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: One of a kind for spoken Brazilian Portuguese
Comment: This book was a tremendous relief to find. I had searched high and low for a book that not only laid out Portuguese grammar with precision -- a hard find in itself -- but one that specifically addressed spoken Brazilian usage. Spoken Brazilian Portuguese is the language of my family, and I wanted a text that would help me brush up while avoiding preaching the formal Portuguese of mesoclitics and the pronouns "tu" and "vós."
The author's approach, which satisfies my needs perfectly, has been attacked here for elevating something akin to ghetto speech. I bristle at the suggestion that spoken Brazilian is unworthy of a serious linguistic study, and I won't stand for the gratuitous sideswipe at "uneducated South African speech" in an earlier review. There are plenty of books on the market that address literary Portuguese; we need at least one that will help those in search of an education in the vernacular of Brazil. This book does not deal with "street" or "uneducated" Portuguese; it examines the everyday language of a massive and important country, the study of which nobody should criticize. (For the record, this book does thoroughly cover literary Portuguese as well.)
This volume is well worth the cost. I can't recommend it enough.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Highly Recommended. Unorthodox, but gets the job done.
Comment: I bought this book a few years ago while I was in Spain studying Spanish and trying to teach myself Portuguese. I'm writing this review now because I feel like I can look at it objectively and give the pros and cons.
I still have an issue with how this book is organized, it seems sporadic to me. Especially since it is made to be a "reference grammar", it certainly goes back and forth quite a bit. This can be a good thing or a bad thing, because most other grammar books are pretty damn boring, but regardless, I find this book to be oddly organized.
The author does an excellent job of explaining a lot of the more complex parts of Portuguese grammar, this is without a doubt. There are plenty of accurate examples within the chapters. My only complaint about the way it is written is that he gets fairly subjective at times, which isn't good when you're trying to teach grammar. He tends to do this most when talking about modern use of the language, and while I respect and understand his credentials, I do think he generalizes and exaggerates a bit too much.
An example of this is when he says "it is becoming increasingly more common for Brazilian women and girls to say "obrigado" instead of "obrigada" because there is less emphasis on subject/adjective agreement" (I'm paraphrasing obviously). I have never once encountered a Brazilian female that says "obrigado"... and there numerous times in this book where he makes similar claims that I'm not so sure should be in a "reference grammar".
All in all, despite my small gripes, after studying this book on my own for a few months, without any real vocal examples or practice (he does a great job of explaining brazilian phonetics), I was able to jump right into advanced literature and grammar classes when I came back to the USA and understand, read, write and speak Portuguese. I eventually ended up with a Minor in Portuguese, and hopefully I will be teaching Spanish and Portuguese in a few months. Bottom line, this book certainly got the job done for me, and I highly recommend it. Just remember that it's written by one man, and at times he does get a bit subjective.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Very Sound Scholarship
Comment: This book has gotten some very unfair reviews from some very uneducated people here. This book is a reference grammar, which means that it chronicles the entire speech continuum (from the acrolect to the basilect). In this respect, it is very similar in scope to John Butt and Carmen Benjamin's "A New Reference Grammar of Modern Spanish" and Martin Maiden and Cecilia Robustelli's "A Reference Grammar of Modern Italian" - two other great works which chronicle both the standard language AND more colloquial varieties.
It is NOT a traditional grammar. This book, while it does manage to convey grammatical knowledge useful to the learner, also discusses linguistic forms which teachers would stigmatize. That is precisely because it is a reference grammar - the purpose of a reference grammar is to document the language as it is spoken, not necessarily to serve as a didactic tool. If you must judge this book, do so on the criterion of linguistic documentation - you will find that it is a stellar work.
Customer Rating:
Summary: We have despised the past, and have to accept the present
Comment: I teach Portuguese and I favor teaching through the most confortable, fun and natural way I can provide to my students. They will have to cope with my accent and then it is their choice to choose which one to pick afterwards.
Modern Portuguese is a courageous book which tells the true about the choice of having to communicate with the colloquialism of the Brazilian Portuguese that most Brazilians use everyday. Brazilians speak accordingly to the circle where they inhabit and can adapt to whatever circle they transit in, on and within. As a proof they all, educated and uneducated, curse with the same words -- and nothing better to prove the domain of passion and teh colloquial than the use of cursing and furious slang on the sincerity of Brazilians' everyday. Educated Brazilians, naturally have more flexibility in moving amid the shapeless spaces of knowledge and nothing can be considered more natural than that; so, people who had more classical opportunities will have advantages and, naturally as a right of the fittest and birth, will try to defend their turf accordingly.
Educated Brazilians despise colloquial language because they despise the poor and what they represent (a threat), out of fear. As a Brazilian who lives overseas, and who travelled back many times can really see the reality from an insider and outsider's point of view. Educated Brazilians are just what they are because what they know is constantly being built on the colloquial, for instance the word "você", why do educated Brazilians use it? They do use 'você' everyday but they in fact should use "vossa mercê" where it derives from. By using 'você' they are contradicting themselves by denying their use of real colloquialism. The language evolves they say, then, way use regressive verb forms such "suspenso" instead "suspendido" or "pago" instead "pagado" and etc. There is a denial of the evolving of the language, it seems.
Finally, remember one thing though, the main reason for critique, I assume, comes from Rio de Janeiro's cariocas, because the book moves away from the hegemony of teaching the carioca variation, concentrating it in the remainder vast majority, including São Paulo and Minas gerais. I assume that all variations and accents are beautiful and their use depend on trend, taste and confort.
Out of respect, all levels of knowledge formal or informal should be respected and from the colloquial to the highest type of erudition that language can reach they all have a place and time and should happen respectively and freely.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Cause for concern
Comment: I teach Portuguese Foreign Language and try to keep up to date on any new books being published. I read this one a while ago and what I am saying now is the product of a long reflection, not rushed comments.
I find two major causes for concern in this book. As a descriptive or normative grammar (it appears to seek to be both), it works within unconventional grammar categories. Classification is blurred for example between nominal and verbal features and between verb tenses and their functions, in particular imperative and subjunctive.
Another point of concern is the stratification of the Portuguese language in this book in which the following is gathered into one category: Brazilian formal language, European Portuguese and old literary language. In contrast, Brazilian colloquial usage is presented as the one to go for, a sort of standard status.
Most of us tend to use different registers, we do so in Portugal too, but we would not proclaim that the colloquial version is the one to be proclaimed as standard. It is relaxed, not always grammatically correct, but it can be fun. However, we should know better and teach better those who are trying to learn the language.
In Portugal we enjoy Brazilian telenovelas (soap operas) but the language we hear in them only occasionally corresponds to the Portuguese advocated in this grammar and, where it does, it is made obvious that it is a colloquial version not a standard one. Also when I open a Brazilian newspaper, magazine or website, the Portuguese I come across is not the Portuguese advocated in this grammar but the more educated brand.
As a final note, this grammar classifies European Portuguese (on a par with formal language and old literary language), but shows a lack of knowledge of it, even in elementary matters. For example, it says that in Portugal we spell "commigo" (double m) for "with me", but we do not, we spell "comigo", the same as in Brazil. How can a grammar that knows so little about European Portuguese comment on it!
I wish I could give more than two stars to this book but unfortunately I can not. I find it very inadequate, a cause for concern.
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Editorial Reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: One of a kind for spoken Brazilian Portuguese
Comment: This book was a tremendous relief to find. I had searched high and low for a book that not only laid out Portuguese grammar with precision -- a hard find in itself -- but one that specifically addressed spoken Brazilian usage. Spoken Brazilian Portuguese is the language of my family, and I wanted a text that would help me brush up while avoiding preaching the formal Portuguese of mesoclitics and the pronouns "tu" and "vós."
The author's approach, which satisfies my needs perfectly, has been attacked here for elevating something akin to ghetto speech. I bristle at the suggestion that spoken Brazilian is unworthy of a serious linguistic study, and I won't stand for the gratuitous sideswipe at "uneducated South African speech" in an earlier review. There are plenty of books on the market that address literary Portuguese; we need at least one that will help those in search of an education in the vernacular of Brazil. This book does not deal with "street" or "uneducated" Portuguese; it examines the everyday language of a massive and important country, the study of which nobody should criticize. (For the record, this book does thoroughly cover literary Portuguese as well.)
This volume is well worth the cost. I can't recommend it enough.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Highly Recommended. Unorthodox, but gets the job done.
Comment: I bought this book a few years ago while I was in Spain studying Spanish and trying to teach myself Portuguese. I'm writing this review now because I feel like I can look at it objectively and give the pros and cons.
I still have an issue with how this book is organized, it seems sporadic to me. Especially since it is made to be a "reference grammar", it certainly goes back and forth quite a bit. This can be a good thing or a bad thing, because most other grammar books are pretty damn boring, but regardless, I find this book to be oddly organized.
The author does an excellent job of explaining a lot of the more complex parts of Portuguese grammar, this is without a doubt. There are plenty of accurate examples within the chapters. My only complaint about the way it is written is that he gets fairly subjective at times, which isn't good when you're trying to teach grammar. He tends to do this most when talking about modern use of the language, and while I respect and understand his credentials, I do think he generalizes and exaggerates a bit too much.
An example of this is when he says "it is becoming increasingly more common for Brazilian women and girls to say "obrigado" instead of "obrigada" because there is less emphasis on subject/adjective agreement" (I'm paraphrasing obviously). I have never once encountered a Brazilian female that says "obrigado"... and there numerous times in this book where he makes similar claims that I'm not so sure should be in a "reference grammar".
All in all, despite my small gripes, after studying this book on my own for a few months, without any real vocal examples or practice (he does a great job of explaining brazilian phonetics), I was able to jump right into advanced literature and grammar classes when I came back to the USA and understand, read, write and speak Portuguese. I eventually ended up with a Minor in Portuguese, and hopefully I will be teaching Spanish and Portuguese in a few months. Bottom line, this book certainly got the job done for me, and I highly recommend it. Just remember that it's written by one man, and at times he does get a bit subjective.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Very Sound Scholarship
Comment: This book has gotten some very unfair reviews from some very uneducated people here. This book is a reference grammar, which means that it chronicles the entire speech continuum (from the acrolect to the basilect). In this respect, it is very similar in scope to John Butt and Carmen Benjamin's "A New Reference Grammar of Modern Spanish" and Martin Maiden and Cecilia Robustelli's "A Reference Grammar of Modern Italian" - two other great works which chronicle both the standard language AND more colloquial varieties.
It is NOT a traditional grammar. This book, while it does manage to convey grammatical knowledge useful to the learner, also discusses linguistic forms which teachers would stigmatize. That is precisely because it is a reference grammar - the purpose of a reference grammar is to document the language as it is spoken, not necessarily to serve as a didactic tool. If you must judge this book, do so on the criterion of linguistic documentation - you will find that it is a stellar work.
Customer Rating:
Summary: We have despised the past, and have to accept the present
Comment: I teach Portuguese and I favor teaching through the most confortable, fun and natural way I can provide to my students. They will have to cope with my accent and then it is their choice to choose which one to pick afterwards.
Modern Portuguese is a courageous book which tells the true about the choice of having to communicate with the colloquialism of the Brazilian Portuguese that most Brazilians use everyday. Brazilians speak accordingly to the circle where they inhabit and can adapt to whatever circle they transit in, on and within. As a proof they all, educated and uneducated, curse with the same words -- and nothing better to prove the domain of passion and teh colloquial than the use of cursing and furious slang on the sincerity of Brazilians' everyday. Educated Brazilians, naturally have more flexibility in moving amid the shapeless spaces of knowledge and nothing can be considered more natural than that; so, people who had more classical opportunities will have advantages and, naturally as a right of the fittest and birth, will try to defend their turf accordingly.
Educated Brazilians despise colloquial language because they despise the poor and what they represent (a threat), out of fear. As a Brazilian who lives overseas, and who travelled back many times can really see the reality from an insider and outsider's point of view. Educated Brazilians are just what they are because what they know is constantly being built on the colloquial, for instance the word "você", why do educated Brazilians use it? They do use 'você' everyday but they in fact should use "vossa mercê" where it derives from. By using 'você' they are contradicting themselves by denying their use of real colloquialism. The language evolves they say, then, way use regressive verb forms such "suspenso" instead "suspendido" or "pago" instead "pagado" and etc. There is a denial of the evolving of the language, it seems.
Finally, remember one thing though, the main reason for critique, I assume, comes from Rio de Janeiro's cariocas, because the book moves away from the hegemony of teaching the carioca variation, concentrating it in the remainder vast majority, including São Paulo and Minas gerais. I assume that all variations and accents are beautiful and their use depend on trend, taste and confort.
Out of respect, all levels of knowledge formal or informal should be respected and from the colloquial to the highest type of erudition that language can reach they all have a place and time and should happen respectively and freely.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Cause for concern
Comment: I teach Portuguese Foreign Language and try to keep up to date on any new books being published. I read this one a while ago and what I am saying now is the product of a long reflection, not rushed comments.
I find two major causes for concern in this book. As a descriptive or normative grammar (it appears to seek to be both), it works within unconventional grammar categories. Classification is blurred for example between nominal and verbal features and between verb tenses and their functions, in particular imperative and subjunctive.
Another point of concern is the stratification of the Portuguese language in this book in which the following is gathered into one category: Brazilian formal language, European Portuguese and old literary language. In contrast, Brazilian colloquial usage is presented as the one to go for, a sort of standard status.
Most of us tend to use different registers, we do so in Portugal too, but we would not proclaim that the colloquial version is the one to be proclaimed as standard. It is relaxed, not always grammatically correct, but it can be fun. However, we should know better and teach better those who are trying to learn the language.
In Portugal we enjoy Brazilian telenovelas (soap operas) but the language we hear in them only occasionally corresponds to the Portuguese advocated in this grammar and, where it does, it is made obvious that it is a colloquial version not a standard one. Also when I open a Brazilian newspaper, magazine or website, the Portuguese I come across is not the Portuguese advocated in this grammar but the more educated brand.
As a final note, this grammar classifies European Portuguese (on a par with formal language and old literary language), but shows a lack of knowledge of it, even in elementary matters. For example, it says that in Portugal we spell "commigo" (double m) for "with me", but we do not, we spell "comigo", the same as in Brazil. How can a grammar that knows so little about European Portuguese comment on it!
I wish I could give more than two stars to this book but unfortunately I can not. I find it very inadequate, a cause for concern.
A comprehensive modern Portuguese grammar written for the English-speaking reader. It covers in detail all the patterns of modern Portuguese as spoken and written in Brazil, focusing on those points which are especially challenging for the English-speaking student, such as the use of the subjunctive, use of the definite article, preterite versus imperfect verb forms, prepositions, and many others. There are examples to clarify every topic and an extensive index is included. The key features of the volume are: it focuses on the needs of the English-speaking reader; it incorporates the results of linguistic research in jargon-free language; it emphasizes modern spoken Brazilian usage; it describes Brazilian pronunciation in detail; it devotes a separate chapter to spelling problems; and it discusses trends of the modern spoken language.
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