Text Types and Verbal Periphrasis in Language

Instructional Texts: Guiding Future Actions

Instructional texts aim to teach the receiver how to regulate their conduct in the future, effectively directing, teaching, arranging, or advising them on performing actions.

Structure of Instructional Texts

• Objective: The purpose of the text, often brief and summarized in the title.
• Instructions: Steps presented in a logical (cause-effect) or chronological order, detailing orders, advice, or actions. Ideas are typically organized into paragraphs, each addressing a single topic or subtopic. Instructions may also be grouped into sections or subsections.

Linguistic Characteristics of Instructional Texts

• Verbal Forms: Frequent use of conative verbal forms or appeals (e.g., must do, has to do).
• Person: Use of the second person, as the text directly addresses the receiver.
• Lexicon: Typically denotative and precise, reflecting the utilitarian nature of these texts. Technical terms specific to the field (e.g., legal, technical, computer, culinary) are common.
• Syntax: Generally simple, with concise sentences.
• Typographical Resources: Characteristic features that enhance readability include spatial arrangement, headings and subheadings, indents, and underlining.
• Visual Aids: Often incorporate graphics and illustrations.

Predictive Texts: Foretelling Future Events

Predictive texts aim to inform about future events or states, proclaiming what is expected to occur. Examples include horoscopes, prophecies, and manifestos.

Structure of Predictive Texts

Information is typically organized by topic.

Linguistic Features of Predictive Texts

• Tense: The most characteristic linguistic form is the use of the future tense, though other tenses or paraphrases of possibility may also appear.
• Adverbs and Connectors: Adverbs of time, temporal connectors, and conditional sentences are also commonly used.

Understanding Verbal Periphrasis

Manner Periphrasis: Speaker's Attitude

Manner periphrasis conveys the speaker's attitude towards the verbal action.

• Liability

  Indicates obligation or necessity. Examples: tener que, deber, haber de, haber que.

• Probability or Assumption

  Expresses likelihood or conjecture. Examples: venir a, deber de.

• Possibility

  Denotes capability or permission. Example: poder.

Aspectual Periphrasis: Action Development

Aspectual periphrasis describes the development or phase of the verbal action.

• Inchoative/Ingressive

  Indicates the beginning of an action. Examples: ir a, estar por, estar a punto de, empezar a, romper a, echarse a, ponerse a.

• Frequentative

  Indicates habitual action. Example: soler.

• Iterative/Repetitive

  Indicates repetition. Example: volver a.

• Durative

  Indicates an action in progress. Examples: estar, andar, venir, ir, seguir.

• Terminative/Completive

  Indicates the end of an action. Examples: dejar de, acabar de, terminar de, llegar a, cesar de.

• Resultative/Perfective

  Indicates the result or completion of an action. Examples: traer, llevar, quedar, estar, tener, tomar, verse, sentirse.