Portuguese interface with sign language in publications of a deaf professor in social network

Abstract

The article focuses on the interface of Portuguese with sign language in publications posted by a deaf professor on his personal page on Facebook social network during the year 2017. The motivation for the chosen scenario was the possibility of observing communicative practices that constitute the social participation of deaf users. From a qualitative-interpretative analysis, theoretically informed by an expanded sociolinguistic perspective of the concept of language, we explore the set of publications and the audience engagement through comments to show specificities about the interaction between linguistic resources of Portuguese and sign language used. These interactions are also intersected by semiotic features widely used on the internet (images, memes, gifs), and show a more complex concept of multilingualism interwoven with ideological constructions about language and deaf people.

Keywords:
Deafness; Multilingualism; Portuguese; Sign Language; Online digital spaces