A cognitive analysis of the obligation modal periphrasis: the equivalence between «deber + infinitivo» and «tener que + infinitivo»

Abstract

This paper offers a cognitive analysis of two Spanish modal periphrases often taken as equivalents: «deber + infinitivo» and «tener que + infinitivo». With this study, we will try to build a new metalinguistic image for these constructions that reaches beyond the ambiguous and often even contradictory characterizations made for them from the traditional linguistic approaches, by offering a schematic definition of the prototypical semantic value of each of this periphrasis. The result of this analysis will allow us to propose that the confusion around these constructions emerges from the fact that both of them depict the same conceptual profile, projected to two different conceptual backgrounds. The resultant metalinguistic image, solving this issue, offers the possibility of making a relevant contribution both in the theoretical field –by complementing the traditional descriptions– and as an application to teaching Spanish as a foreign language.