Textos Videossinalizados na Internet: Uma Descrição Centrada no Uso da Libras no Meio Eletrônico

The growing participation of deaf people in society has expanded the possibilities for spreading sign languages, cultural and linguistic immersion, building identities and exchanging experiences among deaf people. These interactions, throughout history, were limited to churches, communities and associations of deaf people, gained new spaces, thanks to the formulation of linguistic and public policies aimed at deaf people and, above all, the advent of technology. The internet, as a significant product of technological advances, has consolidated itself as a potential space for engagement between signaling users, driving new dynamics of communication and interaction. In the words of Marcuschi (2010a, p. 16) “the internet is a kind of prototype of new forms of communicative behavior” and constitutes the largest existing linguistic corpus (Crystal, 2011). Its data storage capacity and management resources, which are increasingly interactive, have favored the manifestation of different forms of language and, mainly, the accommodation of complex linguistic systems such as visual-spatial ones. In view of this, this research focuses on situations of use of the Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) in the electronic environment, aiming to increase visibility about Libras, its signers and the resources for expanding political, linguistic and social strength. This thesis aims to characterize how the categories of speaking, writing and interaction with deaf people affect the linguistic realization of Libras in the context of the internet, in addition to presenting a description of the way in which Libras has incorporated the properties of the electronic medium into its experience of language, given that the internet has specific rules for the circulation and dissemination of texts for online access. This is a qualitative and applied research, linked to the line of research “Analysis and Description of Languages” and based on Internet Linguistics (Crystal, 2011) and Systemic-F...