Appunti del Corso English Linguistic and translation III

Phonetics and phonology

Phonetics deals with the production of speech sounds by humans, often without prior knowledge of the language being spoken. (Originally the phonetic alphabet was developed to transcribe languages that did not have another way of being transcribed.)

Phonology

Phonology is about patterns of sounds, especially different patterns of sounds in different languages, or within each language, different patterns of sounds in different positions in words, etc. (how the patterns of sounds are pronounced, intonation, and syllables) We are talking about phonemes ≠ graphemes (correspond to the alphabet).

Components of grammar

The grammar of a language consists of the following components:

• Phonetics: The sounds that are part of a language.
• Phonology: The patterns in which those sounds may occur in a specific language.
• Morphology: The structure and form of words in a language.
• Lexicon: The words themselves as part of a language.
• Syntax: The structure of sentences and the relationships between them.
• Semantics: The meaning of words, sentences, and larger units; their relationship between languages and the concepts it describes.
• Pragmatics: The function of language, what speakers want to accomplish by their decision to speak, and their choice of forms in context.

Phonemes

In any language, we can identify a small number of regularly used sounds. Minimum pair (pair of words where only one phoneme changes) examples:

• Pin vs pen = vowel
• Pet vs bet = consonant

It is better to think in terms of phonemes instead of letters. Example: Enough /əˈnʌf/ (transcription in International Phonetic Alphabet) has 4 phonemes and 6 graphemes.

In no two languages can you apply the same set of phonetic patterns. Some languages are more complex in the phonetic aspect and less complex in the grammatical aspect and others are more complex in the grammatical aspect and less complex in the phonetic alphabet. That’s because scientists have discovered that all languages tend to be more or less the same level of complexity because our cognitive abilities to learn a language are more or less the same (cognitive economy).

Phonology as grammar of phonetic patterns

• The consonant cluster /st/ is OK at the beginning, middle, or end of words in English (not true of all languages).
• At the beginnings of words, /str/ is OK in English, but /ftr/ or /sr/ are not (they are ungrammatical).
• /tr/ is OK in the middle of words, however only in an example like "ashtray", otherwise it would be at the beginning (but never at the end).
• /ʃr/ is OK (shreak) at the beginnings of words, but we won’t find it at the end of words or in the middle.
• /ʃl/ /ʃlɛp/ in German, though, /ftr/ is OK word-initially in Russian, but not in English or German.

The phonetic patterns are specific to specific languages. Phonetics of a language is finite (the combination of words in a given language is almost infinite but the phonetic of a language is countable).

Phonetic elements

• Stress: Relative strength of the syllable.
• Intonation: Use of the pitch of the voice to convey meaning.
• Accents: Different pronunciations (e.g., British and American).
• Dialects: Different vocabulary, grammar, and syntax (the way we would say certain things is different and it is usually recognizable by a native speaker of that language – mutually understandable).

In English, when we talk about the British pronunciation, it can be called the BBC or RP pronunciation (BBC was the first broadcaster to standardize the type of pronunciation they wanted in their programs). England compared to Britain compared to the United Kingdom are three different things.

The principal organs of articulation

The glottis is said to be the organ that allows us to speak, and other animals similar to us, like monkeys, can’t. Our glottis is more developed than theirs.

• Nose
• Upper and lower lip
• Upper and lower teeth
• Alveolar ridge
• Tongue (tip, blade, front, back, root)
• Hard palate
• Soft palate
• Pharynx
• Larynx

Phono system

• Lungs
• Trachea
• Diaphragm
• Nasal cavity
• Oral cavity

Phonemes vs graphemes

• Vowels: A E I O U Y, W - semivowels. Sounds in which there is no obstruction of the flow of air (it can be made constantly as long as I have air in my lungs). The problem with A E I U O is that they do not correspond to the phonemes because they can have different sounds.
• Consonants: B, C, D, F, G, H J, K, L, M, N, P Q, R, S, T, V, W X, Y, Z. Sounds in which there is some modification and obstruction of the flow of air.

Consonants and vowels

The distinction between consonants and vowels is made in the following manner:

• If the air, once out of the glottis, is allowed to pass freely through the resonators, the sound is a vowel.
• If the air, once out of the glottis, is obstructed, partially or totally, in one or more places, the sound is a consonant.

The line between vowels and consonants cannot be clearly drawn; a continuum exists between the two extremes. There are also intermediate instances, such as the semi-vowels and the (frictionless) spirants.

Place and manner of articulation

Distinction between:

• Manner of articulation: Type of obstruction that happens.
• Place of articulation: Particularly important for the classification of consonants.
• Whether there is vibration of the vocal cords (voiced vs. voiceless).
• Whether there is obstruction of the airstream at any point above the glottis (consonant vs. vowel).
• Whether the airstream passes through the nasal cavity in addition to the oral cavity (nasal vs. oral).
• Whether the airstream passes through the middle of the oral cavity or along the side(s) (non-lateral vs. lateral).

The place of articulation is the point where the airstream is obstructed. In general, the place of articulation is simply that point on the palate where the tongue is placed to block the stream of air.

Vowels

(All vowel sounds) Cardinal vowels = points of intersection in the quadrilateral that are generic points of reference, from them we identify the specific vowels of each language.

Distribution of sounds:

• Differ in shape and position of the tongue.
• Vertical difference between the tongue and palate.
• The part of the tongue between front and back and which is raised highest.

Voiceless or voiced

Table of cardinal vowels cardinal IPA:

• [i] Close front unrounded vowel
• [e] Close-mid front unrounded vowel
• [ɛ] Open-mid front unrounded vowel
• [a] Open front unrounded vowel
• [ɑ] Open back unrounded vowel
• [ɔ] Open-mid back rounded vowel
• [o] Close-mid back rounded vowel
• [u] Close back rounded vowel

Short and long vowels

Short English vowels

• [ɪ] ‘bit’ ‘pin’ ‘fish’ - The vowel is in the close front area, compared with cardinal vowel [i] it is more open and nearer the center. The lips are slightly spread.
• [e] ‘bet’ ‘pen’ ‘yes’ - The vowel is a front vowel between cardinal vowel no. 2 and no. 3. The lips are slightly spread.
• [æ] ‘bat’ ‘man’ ‘gas’ - The vowel is a front vowel, but not quite as open as cardinal vowel no. 4. The lips are slightly spread.
• [ʌ] ‘but’ ‘some’ ‘rush’ - This is a central vowel, more open than open-mid. The lips are neutral.
• [ɒ] ‘pot’ ‘gone’ ‘cross’ - This is not quite fully back, between open-mid and open in tongue height. The lips are slightly rounded.
• [ʊ] ‘put’ ‘pull’ ‘push’ - The nearest cardinal vowel is n.8 [u], but it can be seen that is more open and nearer to central. The lips are rounded.
• [ə] ‘about’ ‘oppose’ ‘the’ - Is the most central vowel. The lips are neutral.

Long English vowels

• ‘Beat’ ‘mean’ ‘peace’ - This vowel is nearer to cardinal vowel n. 1 [i] (it is more close and front) than the short vowel of ‘bid’ ‘pin’ ‘fish’ although the tongue shape is not much different from the cardinal vowel no. 1, the lips are only slightly spread, and this results in a rather different vowel quality.
• ‘Bird’ ‘fern’ ‘purse’ - This is a central vowel which is well-known in most English accents as a hesitation sound (spelt ‘er’), but which many foreigners find difficult to copy. The lip position is neutral.
• ‘Card’ ‘half’ ‘pass’ - This is an open vowel in the region of cardinal vowel no. 5 [a] but not as back as this. The lip position is neutral.
• ‘Board’ ‘torn’ ‘horse’ - The tongue height for this vowel is between cardinal vowel no. 6 [ɔ] and no. 7 [o] and closer to the latter. This vowel is almost fully back and has quite strong lip-rounding.
• ‘Food’ ‘soon’ ‘loose’ - The nearest cardinal vowel to this is no. 8 [u], but it is much less back and less close, while the lips are only moderately rounded.

These five long vowels are different from the six short vowels, not only in length but also in quality. If we compare some similar pairs of long and short vowels, we can see distinct differences in quality (resulting from differences in tongue shape and position and lip position) as well as in length. For this reason, the long vowels have symbols which are different from those of short vowels, even if we omit the length mark.

Diphthongs

Diphthongs are sounds which consist of a movement or glide from one vowel to another. A vowel which remains constant and does not glide is called a pure vowel, and one of the most common pronunciation mistakes that result in a ‘foreign accent’.

Centering diphthongs

• ‘Beard’ ‘Ian’ ‘fierce’ - The starting point is a little closer than in ‘bit’ ‘pin’
• ‘Aired’ ‘cairn’ ‘scarce’ - Begins with the same vowel sound as the e of ‘get’ ‘men’
• ‘Moored’ ‘tour’ - Starting point slightly closer than ʊ in ‘put’ ‘pull’; many speakers pronounce ɔː instead

Closing diphthongs

The closing diphthongs have the characteristic that they all end with a glide towards a closer vowel. Because the second part of the diphthong is weak, they often do not reach a position that could be called close. The important thing is that a glide from a relatively more open towards a relatively more close vowel is produced. Three diphthongs glide towards I:

• ‘Paid’ ‘pain’ ‘face’ - The starting point is the same as the e of ‘get’ ‘men’
• ‘Tide’ ‘time’ ‘nice’ - Begins with an open vowel which is between front and back, it is quite similar to the ʌ of the words ‘cut’ ‘bun’
• ‘Void’ ‘loin’ ‘voice’ - The first part of this diphthong has the same quality as ɔː in ‘ought’ ‘born’

Two diphthongs glide towards ʊ, so that the tongue moves closer to the roof of the mouth there is at the same time a rounding movement of the lips. This movement is not a large one, again because the second part of the diphthong is weak:

• ‘Load’ ‘home’ ‘most’ - The vowel position for the beginning of this is the same as for the ‘schwa’ vowel ə, as found in the first syllable of the word ‘about’. The lips may be slightly rounded in anticipation of the glide towards ʊ, for which there is quite noticeable lip-rounding (in American English oʊ).
• ‘Loud’ ‘gown’ ‘house’ - This diphthong begins with a vowel similar to aː. Since this is an open vowel, a glide to ʊ would necessitate a large movement. Usually, in English the glide towards ʊ begins but is not completed, the end of the diphthong being somewhere between close-mid and open-mid in tongue height. There is only light lip-rounding.

Tripthongs

A triphthong is a glide from one vowel to another and then to a third. Most commonly found in RP. May be interpreted as two syllables, e.g., suffix. Difficult to interpret according to personal pronunciation.

• eɪə: player, layer
• aɪə: liar, fire
• ɔɪə: loyal, royal
• əʊə: lower, mower
• aʊə: power, hour

Phonology voicing and consonants

Main structure cartilage attached to the trachea, in front of the larynx, Adam’s apple. Inside is where the vibrations happen. As we open and close the larynx we have the flow of air coming out:

• Wide apart: normal breathing and p, f, s (simply air going through our lips that move in a certain way to differentiate the letters)
• Narrow glottis: air through glottis fricative sound like h (Voiceless glottal fricative)
• Position of vocal fold vibration, the edges of vocal folds are touching - air passing cause vibration
• Woman’s voice is half the rate of an adult man (200-300 x sec)
• Vocal folds tightly closed - air cannot pass. Glottal stop or glottal plosive

Voicing or phonation

Variations include:

• Variations in intensity - shouting and whispering (matter of quantity coming out from my diaphragm)
• Variations in frequency - more vibrations mean higher frequency (difference in pitch, in the number of vibrations)
• Variations in quality - harsh, breathy, murmured, creaky (manner of quality of the voice)

Different kinds of consonants

Plosive: There is like an explosion of air coming out of the mouth Characteristics:

• One or two articulators are moved against another to form a stricture
• Air is compressed and then released
• If air is still under pressure when released = plosion
• There may be voicing during plosion

Four phases of plosive

1. Closing
2. Compression
3. Release
4. Post-release

English plosive

English plosives include 6 = p, t, k, b, d, g. Plosives have different places of articulation:

• P and B = bilabial (voiceless)
• T and D = alveolar (NOT DENTAL)
• K and G = velar

All six plosives can occur at the beginning of the word (initial position- C+V), between other sounds (medial position- V+C+V), and at the end of the word (final position V+C).

Position of plosive: Initial, medial, final

• Initial CV – Closing takes place silently. Very little voicing happens with b, d, g – it begins just before the release. The release of p, t, k, audible plosion (h), aspiration.
• If we have b, d, g, in the initial position is in weak plosion. Fully voiced (never proceeded by other consonant) p, t, k- proceeded by s: sp st, sk when preceded by s p, t, k are unaspirated and may seem like the voiced version g, b, d, b, d, g (never proceeded by other consonant).
• Medial VCV – The pronunciation of p, t, k and b, d, g, depends on the stress of the syllable proceeding and following the plosive, like final or initial.
• Final VC – Final b, d, g, normally have little voicing - if so, it is at the beginning of the compression. P, t, k are voiceless, the main difference is that vowels preceding are much shorter.

English plosive manner of articulation and place of articulation

• Carpeted, doubted, bigoted -> we pronounce the final d because there is already the t before (we don’t duplicate the sounds).

Sounds in English

• Speech is a continuous stream of sounds.
• We divide the stream into small segments. <man> /mæn/ <main> /maIn/
• The diphthong “aI” is to be considered one or two segments? We consider it as one segment because the sound in a native speaker’s mind is felt to be a single sound.
• <bed> /bed/ <bad> /bæd/

Six short vowels

• /ɪ/ Pit - /ʌ/ Putt
• /e/ Pet - /ɒ/ Pot
• /æ/Pat - /ʊ/ Put

Segment

“When we speak we produce a continuous stream of sounds.” Let’s take this sentence as an example. We are able to understand the meaning of this sentence because we can recognize the sound of each word, right? But actually, this is how it is pronounced.

wɛnwiːspiːkwiːˈprɒdjuːsəkənˈtɪnjuəsstriːmɒvsaʊnds.

This is because we are aware of the segments of each word. We are able to distinct a change from a phoneme to another = segment.

English vowels

Alphabet vs phonemes:

• Alphabet - abstract code at the basis of our writing - graphemes.
• Phonemes - abstract set of units at the basis of our speech. They make up our phonemic system.

Different realizations of the same phoneme = allophones:

• /b/ at the beginning of a word virtually no voicing.
• /t/ in tea is aspirated (as all voiceless plosives when they occur before stressed vowels at the beginning of syllables).
• In eat /t/ is unaspirated.

English sounds conclude the overview of phonetics and phonology.