Principles of classification of English consonants

Phonetics as a science.

Phonetics is an independent branch of linguistics. It studies separate sounds and their functions, word stress, syllabic structure and intonation. It also studies the relation between written and spoken language. When we speak about phonetics we distinguish between special phonetics and general phonetics. Special phonetics studies the sounds of one language at a particular period of time, that is synchronically. General phonetics studies the sound system of several languages, and it is part of general linguistics. Phonetics can also be theoretical and practical. As a science it can be divided into several branches. Articulatory, acoustic, auditory and functional. Articulatory – every speech sound is a complex of definite, finely coordinated and differentiated movements and positions of the various speech organs. Acoustic - different articulations produce different speech sounds. Functional – speech sounds are functional, significant units of language and perform definite functions in language. Speech sounds are important because they constitute the material forms of morphemes, whole words and sentences and they may be called their constitutive function. Distinctive function – language can function only if overwhelming majority of its morphemes, words and sentences differ from one another. Recognitive function – if we use wrong allophones when speaking, it will hamper the normal process of communication and the more difficult it will be to understand such speech.

Principles of classification of English consonants.

Consonants are made with air stream that meets an obstruc­tion in the mouth or nasal cavities. That is why in the produc­tion of consonant sounds there is a certain degree of noise. Consonants are the bones of a word and give it its basic shape. English accents differ mainly in vowels, the consonants are more or less the same wherever English is spoken. On the articulatory level the consonants change: In the degree of noise. In the manner of articulation. In the place of articulation. According to the manner of articulation consonants may be of four groups: 1 .Occlusive. 2. Constrictive. 3. Occlusive-constrictive (affricates). 4. Rolled. According to the position of the active organ of speech against the point of articulation consonants may be: 1. Labial 2. Lingual 3.Glottal.

3. Accentual structure of words.

The word-stress fulfills the following functions: constitutive (helps to organize sound continuum into words). recognitive (helps to identify syllables as an accentual pattern of a word). distinctive (helps to distinguish the meanings of words: a present – to present). English words may have a primary stress and a secondary one. Some parts of speech have two equivalent stresses: → compound adjectives: absent-minded, dark-eyed → phrasal verbs: to get on, to give up. The nature of Word Stress is very complex. Word Stress presupposes such factors as: force, tone, length, vowel color. In such European languages as Russian, German, French, English stress has a dynamic nature (a force character). According to the place of word stress it may be free or fixed. Fixed stress falls on a particular syllable in a polysyllabic word. The last syllable in French. the first syllable in Finish and Czech. Russian and English have free word stress. The opposition of the stress may change to distinguish different parts of speech and members of paradigms (‘object – to ob’ject).

Поиск по сайту: