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U8 (3. COMPARISON WITH SPANISH, 1. THE ENGLISH PHONOLOGICAL SYSTEM, 2.…
U8
3. COMPARISON WITH SPANISH
English clusters
Some English clusters do not exist in Spanish (st-, sk-, sp-)
: "student", "school", "Spanish". These clusters present difficulties for Spanish learners not only in pronunciation but in spelling. We tend to add a vowel /e/ at the beginning of those clusters beginning with /s/: pronouncing /estri:t/ instead of /stri:t/
Syllable-timed
&
Stress-timed
Spanish/French/Italian:
Syllables
occur at regular intervals (an equal length of time btw them). It is the syllables, instead of the stresses, which tend to come at more-or-less evenly recurrent intervals. So phrases with extra syllables take proportionately more time, and syllables or vowels are less likely to be shortened and modified
English/German/Russian:
Stresses
are separated equally although the number of syllables between each stress is not the same: it is evenly distributed so that unstressed & stressed syllables alternate in a regular, repetitive way (here, vowels in unstressed syllables may be shortened or omitted)
languages/rhythm
Past regular Vbs
In the pronunciation of the
simple past of regular verbs
, we tend to delete the /t/ or /d/ in forms such as "stopped" or "arrived"
Differentiate btw
Another frequent problem is
the difference between /s/ & /z/
(e.g. she, see, plays) since Spanish learners tend to use the sound /s/ in all the occasions
And other differences, such as /v/ & /b/ or /t/ & /d/
1. THE ENGLISH PHONOLOGICAL SYSTEM
1.1. PHONETICS & PHONOLOGY
1.2. MECHANISMS OF SPEECH
1.3. CLASSIFICATION
(Phonetic)
Vowels
Voiced sound where the air passes through the mouth in a continuous stream,
with no obstruction
or narrowing that would produce friction.
Consonants
Voiced/Voiceless sound where
with complete/partial obstruction
, which prevents the air from flowing freely from the mouth, producing friction
Phonetic alphabet
A way of
writing down the pronunciation of individual words
& showing how sounds are used in connected speech
accurately & without ambiguity
One letter per phoneme, each sound represented by a different symbol
International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)
: most widely accepted alphabet, recognised worldwide
Speech Sounds
3-stage process
How are SS made?
Phonation
the quality of the sound is made (production of voiced/-less sounds)
Articulation/Resonance
the shaping of the sound is given (by the articulators)
Initiation/Breathing
breathe out the air to produce the sound (generation of airflow)
Speech Organs
Classified into
Fixed
Larynx, Pharynx, Hard palate, Alveolar ridge, Teeth, Nasal & Oral cavity (the rest)
Flexible
Vocal cords, Soft palate, Tongue & Lips
3 groups/ systems
Phonatory system
Larynx
The
trachea
ends in the larynx, the first point where it is possible to modify the air stream. The
vocal cords
are inside, which can be brought together (edge to edge in the middle of the air passage) or be drawn apart (leaving a wide opening between them). This opening is termed the
glottis
. They can have several positions, affecting the quality of speech sounds:
Types of
Phonation
5 more items...
(& Vocal cords, Glottis)
Respiratory system
Lungs
Two bags enlarged & compressed by the muscles of the chest regularly when we breathe.
The air is drawn in & forced out through a tube called windpipe/trachea
. When we speak we use the outgoing stream of air, so we to stop and catch our breath at times
(& Trachea)
Articulatory system
Tongue
Capable of many movements, most important in the formation of
vowel sounds
: when it alters the shape of the resonating chamber of the mouth giving rise to various acoustic qualities (vowels). Also in
consonant sounds
: when it either blocks the air passage through the mouth at some point or other, or narrows it so that friction is heard
Soft palate (Velum)
2 positions: passage of the nose
Closed (raised)
1 more item...
Open (lowered)
1 more item...
Lips
Able to articulate sounds independently, or can be combined with other organs of speech to create vowel & consonant sounds
Wide open / spread
Rounded
Closed / Closed for a moment
Vibrating
Phonetics
The study of speech sounds in general (
all human speech sounds
(regardless of any specific language: a large number), which are divided into Consonants & Vowels
Concerned with the Description of speech sounds, & its physical
Production
,
Transmission
&
Reception
Descriptive Linguistics
3 branches. Describes the
Articulatory
,
Acoustic
, &
Auditory
(physical) properties of speech sounds.
Auditory Phonetics
Studies the
perception
of speech sounds
by the ear, auditory nerve & brain
Acoustic Phonetics
Studies
the physical properties
of speech sounds,
as sound waves transmitted btw mouth & ear
Articulatory Phonetics
The study of how speech sounds are made/
articulated by the speech organs
Phone
Phonetical units are called
phones
& Phonetic symbols are enclosed in square brackets [m]
Phonetic representation of a phoneme
(the actual sound) not specific to a particular language
Phonology
Theoretical Linguistics
The study of
the phonemes (phonological system) in a specific language
(a limited number) by studying speech patterns
2 branches
Segmental Phonology
Supra-Segmental Phonology
Describes/studies
how sounds function in a language
: how speech sounds
combine
in longer stretches of speech and how they
change
in combination, as well as how sound changes in a word can contrast to produce a difference in meaning
Characterized according to
Place of articulation
,
Manner of articulation
&
Voice
2 units. Phonological units are called
Phonemes
& Phonemic symbols are enclosed btw
slashes
/m/
Phonemes /m/
Abstract representation in the speaker’s mind, physically realized by one or more allophones.
Mental representation of a sound in a particular language
(not necessarily a letter): when we swap a phoneme we change the word
Allophones [m]
Different realisations/ways to pronounce the same phoneme
while keeping the meaning of the word
Segmental Features
Vowels & Consonants (individual sounds)
Suprasegmental Features
Stress, Rhythm, Intonation, Pitch & Voice (longer stretches of speech, not individual sounds)
2. CONSONANTS
2.1. CLASSIFICATION
Place of Articulation
Bilabial
Both LIPS come together (complete closure)
Labio-dental
Contact between lower LIP & Upper TEETH
Dental
Placing the tip of the TONGUE against or between TEETH
Alveolar
Contact between the tip/blade of the TONGUE & the ALVEOLAR RIDGE (located between the upper teeth and the hard palate)
Post-Alveolar
Contact between the blade/front of the TONGUE & the back of the ALVEOLAR RIDGE
Palatal
Contact between the front of the TONGUE & the HARD PALATE
Velar
When the back of the TONGUE approaches the VELUM (soft palate)
Glottal
Restriction of the airflow by the vocal folds at the GLOTTIS, which is almost closed
Points of contact btw the articulators (8)
Manner of Articulation
Affricates
PLOSIVE followed by a FRICATIVE
Nasals
VELUM is lowered/closed so that air can escape through the NOSE
Fricatives
Two articulators are
close enough together for AUDIBLE FRICTION
caused by turbulent airflow (almost blocking the airstream): capable of being formed continuously, with no complete blockage of the vocal tract (unlike stops & affricates)
Plosives
An explosion of escaping air by
a short, quick CLOSURE & RELEASE of air
(nasal or oral ): (1) a stop/closure, (2) a hold and (3) a release with some explosive sound following the release
Approximants
FRICTIONLESS: the articulators are close but no close enough for a turbulent air/ friction (the air moves relatively freely around the tongue)
the articulators approach but require a wide approximation: they leave more space between them than fricatives & plosives but not as much as vowels. Unlike fricative, they are pronounced without friction. All of them are voiced
How the (flexible) articulators produce sounds (5)
Voice
It is possible to combine the movements of the vocal cords with the articulation of consonants. So, in most languages there are pairs of consonants articulated in exactly the same way, differing only in the presence or absence of voice
Other consonants have only their voiced form in standard English. However, voiced Cons in initial & final position are not fully voiced
Voiced
with a vibration of the vocal cords (15)
/ b, d, g, v, ð, z, ʒ, dʒ, m, n, ŋ, w, l, r, j /
Voiceless
without vibration of the vocal cords (9)
/ p, t, k, f, θ, s, ʃ, h, tʃ /
24 Consonant sounds, represented by 21 letters
2.2. DESCRIPTION
Plosives (6)
1) a stricture/closure of the mouth that allows no air to escape from the vocal tract and, second, the compression, 2) release of the air.
4 stages:
Closure
,
Hold
,
Release
&
Post-release
Bilabial / p, b /
Alveolar / t, d /
Velar / k, g /
<p>, <b>
<t, th, tt, -ed>, <d, -ed>
<k, ch, qu, c, x>, <g>
pub
time, Thames, attitude, jumped /t/, stayed /d/
king, character, queen, cat, six /ks/
Voiceless plosives
The most important difference between the voiceless & the voiced plosives is an "
aspiration
" in the post-release phase, where a slight [h] is heard between the end of the plosive & the following vowel
Lateral plosion
When a plosive is followed by an /l/ sound, its release is made by the
air rushing out along the sides of the tongue
: little, bad light, big lake
The glottal stop
The sound /t/ is often replaced with a voiceless glottal plosive
/ʔ/
in connected speech, in stressed syllables before initial vowels: witness, it, ate
Incomplete plosives
When 2 plosive consonants follow each other you don't hear the release of the first (
unreleased
): act [ækt], stopped [stοpt], doctor [‘doktə], the 1st plosive in each pair is not exploded. The same happens when the 1st is at the end of one word and the 2nd at the beginning of another: that chair
Nasal plosion
When a plosive is immediately followed by a nasal consonant, it is not exploded in a normal way, since the soft palate is lowered to allow the air to pass through the nose. The plosion heard is made by the
air going through the nose
: button, hidden, good night, good morning
/t/ & /d/ may be spelled -ed in past simple regular Vbs after voiceless/voiced sounds
Fricatives (9)
Characterised by a “hissing” sound, created by constricting the vocal tract, causing friction as the air passes through it
Labiodental / f, v /
Dental / θ, ð /
Alveolar / s, z /
Postalveolar / ʃ, ʒ /
Glottal / h /
<f, ff, ph, gh>, <v, ph>
<th>, <th>
<s, se>, <z, ss>
<sh, ch>, <g>
<h>
off, photo, laugh / save, nephew
think / that
yes, pose / zone, dessert
she, machine / collage, sabotage
house
Nasals (3)
In oral consonants (the rest), the velum is raised blocking the nasal cavity so that the air goes through the oral cavity. In nasal consonants, the velum is lowered so that the opposite happens
Bilabial / m /
Alveolar / n /
Velar / ŋ /
<m>
<n>
<ng>
man
not
sing
Approximants (4)
Liquids
Lateral
/l/
Tongue is placed in the centre of the air channel as an obstacle, and
the air escapes from the mouth along the sides of the tongue
Dark
/ ɫ /
occurs elsewhere (before consonants)
Light
/ l /
if it comes
before the vowel or diphthong
in the syllable
Alveolar
Non-lateral: Retroflex
/r/
by the tip of the tongue approaching the alveolar area but it never touches it as
the tongue is slightly curled backwards with the tip raised
(retroflex)
<r, rr>
run, carry
Fricative /r/ intially
Rolled /r/
Linking /r/
Intrusive /r/
Inverted /r/
Non-Rhotic
followed by a consonant
Rhotic
followed by a vowel
One-tap /r/
Alveolar
Glides
They are phonetically vowels (pronounced as /i/ & /u/ when alone) but
phonologically behave like consonants
Bilabial / w /
Palatal / j /
<w, u>
<y, u>
white, quick
yes, uniform
Semivowels
Articulators: not close enough to cause the air to be blocked (like in a fricative), but not far apart enough to become a vowel
all voiced
Affricates (2)
Begin as plosives & end as fricatives. They are
homorganic sounds
: the same articulator produces both sounds, plosive & fricative: they are plosives whose articulating organs are separated less quickly than normally. To every plosive, a corresponding affricate could be made but not all are used in English
Postalveolar / tʃ, dʒ /
<ch, ture>, <j, g, dg, ch>
chess, nature / job, gym, judge, sandwich
& Allophonic variants (24)
0. INTRODUCTION
The so-called
RP English
is the most commonly adopted model when teaching pronunciation. Received Pronunciation is a standard, as it is widely intelligible, it
does not have any regional characteristics and it is socially prestigious
, being spoken by upper-class and educated people
4. CONCLUSION
As English teachers, we must be aware of the problems that our Spanish students will encounter and how they can be addressed.
In the English class teachers should pay attention to pronunciation and those pronunciation differences which affect understanding should be pointed out
