Intonation In English
Lecture
Intonation in English
Outline
1.
Intonation: definition, approaches, functions. 2. Components of intonation and the structure of English tone-group.
3. Sentence stress.
4. Rhythm.
1.
Intonation: definition, approaches, functions.
Intonation is a language universal. There are no languages which are spoken without any change of prosodic parameters but intonation functions in various languages in a different way.
What is the role intonation plays in the language?
Intonation is indispensable in communication, because it is instrumental in conveying meaning.
No sentence can exist without a particular intonation.
No meaning can be expressed without it.
What is intonation? It is quite impossible to describe intonation in a word or two. Sometimes the ups and downs of pitch and loudness are compared to the waves of the ocean.
‘The surface of the ocean responds to the forces that act upon it in movements resembling the ups and downs of the human voice.’ (Bolinger, 1972)
There are two main approaches to the problem of intonation in Great Britain.
One is known as a contour analysis and the other may be called grammatical. The first is represented by a large group of phoneticians: H. Sweet, D. Jones, G. Palmer, L.
Armstrong, I. Ward, R. Kingdon, J. O'Connor, A.
Gimson and others. It is traditional and widely used. According to this approach the smallest unit to which linguistic meaning can be attached is a tone-group (sense-group). Their theory is based on the assumption that intonation consists of basic functional "blocks". They pay much attention to these "blocks" but not to the way they are connected.
Intonation is treated by them as a layer that is superimposed on the lexicogrammatical structure. In fact the aim of communication determines the intonation structure, not vice versa.
The grammatical approach to the study of intonation was worked out by M.
Halliday. The main unit of intonation is a clause. Intonation is a complex of three
Intonation in English
Outline
1.
Intonation: definition, approaches, functions. 2. Components of intonation and the structure of English tone-group.
3. Sentence stress.
4. Rhythm.
1.
Intonation: definition, approaches, functions.
Intonation is a language universal. There are no languages which are spoken without any change of prosodic parameters but intonation functions in various languages in a different way.
What is the role intonation plays in the language?
Intonation is indispensable in communication, because it is instrumental in conveying meaning.
No sentence can exist without a particular intonation.
No meaning can be expressed without it.
What is intonation? It is quite impossible to describe intonation in a word or two. Sometimes the ups and downs of pitch and loudness are compared to the waves of the ocean.
‘The surface of the ocean responds to the forces that act upon it in movements resembling the ups and downs of the human voice.’ (Bolinger, 1972)
There are two main approaches to the problem of intonation in Great Britain.
One is known as a contour analysis and the other may be called grammatical. The first is represented by a large group of phoneticians: H. Sweet, D. Jones, G. Palmer, L.
Armstrong, I. Ward, R. Kingdon, J. O'Connor, A.
Gimson and others. It is traditional and widely used. According to this approach the smallest unit to which linguistic meaning can be attached is a tone-group (sense-group). Their theory is based on the assumption that intonation consists of basic functional "blocks". They pay much attention to these "blocks" but not to the way they are connected.
Intonation is treated by them as a layer that is superimposed on the lexicogrammatical structure. In fact the aim of communication determines the intonation structure, not vice versa.
The grammatical approach to the study of intonation was worked out by M.
Halliday. The main unit of intonation is a clause. Intonation is a complex of three