English vowel phonemes: classification, modification in connected speech.

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 569.

Vowels – sounds in the production of which there is no articulatory abstraction in the supra-glottal cavities; muscular tension is defused more or less evenly throughout the supra-glottal part of the speech operators; the exhaling force is weak. There are 20 vowel sounds: 12 monophthongs, 8 diphthongs. Mouth cavity is the most important resonator. The tongue fulfills the most flexible part. It can acquire a great variety of positions and determine moves horizontally, vertically simultaneously. According to horizontal movements of the tongue. 1) When the tongue moves forward usually its front part is raised to the hard palate. (Front vowels). Fully front: [i:, e, ae], nuclear parts of diphthongs [e#], [ei]. Front-retracted [i], nuclear part of [i#]. The hinder part of the front of the tongue is raised highest. (Jones). 2) When the tongue moves backward it is usually its back part is raised highest to the soft palate. Fully back vowels: [a:, o:, o, u:], nuclear part of [oi]. Back-advanced: [u], nuclear of [u#]. According to Jones when producing [u] the forepart of the back of the tongue is raised highest. 3) Mixed vowels/mid vowels/central vowels. When the center of the tongue is raised towards the junction between the hard and the soft palate. [‘a, 3:, #], nuclear of [#u, ai, au]. According to the vertical movements of the tongue. 1) The tongue is raised high – High/close class [i, u], nuclear of [u#, i#]. 2) The middle position of the tongue – Mid/half-open class [e, 3, #, ‘a], nuclear of [e#, #u, ei]. 3) The tongue is almost not moved vertically – open/low class [o, ‘o, o:, ae, oi]. Lips considered being resonant-modifier. As the lips being movable organs they change the shape of the opening, the timber of the sound. Positions of the lips. 1) Spread. 2) Neutral. 3) Rounded. OR 1) rounded (the lips are rounded but not protruded) [‘o, u, u:]. 2) Unrounded. Stability of articulation. The volume and the size of the volume resonant, the form and the size of opening remain unchanged. Stability specifies the position of organs in articulation of vowels. It the organs are stable – the vowel is relatively pure (monophthongs). There are 20 vowel sounds: 12 monophthongs, 8 diphthongs. If the position of the tongue changes =/ the class of diphthongs is distinguished. Diphthongs are classified: 1) The 1^st principle is based on the structure of diphthongs. Falling – they begin with nuclear and finish with glides. Rising – they begin with glides and finish with nuclear. Nucleus – more prominent. Glides – shorter, weaker, don't have definite timber. 2) According to the glides [i, u, #]. [i, u] – normal (those which have them in diphthongs) – [oi, ai, au]. [#] – centering diphthongs [i#, e#, u#]. Whether the tongue glides upwards or downwards from the nucleus. Narrowing – if the tongue moves upwards; with [i, u]: [oi, ai, au]. Widening – if the tongue moves downwards; with [#]: [i#, u#]. 3) Diphthongs. The changes of the tongue position are fairly weak. [i:]: the tongue moves upward and forward. [u:]: the tongue moves upward and backward. There exist historically short and historically long vowels, but the principle is not relevant. The principle of tenseness or checkness. All historically short vowels are checked when stressed. The force of articulation does not decrease. All historically long vowels are pronounced with a fading or decreasing tenseness – fading vowels. All long vowels are tense, all shore vowels are lax. The position of the tongue and stability of articulation are relevant features of vowels. Length is not a relevant feature.