Theoretical phonetics

1. English segmental phonetics and phonology: vowels and consonants.

2. English suprasegmental phonetics and phonology: syllable.

3. English suprasegmental phonetics and phonology: word-stress.

4. English suprasegmental phonetics and phonology: intonation.

1. English segmental phonetics and phonology: vowels and consonants

The articulatory classification of English vowels. The principles of classification: 1) the stability of articulation; 2) the tongue position (the horizontal and vertical movements of the tongue); 3) the lip position; 4) the energy discharge; 5) the tenseness; 6) the historical length. The system of English vowel phonemes. Vowel phonemes oppositions. The relevant (distinctive) features of English vowel phonemes (the stability of articulation and the tongue position). The problem of vowel length, its positional dependence, length as an irrelevant feature of English vowel phonemes.

The articulatory classification of English consonants. The principles of classification: 1) the manner of articulation; 2) the place of articulation; 3) the presence or absence of voice; 4) the force of articulation. The system of English consonant phonemes. Consonant phonemes oppositions. The relevant (distinctive) features of English consonant phonemes (the manner of articulation, the place of articulation and the force of articulation). The problem of voicing/devoicing, its positional dependence, voiced/devoiced characteristic of sounds as an irrelevant feature of English consonant phonemes.

2. English suprasegmental phonetics and phonology: syllable

Theories of a syllable: chest-pulse theory, sonority theory, theory of muscular tension, loudness theory. Nuclear (syllabic) and marginal (non-syllabic) elements of a syllable. Nucleus, coda, onset, rhyme. Types of syllables: open, closed, covered, uncovered. The number of possible elements in coda and onset in English and Russian. The comparison of syllable formation rules in English and Russian. Syllabic sonorants in English. Articulatory transitions between vowels and consonants in a syllable (C-V “consonant-vowel” contact). Rules of English syllable division. The comparison of syllable division rules in English and Russian. The problem of medial consonant clusters division. The syllable division in compounds.

3. English suprasegmental phonetics and phonology: word stress

The nature of the word stress. Word stress vs. sentence stress. Acoustic and perceptual correlates of the word stress: dynamic, musical, quantitative and qualitative types of word stress. The characteristics of the English word stress. Degrees of English word stress: primary, secondary, weak (+ tertiary). English accentuation tendencies (recessive, rhythmical, retentive and the semantic factor).

4. English suprasegmental phonetics and phonology: intonation

Intonation and prosody: differences and similarities. Suprasegmental features. The British contour and grammatical approaches to intonation. The American theory of four pitch levels. The definition of pitch (melody). Pitch level. Pitch range. The rate of pitch variations (pitch change). The terminal (nuclear) tones. The structure of an intonation group – nucleus, head, pre-head, tail. The definition of sentence stress. Its types: nuclear, non-nuclear full stress, partial stress). The definition of rhythm. Formal and semantic approach to rhythmic division. The temporal component of intonation. Degrees and types of tempo. Types of pauses.