SENTENCE STRESS

MELODY

Speech melody or pitch of the voice is closely connected with sen­tence stress. Crystal states that "the only realizations of stress, which are linguistic, which are capable of creating an effect of relative prominence, of accent, are those which are effected with the complex help of pitch, quantity and quality variations. The most important is pitch." [Crystal D. Prosodic Systems and Intonation in English. — Cambridge, 1969 — P. 120.]

Successive последовательный contours of intonation singled out of the speech flow движение may be defined differently: sense-groups (semantic approach), breath-groups (extra-linguistic approach), tone groups (phonological definition) [Crystal's terminology.] into­nation groups, tone (tonetic) units, pitch and stress patterns. Each tone unit has one peak of prominence in the form of a nuclear pitch movement and a slight pause незначительное after the nucleus that ends the tone unit and is usually shorter than the term "pause" in pausation system.

The tone unit is one of the most important units of intonation theory. It contains one nucleus, which is often referred рассматривать to as nuclear tone, or peak of prominence. The interval between the highest and the lowest pitched syllable is called the range цепь, выстраиваться в ряд of a sense-group. The range usually depends on the pitch level: the higher the pitch, the wider the range. High, medium and low pitch of the voice is shown on the staves ‘ступенька’. The change of pitch within the last stressed syllable of the tone-group is called a nuclear tone. It may occur not only in the nucleus but extend to the tail — terminal tone.

The inventory опись of tonal types given by different scholars is different.

Sweet distinguishes различать 8 tones: – level, @high rising, ,low rising, ` high falling, _ýlow falling, òcompound rising, ñcompound falling, ~rising-falling-rising.

Palmer has four basic tones: falling, high rising, falling-rising, low rising. He also mentions high-falling and "low level" and describes coordinating сочинённый (о компонентах сложного предложения), сочинительный (о конструкции) tonal sequences ( % ! identical tone groups), and subordinating зависимый tonal sequences ( ÝÛ Û Ý dissimilar tone groups).

Kingdon distinguishes high and low, normal and emphatic tones and gives rising, falling, falling-rising (divided and undivided), rising-falling, rising-falling-rising and level tone (the latter is not nuclear).

O'Connor and Arnold give low and high falls and rises, rise-fall, fall-rise, and a compound сложный, составной fall + rise (the latter is considered a combination of two simple tunes).

Halliday recognizes seven major главный types, Ý, Û, ,, ñ, ò, Ý⁺ Û, ñ⁺ Û.

Vassilyev gives ten tone units. He states that tones can be moving and level. Moving tones can be: simple, complex and compound. They are: Low Fall; High Wide Fall; High Narrow Fall; Low Rise; High Narrow Rise; High Wide Rise; Rise-Fall; Fall-Rise; Rise-Fall-Rise. The most common compound tones are: High Fall + High Fall; High Fall + Low Rise. Level Tones can be pitched at High, Mid and Low level.

The basic unit of intonation is an intonation pattern: pitch movements and tempo. Intonation patterns are actualized реализовывается, in speech.

Two main functions of intonation are — constitutive конститутивный, основной, основополагающий, базовый and recognitive распознавание, опознавание; различение, intonation also serves to distinguish рассматривать communicative types of sentences and differentiate functional styles.

Methods of indicating intonation are different: wedge-like symbols, staves with dots точка and dashes длинное тире , which correspond to unstressed and stressed syllables within the voice range, tonetic stress marks, numerical числовая system, etc. The system of staves is the most vivid, the system of tonetic symbols is the most economical and vivid, and that’s why they are most popular in our textbooks.

The tonetic units that constitute the total intonation pattern (contour) are the following:

1. unstressed and half stressed syllables preceding the first stressed syllable constitute the prehead of the intonation group;

2. stressed and unstressed syllables up to the last stressed syllable constitute the head, body or scale of the intonation group;

3. the last stressed syllable, within which fall or rise in the intonation group is accomplished совершать, выполнять; достигать; доводить до конца, завершать, is called the nucleus; the syllable marked with the nuclear tone may take a level stress;

4. the syllables (or one syllable), that follow the nucleus, constitute the tail, e.g.

It's been a 'very 'good evening for me.

The most important part of the intonation group is the nucleus, which carries nuclear stress (nuclear tone).

According to the changes in the voice pitch preheads can be: rising, mid and low:

rising

mid

low

Scales can be: descending, ascending восходящий, повышающийся, поднимающийся and level плоский, ровный.

According to the direction of pitch movement within and between syllables, descending and ascending scales can be: stepping, sliding and scandent:

descending stepping пошаговое выполнение   descending sliding   descending scandent

ascending stepping   ascending sliding   ascending scandent

If one of the words in the descending scale is made specially promi­nent, a vertical arrow is placed before the dash-mark which indicates the stressed syllable on the staves, or before the word made specially prom­inent in the text — / ­/ accidental rise, e.g. 'John is ­very _ýbusy.

This type of scale is called upbroken descending scale.

The falling tones convey перевозить, переправлять completion and finality, they are categoric in character. The rising tones are incomplete and non-categoric. Of all the level tones mid level tone is used most frequently. The level tones may express hesitation колебание, сомнение; неуверенность, нерешительность and uncertainty неуверенность, нерешительность.

Attitudinal широтный function of intonation can be observed in utterances con­sisting of one word and in utterances consisting of more than a single word. In the latter cases it is not only that the type of the nucleus is important but also the pitch of the utterance preceding the nucleus: pre-head and head. The attitudinal function of different tonal types in state­ments, special and general questions, commands and interjections is ac­curate ly and thoroughly полностью, вполне, совершенно, совсем; основательно, тщательно described in the "Intonation of Colloquial En­glish" by J. D. O'Connor and G. F. Arnold and in other textbooks on phonetics.

SENTENCE STRESS

Sentence stress is a greater prominence of words, which are made more or less prominent in an intonation group. The special prominence of accented words is achieved through the greater force of utterance and changes in the direction of voice pitch, constituting the nuclear tone.

The difference between stress and accent is based on the fact that in the case of stress the dominant perceptual относящийся к восприятию; перцепционный component is loudness, in the case of accent it is pitch. Degrees of stress in an utterance correlate with the pitch range system. Nuclear stress is the strongest — it carries the most important information. Non-nuclear stresses are subdivided into full and partial. Full stress occurs only in the head of an intonation group, partial stress occurs also in the prehead and tail. Partial stresses in the prehead are most frequently of a low variety, high partial stress can oc­cur before a low head. Words given partial stress do not lose prominen­ce completely, they may retain держать; удерживать, аккумулировать, вмещать the whole quality of their vowels e.g. [a:'tistik] .

In tone-groups stress may undergo alternations чередование under the influence of rhythm, but there are some rules concerning words that are usually stressed or unstressed in an utterance.

Given below is the list of words that are usually stressed:

Nouns. Adjectives. Numerals. Interjections восклицание. Demonstrative pronouns. Emphatic pronouns. Possessive pronouns (absolute form). Interrogative pronouns. Indefinite pronouns: somebody, someone, something, anybody, anyone, anything (used as subject). Indefinite negative pronouns: no, none, no one, nobody, nothing. Indefinite pronouns some, any (expressing qual­ity). Determinatives определяющий; устанавливающий; детерминативный; решающий фактор; побудительный мотив: all, each, every, other, either, both. Proclitics: much, many, a little, a few. Notional verbs. Auxiliary verbs (negative contract­ed forms). Two-word prepositions. Two-word conjunctions связывание, сцепление, соединение. Particles: only, also, too, even, just.

The words that are usually unstressed:

Personal pronouns. Reflexive pronouns. Reciprocal взаимный, обоюдный pronouns. Rela­tive pronouns (The pronoun which in non-defining clauses is usually stressed, e.g. I gave him a spade, which tool he hid in the barn). Possessive pronouns (conjoint form). Indefinite pronouns: somebody, someone, something, anybody, anyone, anything (used as ob­ject). Indefinite pronouns some, any (when expressing quantity). Auxil­iary verbs (affirmative form). One-word prepositions and conjunctions. Articles. Particles: there, to. Modal verbs (contracted forms and general questions are exceptions).

The meaning of the verbs may, should, must changes depending on whether they are stressed or unstressed, e. g. You - may go — possibility. You may .go — permission.

Stresses in an utterance provide the basis for identification and un­derstanding of the content, they help to perform constitutive, distinctive and identificatory function of intonation. These functions are performed jointly вместе, одновременно, совместно, сообща with the pitch component of intonation.