Some problems of accentual structure in English
The
Eurasian Academy
Institute
“Eurasia”
Course
paper
“Some
problems of accentual structure in English”
Pocheikina
J.A.
(325
group)
Speciality:
050207 Interpreting
Discipline:
Foundations of the theory of the
studied
language.
Theoretical
phonetics
The
scientific supervisor
Senior
teacher Buzhumova P.Z.
Uralsk-2010
Contents:
Introduction
Chapter I.
English stress as a phenomenon
1.1 The nature
of word stress and prominence
1.2 The
placement of word stress
Chapter II. The
questions of typology of accentual structure
2.1 Degrees of
stress and rhythmical tendency
2.2 Functional
aspects of word stress
2.3 Practical
analysis showing the types of stress
Conclusion
List of
literature
Introduction
In this course paper we shall treat some problems of
accentual structure. . According to D.Crystal the terms "heaviness, sound
pressure, force, power, strength, intensity, amplitude, prominence, emphasis,
accent, stress" tend to be used synonymously by most writers. According to
G.P. Torsuev the notions “stressed” and “prominent” should not be used
synonymically. The effect of prominence is created by some phonetic features of
sounds which have nothing to do with word or sentence stress.
RI.Avanesov considers the variability in the
placement of the Russian word stress an individual sign of every particular
word which presents a difficulty for foreign learners and sometimes for the
natives. It is interesting to note that Russian word stress may have stylistic
distinction and poetic usage, cf. молодéц
— мóлодец,
девúца
- дéвица,
шéлковый
—шелкóвый.
In chapter I. we shall regard to English stress. It
is common knowledge that sounds of speech have different degrees of sonority.
Vowels are more sonorous than consonants. Open vowels are more sonorous than
close ones. The quantitative, and qualitative components of word stress they
are also significant.
In the point 1.1. we shall say about tha nature of
word stress and prominence. According to A.C.Gimson, the effect of prominence
is achieved by any or all of four factors: force, tone, length and vowel
colour.
In the point 1.2. we shall consider the placement of
word stress. The word siress in English as well as in Russian is not only free
but it may also be shifting, performing the semantic function of differentiating
lexical units, parts of speech, grammatical forms.
In chapter II. We shall pay attention to the
question of typology of accentual structure.
According G.Torsuev Accentual types and accentual
structures are closely connected with the morphological type of words, with the
number of syllables, the semantic value of the root and the prefix of the word.
In the point 2.1. we shall to point out degrees of
stress and rhythmical tendency. The accentual structure of English words is
liable to instability due to the different origin of several layers in the
Modern English wordstock. In Germanic languages the word stress originally fell
on the initial syllable or the second syllable, the root syllable in the
English words with prefixes. This tendency was called recessive.
The aim: to
analyse the opinions, poins of view of phoneticians to accentual structure.
Tasks: 1) To give the definitions of word stress
2) To sigle out the nature of word stress and
prominence
3) To study the degrees of word accent.
Chapter
I. English stress as a phenomenon
It is common knowledge that sounds of speech have
different degrees of sonority. Vowels are more sonorous than consonants. Open
vowels are more sonorous than close ones. The quantitative, and qualitative
components of word stress they are also significant. Certain distinctions of the
vowel length and colour are reduced or lacking in unstressed syllables^ The
fact .strengthens the idea that the accentuation is influenced by the vowel
length and, quality. The vowel of the stressed syllable is perceived as never
reduced or obscure and longer than the same vowel in the unstressed syllables.
Thus, the word "stress" or "accent" is also defined as
qualitative where the vowel colour or qualily is a means of stress and
quantitative with relatively increased length of the stressed vowel. Compare
the quality (colour) and quantity (length) of the same vowel in a word, e.g.
ab'stract, 'car-park; идú,
úли,
yмý.
It is fair to mention that there is a terminological
confusion in discussing the nature of stress. According to D.Crystal the terms
"heaviness, sound pressure, force, power, strength, intensity, amplitude,
prominence, emphasis, accent, stress" tend to be used synonymously by most
writers. The discrepancy in terminology is largely due to the fact that there
are two major views depending on whether the productive or receptive aspects of
stress are discussed. The main drawback with any theory of stress based on
production of speech is that it only gives an explanation of the phenomenon but
does not analyse it on the perceptive level. Instrumental investigations study
the physical 'nature of word stress.
1.1
The nature of word stress and prominence
It would be perfectly natural to begin this section
with the nature of word stress. According to A.C.Gimson, the effect of
prominence is achieved by any or all of four factors: force, tone, length and
vowel colour. The dynamic stress implies greater force with which the syllable
is pronounced. In other words in the articulation of the stressed syllable
greater muscular energy is produced by the speaker. European languages such as
English, German, French, Russian are believed to possess predominantly dynamic
word stress. In Scandinavian languages the word stress is considered to be both
dynamic and musical. For instance, in Swedish, the word komma (comma) is
distinguished from the word komma (come) by a difference in tones. The
musical word stress is observed in Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese. It is
effected by the variations of voice pitch in relation to napghbouring
syllables.
We would like to dwell on the term prominence here.
It seems to cause some ambiguity when related to word stress. The stressed syllables
are often said to be the most prominent syllables in the word. According to
G.P. Torsuev the notions “stressed” and “prominent” should not be used
synonymically. The effect of prominence is created by some phonetic features of
sounds which have nothing to do with word or sentence stress. Sonority is the
inner quality of vowels which is not directly connected with the accentual
structure of words but with other articularoty characteristics, it contributes
to the effect of prominence.
Another characteristic of a vowel which also adds to
the effect of prominence but is not connected with the word stress is
historical (traditional) length of vowels.
The presence of a traditionally long sound in the
stressed syllable and a traditionally short vowel in the unstressed syllable
adds to the effect of the prominence of the stressed syllable, e.g. [in’kri:s],
[bi’li:v], [‘i:zi].
Naturally the historical length of vowels is the
vowel inner quality which should not be mixed with the quantitative
characteristics of word stress.
To sum it up prominence in speech is a broader term
than stress. It is obtained by the components of word stress, such as the
loudness, the length, the quality of the vowel plus the inherent sonority of
the vowel and its historical length.
Let us turn to some examples. If the words 'import
(n) and im'port (v) are said on a level tone and each vowel with its own
length, it is rather difficult to distinguish them. The tonic or musical
component may be helpful in defining the place of stress in a word as it is
observed within the syllable marked by the pitch change, which contributes to
the syllable prominence.
'Import. _ Im'port.
The placement of the pitch change marks the seat of
the stress. It should be noted here that the very type of pitch change, its
direction, does not influence the word stress, e.g.
'Import. ___ 'Import?
The pitch direction is changed but the stress
remains unchanged.
On the other hand, a whole idea may be conveyed by
uttering, a single word (one-word phrase}. Then we shall deal with the
sentence; stress and the musical component of intonation.
There is undoubtedly a close interrelation between
word stress
and sentence stress.
The nature of word stress, the interrelation of its
components is still a problem which is awaiting its solution.
On the acoustic level the counterpart of force is
the intensity of the vibrations of the vocal cords of the speaker which is
perceived by the listener as loudness.
Thus the greater energy with which the speaker
articulates the stressed; syllable in the word is associated by the listener
With greater
loudness. The acoustic counterparts of voice pitch and length, are frequency
and duration, respectively.
The nature of word stress in Russian seems to differ
from that in English. The quantitative component plays a greater role in
Russian accentual structure than in English word accent.
In the Russian language we never pronounce vowels of
full formation and full length in unstressed positions, they are always
reduced. Therefore the vowels of full length are unmistakably perceived as
stressed. In English the quantitative component of word stress is not of
primary importance because of the nonreduced vowels in the unstressed syllables
which sometimes occur in English words, e.g 'architect, 'transport, 'partake,
1.2
The placement of word stress
Russian phoneticians (L.V.Zlatoustova; L.L.Bulanin,
) insist on the quantitative character of the Russian word stress as its
principal feature, though other components of word stress in Russian are not
denied. We would like to dwell on the term prominence here. It seems to cause
some ambiguity when related to word stress. The stressed syllables are often
said to be the most prominent syllables in the word. According to G.P.Torsuev
the notions "stressed" and "prominent" should not be used
synonymically. The effect of prominence is created by some phonetic features of
sounds which have nothing to do with word or sentence stress. It is common
knowledge that sounds of speech have different degrees of sonority. Vowels are
more sonorous than consonants. Open vowels are more sonorous than close ones. Sonority
is the inner quality of vowels which is not directly connected with the
accentual structure of words but with other articulatory characteristics, it
contributes to the effect of prominence.
The word siress in English as well as in Russian is
not only free but it may also be shifting, performing the semantic function of
differentiating lexical units, parts of speech, grammatical forms. It is worth
noting that in English word stress is used as a means of word-buildingi in
Russian it marks both word-building and word formation, e.g.
‘contrast – con’trast
‘habit – ha’bitual
‘music – mu’sician
дóма
– домá;
чýдная
- чуднáя
Oppositions are also found among compound verbs:
to 'switch 'on - to 'switch 'off
'to turn 'on - to 'turn 'off
Words with meaningful prefixes are likewise
semantically opposed to those without prefixes. Compare:
'educated - 'un'edueated
'please - 'dis'please
'cyclone - 'anti'cyclon
,under’stand' - 'misunder'stand
Compound numerals have naturally two equal stresses,
making both elements significant, e.g. 'twenty-three, 'sixty-'five.
Numerals with the -teen suffix are marked by two
stresses to oppose them to the numerals with the unstressed suffix -ty. If the
suffix -teen is not stressed the vowel [i:] in it is shortened and obscured,
the sonant [n] is weakened, there is consequently a danger of
misunderstariding, e.g.
- 'What ,page is it? ||
- ‘Seven,teen. ||
- ‘Seven,teen | or ,seventy? |||
The above-given illustrations show how important it
is in teaching practice to make the students realize that the accentual
structure of words is conditioned by the semantic interrelation of their
elements. The teacher should attract the students' attention to the correlation
between the accentual and semantic structures of words which will save the
students many mistakes. The regulation of the accentuation in the Russian
language is too complicated and is practically unpredictable. The stress may
fall on the same morpheme in the derivatives where word-formation is performed
by the grammatical means alone, e.g. кожа
— кожи
— кожей
- кожу;
год
— годы
— годом.
In another group of words the stress may effect different morphemes of the word
participating in the word-formation alongside with the grammatical means, e.g. сад—сады
— садами
— садом;
пар
— пары
- парами-—
паром;
but: пара
— пары
— парами
— парам:
RI.Avanesov considers the variability in the
placement of the Russian word stress an individual sign of every particular
word which presents a difficulty for foreign learners and sometimes for the
natives. It is interesting to note that Russian word stress may have stylistic
distinction and poetic usage, cf. молодéц
— мóлодец,
девúца
- дéвица,
шéлковый
—шелкóвый.
'The complicated system of the accentual structure
of English words makes teacher trainees be very attentive to the subject. The
typical mistakes of Russian learners in the sphere of word stress are the
rnispronunciation of: 1) words with the main and secondary stresses
(,conver'sational); 2) words with two equal stresses in connected speech
{up'stairs, 're'organize); 3) words with the full vowel in the unstressed
syllable ('architect). ;
The instability of English accentual structure of
words presents much difficulty for Russian learners. Students' attention should
be attracted to English multisyllabic words the accentual structure of which is
regulated by the rhythmical tendency and the use of the secondary stress in
those words, as it has no anal-ogy in the Russian language, compare:
'transpor'tation - транспортировка,
de,mocrati'zation — демократизация.
Another group of words presenting difficulty for
Russian learners is large group of compounds which are marked either by two
equal stresses (compound adjectives) or by one stress (compound nouns). The
semantic factor in defining the accentual structure of compounds should be most
decisive, as it has been illustrated above. One more group of words requires
learners' attention, the group which forms accentual oppositions of different
parts of speech by way of conversion accompanied by the shifting of stress,
e.g. 'combine (n) — com’bine (v), 'insult (n) — in’sult (v).
In case of doubt it is advisable to consult a
pronouncing.
Chapter
II. The questions of typology of accentual structure
The numerous variations of English word stress are
systematized in the typology of accentual structure of English words worked out
by G.P. Torsuyev. He classifies them according to the number of stressed
syllables, their degree or character (the main and the secondary stress). The
distribution of stressed syllables within the word accentual types forms
accentual structures of words. Accentual types and accentual structures are
closely connected with the morphological type of words, with the number of
syllables, the semantic value of the root and the prefix of the word.
The accentual types are:
1. ['___]. This accentual type marks both simple and
compound words. The accentual structures of this type may include two and more
syllables, e.g. 'fafher, 'possibly, 'mother-in-law, 'gas-pipe.
2. [ '_ '_ ]. The accentual type is commonly realized
in compound words, most of them are with separable prefixes, e.g.
'radio-'active, 're'write, 'diso'bey.
3. [ '_' _ '_ ] and 4. ['_' _ '_ '_]. The accentual
types are met in initial compound abbreviations like 'U'S'A, 'U'S'S'R.
5. ['_ ,___]. The type is realized both in simple
and compound words, very
common among compound words, e.g. 'hair-,dresser,
'substructure.
6. [, _'___]. The accentual type marks a great
number of simple words and some compound words as well. In simple words the
stresses fall onto:
1. the prefix and the root: maga'zine;
2. the root and the suffix: ,hospi'tality;
3. the prefix and the suffix: disorganization.
7. ['_,_'_] The type includes rather a small number
of simple words with the separable prefixes, e.g. 'mis,repre'sent.
8. [,_,_'_ _]. The type is found in a very small
number of words, usually simple words with the stresses on the prefix, the root
and the suffix, e.g. ,indi,viduali'zation.
9. ['_'_,_ _]. The type is met in rare instances of
compound words with separable prefixes, e.g. 'un'sea,worthy.
10. ['_ _,_,_]. The type is represented by rare
instances of simple and compound words, e.g. 'soda-,water ,bottle.
11. [,_'_,_] The type is found in rare instances of
compound words consisting of the three components, e.g. ,ginger'beer-,bottle.
The data given above suggest an idea of the great
variability in the accentual structure of English words.
The most widely spread among the enumerated
accentual types are supposed to be Type 1, Type 2, Type 5 and Type 6. Each type
includes varieties of definite accentual structures with different numbers of
syllables and marks thousands of words. So the four of them cover the main bulk
of most common English words and are therefore most typical for the English
vocabulary.
The variability of the word accentual structure is
multiplied in connected speech. The accentual structure of words may be altered
under the influence of rhythm, e.g. An 'unpolished 'stone but: The 'stone was
un'polished.
The tempo of speech may influence the accentual
pattern of words. With the quickening of the speed the carefulness of
articulation is diminished, the vowels are reduced or elided, the secondary
stress may be dropped, e.g. The 'whole organi'zation of the 'meeting was
'faulty.
The variability of the English word accentual
structure presents great difficulty for students of English.
They should be well acquainted with the four most
widely spread accentual types of words, mentioned above and be aware of the
modifications of word accentual patterns influenced by rhythm and tempo in
connected speech.
The given examples of the accentual structure of
words in connected speech show that the word stress is closely interrelated
with sentence stress. We shall now try to see their similarity and difference.
The demarcation of word stress and sentence •stress is very important both from
the theoretical and the practical viewpoint. Sentence stress usually falls on
the very syllable of the word which is marked by word stress.
Thus the accentual structure of the word
predetermines the arrangement of stresses In a phrase. At the same time the
stress pattern of a phrase is always conditioned by the semantic and
syntactical factors.
The words which usually become stressed in a phrase
are notional words. They convey the main idea of the phrase, though any word
including form words may be marked by sentence stress, if it has certain
semantic value in the sentence.
The common character of word stress and sentence
stress is also observed in their rhythmical tendency to alternate stressed arid
unstressed syllables and pronounce them at approximately equal intervals.
Now we should like to distinguish the notions of
word stress and sentence stress.
They are first of all different; in their sphere of
application as they are applied to different language units: word stress is
naturally applied to a word, as a linguistic unit, sentence stress is applied
to a phrase.
Secondly, the distinction of the rhythmic structure
of a word and a phrase is clearly observed in the cases when the word stress in
notional words is omitted in a phrase, e.g.
I 'don't think he is 'right.
Or when the rhythmic structure of the isolated word
does not coincide with that of a phrase, e.g.
'Fifteen. 'Room Fifteen. 'Fifteen 'pages.
So in a speech chain the phonetic structure of a
word obtains additional characteristics connected with rhythm, melody, and
tempo. Though the sentence stress falls on the syllable marked by the word
stress it is not realized in the stressed syllable of an isolated word but in a
word within speech continuum. Since the spheres of word stress and sentence
stress fall apart their functions are actually different. Sentence stress
organizes a sentence into a linguistic unit, helps to form its rhythmic and
intonation pattern, performs its distinctive function on the level of a phrase.
2.1
Degrees of stress and rhythmical tendency
There are actually as many: degrees of stress in a
word as there are syllables. A.C.Gimson, for example, shows the distribution of
the degrees of stress in the word examination. The opinions of phoneticians
differ as to how many degrees of stress are linguistically relevant in, a word.
The British linguists usually distinguish three degrees of stress in the word.
The primary stress is the strongest, it is marked by number 1 in the, word
examination, the secondary stress is the second strongest marked by 2. All the
other degrees are termed weak stress. Unstressed syllables are supposed to have
weak stress. The American scholars В.Bloch
and G.Trager find
four contrastive degrees of word stress, namely: loud, reduced loud, medial and
weak stresses. Other American linguists also distinguish four degrees of word
stress but term them: primary stress, secondary stress, tertiary stress and
weak stress. The difference between the secondary and tertiary stresses is very
subtle and: seems subjective. The criteria of their difference are very vague.
The second pretonic syllables of such words as libe'ration, ,recog'nition are
marked by secondary stress in RP, in General American they are said to have a
tertiary stress. In GA a tertiary stress also affects the suffixes -оrу,
-ary, -ony of nouns and the suffixes -ate, -ize, -y of verbs, which are
considered unstressed in RP e.g. 'territory, 'cere,mony, 'dictio,nary,
'demonst,rate, 'orga,nize, 'simpli,fy. British linguists do not always deny the
existence of tertiary stress as a tendency to use a tertiary stress On a
post-tonic syllable in RP is also traced. However, the British conception of
three degrees of word stress is accepted as the teaching norm.
We would like to point out right here that the
accentual structure of English words is liable to instability due to the
different origin of several layers in the Modern English wordstock. In Germanic
languages the word stress originally fell on the initial syllable or the second
syllable, the root syllable in the English words with prefixes. This tendency
was called recessive. Most English words of Anglo-Saxon origin as well as the
French borrowings (dated back to the 15th century) arе
subjected to this recessive tendency. Unrestricted recessive tendency is
observed in the native English Words having no prefix, e.g. mother, daughter,
brother, swallow, in assimilated French borrowings, e.g. reason, colour,
restaurant. Restricted recessive tendency marks English words with prefixes,
e,g, foresee, begin, withdraw, apart. A great number of words of Anglo-Saxon
origin are moresyllabic or disyllabic, both notional words and form words. They
tend to alternate in the flow of speech, e.g. I 'don't be'lieve he's, 'right.
The rhythm of alternating stressed and unstressed
syllables gave birth to the rhythmical tendency in the present-day English
which caused the appearance of the secondary stress in the multi-syllabic
French borrowings, e.g. ,revolution, ,organi'sation, as,si-mi'lation, etc. It
also explains the placement of primary stress on the third syllable from the
end in three- and four-syllable words, e.g. 'cinema, 'situate, er'ticulate. The
interrelation of both the recessive and the rhythmical tendencies is traced in
the process of accentual assimilation of the French-borrowed word personal on
the diachronic level, e;g; perso'nal — perso'nal — personal.
The appearance of the stress on the first syllable
is the result of the recessive tendency and at the same time adaptation to the
rhythmical tendency. The recessive tendency being stronger, the trisyllabic
words like personal gained the only stress on the third syllable from the end,
e.g. 'family, 'library, 'faculty, 'possible.
The accentual patterns of the words 'territory,
'dictionary, 'neces,sary in GA with the primary stress on the first syllable
and the tertiary stress on the third are other examples illustrating the
correlation of the recessive and rhythmical tendencies. Nowadays we witness a
great number of variations in the accentual structure of English multisyllabic
words as a result of the interrelation of the tendencies. The stress on the
initial syllable is caused by the diachronical recessive tendency or the stress
on the second syllable under the influence of the strong rhythmical tendency of
the present day, e.g. 'hospitable— ho'spitable, 'distribute — dis'trihute,
'aristocrat — a'ristocrat, 'laryngoscope — la'ryngoscope.
A third tendency was traced in the instability of
the accentual structure of English word stress, the retentive tendency: a
derivative often retains the stress of the original or parent word, e.g.
'similar — as'similate, secom'mend - recomme'ndation.
2.2
Functional aspects of word stress
In discussing accentual structure of English words
we should turn now to the functional aspect of word stress. Word stress in a
language performs three functions. I. Word stress constitutes a word, it
organizes the syllables of a word into a language unit having a definite
accentual structure, that is a pattern of relationship among the syllables; a
word does not exist without the word stress. Thus the word stress performs the
constitutive function. Sound continuum becomes a phrase when it is divided into
units organized by word stress into words. П.
Word stress enables a person to identify a succession of syllables as a
definite accentual pattern of a word. This function of word stress is known as
identificatory (or recognitive). Correct accentuation helps the listener to
make the process of communi-.cation easier, whereas the distorted accentual
pattern of words, misplaced word stresses prevent normal understanding.
Ш.
Word stress alone is capable of differentiating the meaning of words or their
forms, thus performing its distinctive function. The accentual patterns of
words or the degrees of word stress and their positions form oppositions, e.g.
'import — im'port.
VA.Vassilyev introduces the term
"accenteme" for Word stress as a suprasegmental phonological unit
having different degrees and placement in a word (79). For instance the primary
accenteme is opposed to the weak word accenteme (unstressed position), in
'import -, im'port differentiating the noun from the verb. A.C.Gimson
establishes three groups of words with identical spelling representing
different parts of speech which are opposed by means of shifting of the stress
1. A small group of words where the noun is
differentiated from a verb by the opposition of the accentual pattern of the
word alone, e.g.
increase [‘inkri:s] – [in’kri:s]
impress [‘impres] – [im’pres]
inlay [‘inlei] - [in’lei]
2: The second group where the shifting of the stress
which
means the change of the accentual pattern of the
word may be or may not be accompanied by the reduction of the vowel in the
unstressed vowel, e.g.
transport [‘trænspo:t] – [træns’pot] or
[trəns’pot]
3. The largest group of such pairs of words
manifests the change of their accentual pattern together with the qualitative
reduction of the unstressed vowel, e.g.
combine [ ‘kombain] – [kəm’bain]
contrast [‘kontra:st] – [kən’tra:st]
and many others.
Oppositions of accentual types of words are also
observed as a concomitant factor in word-formation in addition to suffixation.
[‘_ _ _] – [,_ _ ‘_] e.g. ‘organize - ,organi’zation
[‘_’_ _ _] – [‘_,_ _ ‘_ _] e.g. ‘predis’pose –
‘pre,dispo’sition
[‘_ _ _] – [‘_ _ _ ‘_] e.g. ‘solemn – ‘solemni’zation
[,_ _ ‘_] – [‘_ _ ,_ _’_ _] e.g. ,incon’siderable –
‘incon,side’ration.
There is also a group of accentuation oppositions
where compound nouns are opposed to free word combinations, e.g.
a ‘dancing-girl – танцовщица
a ‘dancing ‘girl – танцующая
девушка
As we have already mentioned the same distinctive
function of word stress is observed in the Russian language, It differentiates
words and their grammatical forms, e.g.
The words чýдная
- чуднáя,
безобрáзная
- безóбразная
are different lexical units, they differ in meaning. ,
The words зимы
- зимы,
беды—
беды
represent different, grammatical forms of the same lexical unit. Both in
word-building and in word-formation the shifting of stress is accompanied by
the qualitative reduction of the unstressed syllable. Word-formation with the
help of the shifting of stress is quite common in
Russian as well as in English.
The accentual structure of words is actually very
closely interrelated with their semantic value. By way of illustration we shall
now analyse a fairly large class of words in English which are marked by two
primary stresses (Accentual Type П).
They are either compounds consisting of two semantically important,
stems or words with semantically relevant separable prefixes or the suffix -teen.
The accentual pattern of this group of words is regulated by the meaningful
weight of the elements of the compounds. Word stress establishes contrastive
relationship of the elements and often creates opposition to comparable words.
Most of compound adjectives have two equal stresses
as both elements in them are semantically important, e.g. 'absent-'minded,
'good-looking. ...
As soon as the significance of one of the elements
of a compound adjective is weakened, its accentual pattern is changed. (Accentual
Type I), e.g. 'spring-like, 'nymph-like, 'powder-like;
'oval-shaped,'bow-shaped.
The same tendency is observed in compound nouns: if
their elements are semantically important both elements are equally stressed
(Accentual Type П),
e.g. 'north-east, 'north-'west, 'south-'west.
At the same time, as we very well know, most of
compound nouns have one stress on the first element which is more significant
than the second one. They are sometimes opposed to other compounds with the
same second element, e.g. 'dining-room - 'bedroom — 'bathroom — 'living-room;
'shop-girl — 'ballet-girl.
Compound verbs have two equal stresses as their
postpositions change the actual meaning of the verb itself as it is illustrated
in the following example:.
What shall I do with it?
- 'Put it where it ,was.
- Put it ,on.
-Put it, off.
2.3
Practical analysis showing the types of stress
Here, we shall analyze the English stress according
to different degrees.
1. ['___]. This accentual type marks both simple and
compound words. The accentual structure of this type may include two and more
syllables, e.g.
'absence
|
'acid
|
'article
|
'berry
|
'brawny
|
'bucket
|
'buckle
|
'candid
|
'chemistry
|
'climate
|
'collegue
|
'during
|
'Easter
|
'elepant
|
'eloquence
|
'enemy
|
'errand
|
'enter
|
'falcon
|
'ferment
|
'ferret
|
'final
|
'hamburger
|
'handle
|
'heating
|
'hustle
|
'index
|
'jetty
|
'jungle
|
'kitchen
|
'kitten
|
'knick-knack
|
'language
|
'landing
|
'leather
|
'lecture
|
'manger
|
'mental
|
'mercury
|
'mountain
|
'neutral
|
'noodle
|
'olive
|
'origin
|
'ornament
|
'orphan
|
'order
|
'party
|
‘passage
|
‘passion
|
‘perfume
|
‘private
|
‘principal
|
‘promise
|
‘pumpkin
|
‘question
|
‘quota
|
‘ready
|
‘record
|
‘region
|
‘regular
|
‘restive
|
‘fable’
|
‘mollify
|
‘moment
|
‘monarch
|
‘monitor
|
‘monkey
|
‘potter
|
‘prelate
|
‘predator
|
‘presage
|
‘prior
|
‘privacy
|
‘separable
|
‘sequel
|
‘sergeant
|
‘serial
|
‘serpent
|
‘shuttle
|
‘shooting
|
‘trundle
|
‘type
|
‘turgid
|
‘turret
|
‘sojourn
|
‘soluble
|
‘somersault
|
‘sooty
|
‘spector
|
‘senior
|
‘insolent
|
‘inmost
|
‘inkling
|
‘inland
|
‘inlay
|
‘inlet
|
‘inmate
|
‘iterate
|
‘island
|
‘jockey
|
‘jolly
|
‘jostle
|
‘journal
|
‘joyful
|
‘juggle
|
‘keeper
|
‘kennel
|
‘kernel
|
‘kettle
|
‘kidnap
|
‘kidney
|
‘kindle
|
‘kinship
|
‘leavings
|
‘lordly
|
‘miracle
|
‘navy
|
‘navel
|
‘nephew
|
‘nonsense
|
‘pallid
|
‘palpable
|
‘treason
|
‘treasure
|
‘trivial
|
‘ultimate
|
‘unit
|
‘valley
|
‘version
|
‘veto
|
‘vivid
|
‘volatile
|
‘wallet
|
‘water
|
‘waver
|
‘wavy
|
‘village
|
‘vowel
|
‘abrogate
|
‘alimony
|
‘alcove
|
‘algebra
|
‘almost
|
‘amnesty
|
‘ample
|
‘amputate
|
‘ankle
|
‘apple
|
‘curcus
|
2. ['__'__]. Theaccentual type is commonly realized
in compound words, most of them are with separable prefixes, e.g.
‘radio-‘active
|
‘re’write
|
‘diso’bey
|
‘re’mind
|
‘re’play
|
‘re’prove
|
‘re’quest
|
‘re’solve
|
‘re’straim
|
‘re’tail
|
‘re’tire
|
‘re’trace
|
‘re’turn
|
‘re’veal
|
‘re’ward
|
‘re’vise
|
‘be’long
|
‘be’loved
|
‘re’view
|
‘re’voke
|
‘re’pel
|
‘re’place
|
‘re’ply
|
‘re’port
|
‘re’pose
|
‘re’known
|
‘re’peat
|
‘re’peal
|
‘re’past
|
‘pre’cede
|
3.['__'__'__] and 4. ['__'__'__'__]. The accentual
types are met in initial compound abbreviations like.
‘U’S’A
|
‘U’S’S’R
|
‘I’S’O
|
‘O’N’D
|
‘R’A’F
|
‘N’A’T’O
|
‘S’O’S
|
‘U’N’O
|
‘I’B’F
|
‘N’B’A
|
‘W’B’C
|
‘C’N’N
|
‘H’D’T’V
|
‘I’L’O
|
‘M’M’R
|
‘M’M’S
|
‘U’E’F’A
|
‘U’D’R
|
‘U’F’O
|
‘U’C’A’S
|
‘A’P’C
|
‘C’I’A
|
‘C’N’D
|
‘I’D’P
|
‘I’P’A
|
‘L’A’N
|
‘M’B’E
|
‘M’B’A
|
‘N’A’S’A
|
‘N’H’S
|
‘A’B’C
|
5. [,__'__]. The type is realized both in simple and
compound words, very common among compound words, e.g.
‘hair-,dresser
|
‘sub,structure
|
‘haber,dasher
|
‘heli,port
|
‘helle,bore
|
‘hiber,nate
|
‘holly,hock
|
‘holo,cene
|
‘holo,caust
|
‘holo,gram
|
‘homi,cide
|
‘horo,scope
|
‘lique,fy
|
‘compli,cated
|
‘convo,luted
|
‘cosmo,naut
|
‘disco,theque
|
|
6. [,__'__]. The accentual type marks a great number
of simple words and some compound words as well.
,inter’national
|
,capa’bility
|
,cate’gorical
|
,cali’tion
|
,compe’tition
|
,combi’nation
|
,compre’hensible
|
,con;solation
|
,con’servation
|
,dedi’cation
|
,de’gradation
|
,de’rail
|
,des’tination
|
,dis’connect
|
,ex’pedition
|
,hallo’ween
|
,hebri’dean
|
,lemo’nade
|
,brand’new
|
,fortifi’cation
|
,ille’gitimate
|
,imma’ture
|
,impu’tation
|
,incan’descent
|
,innad’vertent
|
,inco’rrect
|
,incrus’tation
|
,incon’siderable
|
,inde’pendence
|
,indes’cribable
|
,ine’ffective
|
,ine’fficient
|
,ine’quality
|
,inex’pedient
|
,inex’pensive
|
,info’rmation
|
,inter’mission
|
,lia’bility
|
,loco’motive
|
,minu’et
|
,obli’gation
|
,unac’ceptable
|
,appa’ratus
|
,una’ccustomed
|
,unap’proachable
|
,una’ware
|
,un’bossom
|
,un’checked
|
7. [‘__,__’__]. The type includes rather a small
number of simple words with the separable prefixes, e.g.
‘mis,repre’sent
|
‘dis,advan’tageous
|
‘dis,colo’ration
|
‘dis,qualifi’cation
|
‘mis,remem’ber
|
‘mis,under’stand
|
8. [,__,__’__]. The type is found in a very small
number of words, usually simple words with the stresses on the prefix, thr root
and the suffix, e.g.
,indi,viduali’zation
|
,indi,solu’bility
|
,insu,bordi’nation
|
,inter,conti’nental
|
,inter,govern’mental
|
,inter,natio’nale
|
,anti,globali’zation
|
,anti,vivi’sectionist
|
,malad,mini’stration
|
|
9. [‘__’__,__]. The type is meet in rare instances
of compound words with separable prefixes, e.g.
‘un’sea,worthy
|
‘un’speci,fide
|
‘un’statesman,like
|
‘un’rekog,nizable
|
‘un’trust,worthy
|
|
10. [‘__,__,__]. The type is represented by rare
instances of simple and compound words, e.g.
11. [,__’__,__]. The type is found in rare instances
of compound words consisting of the three components, e.g.
,ginger’beer,bottle
|
,anti’hista,mine
|
,anti-‘semi,tism
|
|
Conclusion:
In this course paper we have treated some problems
of accentual structure, such as the quantitative and qualitative components of
word stress, vowels and consonants.
From chapter I we have known that vowel of the
stressed syllable is perceived as never reduced or obscure and longer than the
same vowel in the unstressed syllables.
In the point 1.1. we have said about European
languages such as English, German, French, Russian, and that they are believed
to possess predominantly dynamic word stress. In Scandinavian languages the
word stress is considered to be both dynamic and musical.
In the point 1.2. we have paid attention to the
instability of English accentual structure of words and that the English
presents much difficulty for Russian learners, because of his multisyllabic
words the accentual structure of which is regulated by the rhythmical tendency.
In chapter II We have pointed out that in a speech
chain the phonetic structure of a word obtains additional characteristics
connected with rhythm, melody, and tempo. Though the sentence stress falls on
the syllable marked by the word stress it is not realized in the stressed
syllable of an isolated word but in a word within speech continuum.
In the point 2.1. we singled out that the opinions
of phoneticians differ as how many degrees of stress are linguistically
relevant in a word.
So, we think that we have achieved the aim of the
course paper and fulfilled all the tasks which were put in this work.
List
of literature:
1. Crystal D. –
The English of voice – Ldn, 1975
2. Jones D. The
phoneme. Its nature and use – Cambridge, 1967
3. O’Connor J.D.
Phonetics – penguin, 1977
4. Vassilyev
V.A. English Phonetics: A theoretical course – M., 1970
5. Palmer H.E.
English intonations with systematic exercises – Cambridge, 1924
6. Vassilyev
V.A., Burenkova O.V., - М.,
1992
7. Katanskaya
A.R., Lukina N.D., Maslova L.P., Torsueva E.I. – English phonetics (a normative
course) – Leningrad, 1962
8. Abercrombie
D. The department of phonetics – Edinburgh University, May, 1958
9. Jones D. an
outline of English phonetics, 9th ed, Cambridge, 1960
10. Oxford Russian
dictionary – Oxford Russian press, 2000
11. Англо-русский и
русско-английский словарь с грамматическим приложением – М., издательство
«Лукоморье», 2001.
Course
paper review
325 group student Pocheikina J.A.
Foundations of the theory of the studied language.
This theme is one of the complicated questions in the sphere of phonetics. The
author treats different views of linguists concerning accentuation.
Chapter I is devoted to the study of English stress
as a phonetic phenomenon. More detailed questions as the nature of word stress
and prominence and also the placement of word stress were treated too.
In chapter II the student analyses degrees of stress
and rhythmical tendency and also studies the functional aspect of word stress.
In the end of the course paper the student gives
practical analysis.
This course paper corresponds to the requirements of
writing and may be recommended for defence.
Scientific supervisor:
Senior teacher
Buzhumova P.Z.