General Phonetics Essay Example

General Phonetics Essay Example General Phonetics Paper General Phonetics Paper Introduction 1Phonetics as branch of linguistics . The word phonetics is derived from the Greek word phone such means sound and is used in two different meanings: a. to some authors usually non phoneticians phonetics is that part of grammar which deals with special sounds. b. To phoneticians however phonetics is an independent branch of linguistics which is concerned with the phonetic structure of language. On the one hand phonetics is quite independent and develops according to its own laws. Today the sphere of phonetics is wilder and deeper than ever before phonemes and their distribution in words their nutrial adaptation sprees syllable intonation the relation between oral and written speech and number of other problems have now become objects of phonetics investigation, on the other hand phonetics is closely connected with a number of other sciences such as physics †¦or rather acoustics, biology, physiology and others. Phonetics is an essential part of language a definite form. The vocabulary and grammar of a language can function only when the language has phonetic form. 2 Branches of phonetics. Phonetics is an independent branch of linguistics that has in its turn developed branches of its own. The most important of these are special phonetics and general phonetics. Special phonetics may be subdivided into describing phonetics and is historical phonetics. Special phonetics is concerned with subsection 1 with the study of the phonetic structure of one language only in its static form at particular period synchronically which is describtic phonetics which is describtic phonetics. Subsection with the study of phonetic structure of a language in its historical developments the diachronically which is historical phonetics. : General phonetics is based on the extensive material which the special phonetics of a great number of languages provides. It is also based on other sciences such as physics, psychology etc. as a result of the fact that it diverses its factual material from special phonetics, general phonetics has been able to make a number of general conclusions concerting the complex nature of speech sounds it has been able to analyze speech sound from different points of view and to formulate a number of important theories the phoneme theory, the theory of syllable formation stress ,intonation etc. On the one hand general phonetics is based on the date of special phonetics. On the other hand general phonetics provides valuable theoretical material which enables to understand clearly and to interprete correctly the different phonetic phenomena of concrete languages. Experimental phonetics and comparative phonetics are frequently considered to be branches as methods of investigation. 3Methods of investigation. Methods of investigations used in phonetics vary but there are 3 principle methods. The direct observation methods, the linguistic method,the experimental method . a. The direct observation method comprises three important modes of analyses . By ear,by sight and by muscular sensation. Investigation by means of these methods can be effective only if the persons it has been specially trained to observe the minutest movements of their own and other people’s speech organs and to distinguish the slightest variations in sound quality. b. The aim of the linguistic method of investigation of any concrete phonetic phenomena such as sound, stress, intonation or any other feature is to determine in what way all of these phonetic features are used in a language to convey a certain meaning. c. The experimental method is based as a rule upon the use of special apparatus or instruments such as the disk player ,the spectrograph etc. So by means of the 3 methods mentioned above we are able to detect the different features and aspects of speech sounds. 4. 3 Speech sounds Speech sounds are of a complex nature and have 3 different aspects – acoustic, Biological and linguistic a . Sounds can be analyze from the acoustic point of view. Been an acoustic phenomena they share their properties with other acoustic phenomena. This like any other sounds speech sounds are communicated to the air in the form of a sound wave. Speech sounds of pitch ,intensity,tember likewise musical tones and noises may be distinguished among them. b. Speech sounds may also be considered from the biological point of view as phenomena resulting from the activities of the speech organs. . It is clear from the above that speech sounds are acoustic as well as biological phenomena. However it is their third aspect the linguistic aspect that made them the subject of linguistic investigation. One or another acoustic or biological characteristic of speech sounds can arouse the interest of linguists in proportion to its linguistic significant in other words it is not enough to be ab le to detect by means of experiment and observation the minutest sound features. One should be able to determine in what way speech sounds can function as significant sound limits or phonemes. 5. The phoneme theory. a. The phoneme is a set of phonetically similar ,but slightly different sounds in of language that are heard as the same sound the native speaker and are representative in phonetic transcription by the same symbol as in English the phonetically differentiated sounds represented by `p` in pin,spin and tip . So there are variants of `p` which have different phonetic values in different contexts. Few Englishmen are †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. f these differences although they will never make a mistake in applying them and will immediately feel something wrong with the pronunciation of anyone who does not apply them correctly or to put it another way native speakers do not preserve as distings sounds all variants of the phoneme `p` in pin,spin and tip these variants of the phoneme are called allophones. 6. Pronunciation standard of British English Towards the ends of the epoch of Feudalism due to varies causes political, cultural, commercial , economic , one of the local dialects existing at that time took precedence over all the others. That outstanding dialect became the foundation of the national language of the state. The national language of England developed on the bases of the London dialect, because London expanded rapidly into an important centre of commerce, industry and learning as early as 14th century. This process was accelerated by the spread of learning and literature. The pronunciation of literally English is termed Received Pronunciation. Since all speakers of British English considered this type of pronunciation to be correct and good Received Pronunciation has been accepted everywhere as standard for the teaching of English foreigners. The American Pronunciation standard should not be chosen for teaching purposes for a number of very varied reasons . The APS is not quite so definite as the British norm. The APS is comparatively new and has no long tradition to back it. Besides it is less uniform than British RP and some phonetic phenomena have not yet become stabilized, because of the lack of uniformity of the American population. Speech organs : nazel ,lips,teeth,vocal cords ,tongue Tip,roth,blade,frout,centre,back Pharynx Uvula Soft palate Hard palate Alveolar ridge Consonants 1 Fricative They are sounds that involve a near clogged with

Cry, The Beloved Country Essays - English-language Films, Cry

Cry, The Beloved Country Essays - English-language Films, Cry Cry, The Beloved Country The book Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton is a book about agitation and turmoil of both whites and blacks over the white segregation policy called apartheid. The book describes how understanding between whites and blacks can end mutual fear and aggresion, and bring reform and hope to a small community of Ndotcheni as well as to South Africa as a whole. The language of the book reflects the Bible; furthermore, several characters and episodes are reminiscent of stories from the New Testament and teachings of Christ. Thus, Alan Paton, as a reformer and the author of Cry, the Beloved Country, gives the people of South Africa a new, modern Bible, where he, like Christ, teaches to love thy brother as yourself in order to help whites and blacks overcome the fear and misunderstanding of each other. The language of the book from the very beginning reveals its biblical nature. The great valley of Umzimkulu is still in darkness, but the light will come there. Ndotcheni is still in darkness, but the light will come there also. The style includes symbols such as light and darkness, short clauses connected by and or but, and repetition. This style is used to represent speech or thoughts translated from Zulu. Jesus Christ is symbolized by the figure of Arthur Jarvis. He is a white reformer who fights for rights of blacks. Like Christ, he is very altruistic and wants to pursue his aims at all costs. His friend, Harrison, says: Here [Arthur Jarvis] was, day to day, on a kind of mission. (173) Arthur Jarvis and his wife Mary agree that it's more important to speak the truth than to make money. (172) Arthur Jarvis is killed in his house by Absalom, a black youth who gets entangled in crime. Absalom only intends to rob Arthur Jarvis, and the homicide is unintentional. Absalom thinks that Arthur Jarvis is out and comes into the house with two friends. However, when Arthur Jarvis heard a noise, and came down to investigate (186). Startled and afraid, Absalom fires blindly. Absalom later says in court: Then a white man came into the passage I was frightened. I fired the revolver. (194) Absalom's blind fear is symbolic of the fear, blindness, and misunderstanding between whites and blacks; these a re the reasons of racial hatred. In his room, there are pictures of Christ crucified and Abraham Lincoln (176), the two men who fought for human love and compassion and were killed because of their beliefs. Arthur Jarvis can be identified with Jesus Christ. Jesus taught love thy neighbor as thyself. Roman priests didn't understand him, but they felt his power and were afraid of him. Even though Christ taught compassion, they claimed he would incite a riot and crucified him. Like Christ, Arthur Jarvis teaches compassion and love between neighbors - whites and blacks, separated by the policy of apartheid. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ leads to redemption, spiritual growth of many people and progress; likewise, the death of Arthur Jarvis brings reform and hope. Ironically, the tragedy brings together Stephen Kumalo, the father of a black murderer and Jarvis, the father of Arthur Jarvis, the white victim. High Place where Jarvis lives is symbolic of an elevated position of many whites. Before his son's death, Jarvis is on the hilltop, thinking in a distant, uninvolved way about the problems between whites and blacks, seeing just the white point of view. Indeed they talked about [the erosion of land] often, for when they visited one another and sat on the long cool verandahs drinking their tea, they must needs look out over the barren valleys and the bare hills that were stretched below them. Some of their labor was drawn from Ndotcheni, and they knew how year by year there was less food grown in these reserves. (162) Jarvis is not a bad person but is ignorant about the lives of blacks and the real issues that take place. After the death of his son Jarvis learns to view blacks as real people. Jarvis reads his son's papers and suddenly becomes concerned with the ideas expressed by his son and by Abraham Lincoln. Jarvis sat, deeply moved

Literature Review Bachelor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Literature Review Bachelor - Essay Example The extent to which the employees feel motivated to put the best foot forward depends upon the policies adopted by the company in towards motivation. Theory Y assumes that all employees have key roles to play in running the organization and management's role is to develop the potential in employees and help them to release that potential towards common goals. The biggest drawback of McGregor's theory is that it sort of draws a dividing line. But in practice there's no such fine dividing line between type X and type Y. An organization cannot have all the people having similar capability and attitude towards work. Similarly all the students in a classroom cannot have similar calibre and IQ. Moreover a person who behaves in a particular manner today may come around and start taking things in different perspective once the manager takes him in confidence and makes him understand couple of things. Sometimes circumstances prevail upon the person and he starts behaving in a different way. Motivation may be defined as the state of an individual's perspective which represents the strength of his/ her natural inclination to exert efforts towards some particular behaviour. How somebody makes use of his/ her efforts towards a goal is determined by the motivating/ de-motivating factors. It is through their behaviour that employees give expression to their commitment to work, level of motivation and their attitudes. Behaviour includes all actions overt or covert, and verbal or non-verbal. This affects the overall efficiency of the person and the performance of the organization. For Primark, the main target segment includes the youth segment. This under 35 segment prefers to go for the trendy fashion, requires quality at reasonable prices. To serve this segment is challenging but interesting as well, because today the spending power of youth segment has comparatively gone up. Moreover the young workforce at Primark will surely enjoy dealing with their age group customers, as it might require them lesser efforts to sell the idea to youth as compared to senior age group persons. The 'look good, pay less' proposition from Primark fits perfectly well with the youth segment. The brand identity being created by Primark amongst the youth helps in offering a valued