Тема 4. «Distinctive features of English sounds»

The concept of distinctive and non-distinctive features

Distinctive and non-distinctive features of English consonants

The phoneme is both material and abstract. The relationship between the phoneme and

its variants is the relation between abstract and general, concrete and specific: an example of

the dialectical unity of contradiction. To build a phonemic structure of the language it is

necessary to look upon the notion of a distinctive feature, which represents the

differentiating quality. When the idea of the phoneme was new, it was felt that phonemes

were the ultimate constituents of language, the smallest element that it could be broken

down into. But later phonologists pointed out that phonemes could be broken down into

smaller constituents called features.

It is conventional to treat feature labels as being capable of having different values –

usually they are either "plus" (+) or "minus" (–). The features are the things that distinguish

each phoneme of a language from every other phoneme of that language; it follows that

there will be a minimum number of features needed to distinguish them in this way, and that

each phoneme must have a set of “+” and “–” values that is different from that of any other

phoneme. A full feature-based analysis of a sound system is a long and complex task, and

many theoretical problems arise in carrying it out. For most languages, around 12 features

are said to be sufficient. There is disagreement about how to define the features, whether

they should be labeled according to articulatory or acoustic characteristics, and about how

many features are needed in order to be able to classify the sounds of all the languages in

the world.

The phonological system of any language may be looked upon as a network of

oppositions where phonemes are looked upon as the points of reference in this network.

This view was taken by Ch. Hockett, who defined the phonological system of the language

as a network of differences between the sounds. In this functional frame of reference, the

elements of this system cannot be defined positively but only negatively in terms of what

they are not or what they contrast with. The phoneme is identified only through stating its

differences from other similar units – distinctive features. Distinctive features of English

sounds are identified through the test of contrastive and non-contrastive distribution

(correlation). Those tests reveal that some features of consonantal sounds are neutralized.

Those features are considered non-distinctive.

Such neutralization of phonological oppositions is exposed in the opposition of the

voiced and voiceless consonants: /ë/ and /ò/ in the intervocalic position are not distinguished

as different phonemes. E.g., in the words like “evasive, conclusive” more than a 100 out of

241 speakers pronounced this sound as [ò]. The same test shows that the role of passive

organs of speech is not a distinctive feature either: E.g., team – eighth – tree. Sound [í]

stands the test of the complementary distribution.

Thus we may distinguish distinctive and non-distinctive features of English

consonants. Neutralized oppositions are formed by the following feature: presence/ absence

of voice in the production of the sound. Permanent oppositions are formed by the following

distinctive features of English consonants:

1) Manner of production, which includes articulatory features produced by the type of

obstruction to the air stream and the way the obstruction is overcome by the air stream. 26

According to this criterion consonants are grouped into occlusives (stops), constrictive

(spirants), affricates, rolling consonants.

Occlusives (stops) are consonants in the production of which the air stream meets a

complete obstruction in the mouth. The breath is completely stopped at some point of

articulation and then it may be released with a slight explosion. Occlusives (stops) are

divided into plosives /é, í, â, Ö/ and occlusive sonorants /ã, å, k/.

In the production of constrictives (spirants) the air stream meets an incomplete

obstruction so the air passage is constricted and the air produces noise as it escapes with

friction. Constrictives (spirants) are divided into fricatives /ë, w, Ñ/ and constrictive

sonorants (liquids) /ï, à, ä, ê/.

When affricates (occlusive-constrictive consonants) are produced a complete

obstruction is slowly released and the airstream escapes through the passage with some

friction /`, d/.

Rolling consonants do not exist in English.

2) Articulatory features produced by work of active organs of speech, such as lips and

tongue. According to the work of the lips the consonants are divided into labiodental

consonants – when the upper teeth and the lower lip take part in the production of the sound

/Ñ, î/, bilabial consonants – when both lips take part in the production of the sound /ã, é/.

According to the work of the tongue and its position in relation to the teeth consonants

are described as interdental consonants – the tongue takes the position between the teeth, /q,

a/, alveolar consonants – the tongue is positioned on the alveolars behind the teeth /í, p, w/,

post-alveolar consonants – the tip of the tongue is placed just behind the alveolars /ê/,

palato-alveolars – the tip of the tongue is placed against the alveoli and the front of the

tongue is raised towards the hard palate /`, d/.

According to the work of the tongue and the part of the tongue that takes part in

production of the sound consonants are divided into forelingual (apical) consonants – the tip

of the tongue is active /å, Ç, `/, palatal (mediolingual) – the middle part of the tongue is

moved in the mouth cavity /à/, back-lingual (velar) – the back of the tongue is active in the

mouth cavity /Ö, â, k/.

There is a glottal consonant which is articulated in the glottis that does not exist in

Russian – /Ü/.

3) The amount of muscular tension and energy involved in the production of the sound.

The consonants are classified as fortis, requiring more muscular tension and energy in the

production of the sound; and lenis, requiring less muscular tension and energy in the

production of the sound. All voiceless consonants are pronounced with greater force than

the voiced consonants. E.g., cap (fortis) – cab (lenis). Though, in the intervocalic position

this opposition can be still partially neutralized. It happens in the American variant of the

English language, in words like ‘letter, better’ when the voiceless sound /í/ is slightly

voiced.

4) The work of the resonator (the functioning resonance chamber). The consonants are

divided into orals, articulated in the oral cavity /ë, Ñ, ä/ and nasals, the airstream passes

through the nasal cavity /å, k, ã/.

Distinctive and non-distinctive features of English vowels

Phoneticians have always needed to classify vowels independently of the vowel system

of a particular language. With consonants it is easy to observe how their articulation is

organized, and to specify the place and manner of the constriction formed; vowels are much

less easy to observe. Early in the 20th century, the English phonetician D. Jones worked out 27

a set of "Cardinal Vowels" that students which are learning phonetics could be taught to

make (Appendix 1). This set would serve as reference points that other vowels could be

related to. The vowels are located on a chart or four-sided figure; its exact shape has

changed from time to time. You can see it at the end of the book. Phonetic "ear-training"

makes much use of the Cardinal Vowel system, and students can learn to identify and

discriminate a very large number of different vowels in relation to the Cardinal vowels.

Neutralization of phonological oppositions is exposed in the opposition of short and

long vowels, checked and unchecked vowels, lax and tense vowels. Historically long and

short vowels are not distinguished. In the process of the development of the present-day

English short vowels were lengthened and even diphthongized whereas long vowels were

shortened. In present-day English the length of the vowels is also neutralized in certain

phonetic circumstances: the length of the long vowel is modified according to the quality of

the following consonant. Thus the length of the vowel depends on the sound environment.

This feature is variable and cannot serve as distinctive.

Checked vowels are those whose end is strong, abrupt, there is no diminishing towards

the end of phonation. Unchecked vowels are those where the energy is weakened towards

the end of the pronunciation of the sound. Though, these features cannot be considered

distinctive features of English vowels.

A lax vowel is said to be one produced with relatively little articulatory energy. A tense

vowel is articulated with relatively greater articulatory energy. American phonologists

prefer to use the terms lax and tense in describing English vowels: they class short vowels

as lax, while sounds that are usually referred to as the long vowels and the diphthongs are

considered to be tense. Since there is no established standard for measuring articulatory

energy this concept has meaning only if it is used relative to some other sounds. These

terms are equivalent of terms used for consonants: fortis and lenis. These are no considered

as distinctive features of English consonants.

The property of the vowel depends on the shape of the resonator, which can be changed

by the tongue movements on the horizontal and vertical plane, position of lips and the

stability of the position of the articulators. Permanent oppositions are formed by the

following distinctive features of English vowels:

1) Tongue movements on the vertical plane. Vowels are grouped into high (close) – the

tongue is raised high towards the palate /g, s, e/, mid – the tongue is in the middle position

/^, cW, É/ and low (open) – the tongue is positioned as low as possible in the oral cavity /ñ,

o, l, i/.

2) Tongue movement on the horizontal plane. According to the tongue advancement,

the vowels can be classified as back vowels – the tongue is positioned in the in the back part

of the mouth and its back part is raised to the soft palate /o, l, i, e/ and back-advanced –

when the tongue is in the back part of the mouth but it is slightly advanced /s/; central (mid)

– the front of the tongue is raised towards the back part of the hard palate; front vowels –

the tongue is positioned in the front part of the mouth and the front part of it is raised to the

hard palate /g, É, ñ/, and front-retracted vowels – the tongue is in the front part of the

mouth but slightly retracted /f/.

3) Lip position. The vowels are grouped into labialized (rounded) – the lips are drawn

together so that the more or less round opening is open /e, i/; and non-labialized

(unrounded) – the lips are spread or neutral /É, g/.

4) Stability of articulation lets us to distinguish monophthongs – the articulation of the

sound is stable throughout the phonation /o, i/, diphthongs – the organs move from one 28

vowel position to another within the same sound /~f, cs, lf/, diphthongoids – the organs of

speech move slightly during the phonation /g, e/.

Structural behaviour of segmental phonemes. Distribution of phonemes in speech.

Frequency of occurrence

English segmental phonemes are characterized by specific structural behaviour. These

peculiarities are conditioned by the distribution of the phonemes in speech. The distribution

of phonemes in speech characterizes the place of phonemes in a word and the frequency of

their occurrence in speech. Consonants of the same manner of production are never used

together either finally or initially. Distribution of English consonantal phonemes is

characterized by some specific traits.

1) Initial position. In the initial position of the word in the English language there may

be from 0 – 3 three consonants. Two consonants [w, k] are never used in initial positions in

words of Anglo-Saxon origin. Six consonants [`, d, w, Ü, p, k] never collocate with other

consonants in non-zero initial positions in an English word.

If the sound cluster in the initial position in a word consists of two elements, it can be

presented by the following combinations:

− a fricative + a liquid [ëï, Ñä];

− a fricative + a plosive [ëâ],

− a plosive + a liquid [Çê, âï, éä].

If the cluster consists of three elements, then the first element is always presented by

[ë], the second element of the initial sound cluster is represented by a voiceless plosive stop,

the third element is represented by the liquid [ê, ï, à], in words like “splash, strike, squat,

spew”.

2) Medium position. There are from 0 – 4 consonants in the medial position in an

English word. There are no special rules that limit combination of consonants in the medial

position.

3) Final position. There may be from 0 – 4 consonants in the final position in the word.

Sounds [ê, ï, Ü] never occur in the final position in the English word.

Among the English vowels [è] is the most frequently used one. It occurs in all

positions in unstressed syllables. Unchecked vowels occur in all positions but before [k].

The most frequently used consonantal English phoneme is forelingual (apical). This

feature refers to all Indo-European languages. There is a great disproportion in the usage of

fortis and lenis consonants: lenis phonemes are used much more frequently than the fortis

consonants. For example, statistical coefficient of usage for the sound [q] is 0,37, whereas

for the sound [a] it is equal to 3,56. This is the result of the process that took place in the

Middle English, when voicing replaced all possible devoiced positions. The same tendency

takes place in the present-day English where the voicing of the consonants happens more

often than the devoicing of the consonants.