Intonation

Intonation

          The vibration of vocal cords is very significant in speech. When they are kept loosely together, they vibrate and that the vibration produces a musical not called voice. The rate of vibration is called frequency of vibration. This decides the pitch of the voice. In this ways, the patterns of vibration of the pitch of the voice constitute the intonation of a language. According to Daniel Jones,      The pitch of the voice with

which a voiced sound is

produced is called intonation.

          When we hear someone speak, we realize that he doesn’t always speak on the same note. We hear constant variation on the level at which his voice is pitch. It remains level, high or low. Such way of variation in pitch from one part of an utterance to another is intonation.

          A syllable on which a pitch change takes place is marked with one of the following signs depending upon the type of pitch change:

– the pitch falls very high to very low (The tone is called high fall)

 – the pitch falls from mid to very low. (The tone is called low fall)

– the pitch rises from very  low to very high.( The tone is called high rise)

 – the pitch rise from low to mid (The tone is called low rise)

 the pitch falls from about mid to low and then rises again to mid. (The tone is called fall-rise)

–  the pitch rises from low to mid and then falls again to  low (The tone is called rise-fall)

          An accented syllable can said with a changing pitch or on a level pitch, high or low. If it is said on a high level pitch it is marked with  i.e. with a vertical bar above and before the syllable. If it is said on a low level pitch, it is marked  i.e. with a vertical bar below and before the syllable.

          In this way, the syllable marked with the sign  or  and is said on a level tone, high and low respectively is said to have static tone. While the syllable marked with  and is said with different pitch change is said to have a kinetic tone.

          Before one can go any further into the study of English intonation, one has to consider three important factors. These are:

(1) The division of an utterance into groups.

(2) The choice of a syllable on which the pitch-movement has to be initiated; and

(3) The choice of tone.

The division of an utterance into groups:-

          We divide long utterances into small groups while speaking. We pause here and there in the middle of an utterance. The stretch of speech between any two pauses constitutes a group. For example sentence like the following will be said without any pause in between.

     (1) I’m going.’ (2) Can we go there? (3) Pass salt, please.

          In above sentences we utter in one group without any pause. But there are a few sentences have two groups and will be said with pause in between.. e.g.

     (1) When the cat is away, /the mice play (2)The secretary said, /‘Let me thank all of you.

          Both above mention sentences have two groups. Such group of utterance can be identified as breath group, sense group and tone group.

          Each group is called a breath group because we pause in the middle of the utterance in order to breath. These groups are also called sense group because the pause takes place in such a way that the sense of utterance is not lost.  These groups are also called tone-groups because each group forms a compact unit and must be said with a particular intonation.

The choice of a syllable on which the pitch-change takes place:-

          The pitch change takes place on the syllable according to the meaning that a speaker wants to convey or the syllable which a speaker wants to make the most prominent. The syllable on which the pitch change begins is called the nucleus of the tone group or the tonic syllable.

(1) I ‘want you to ‘talk to the ‘principal.

The word ‘principal’ is the nucleus. The speaker wants the listener to talk to the principal not any other man.

(2) ‘I ,want you to ,talk to the ,principal

The word ‘I’ is nucleus, speaker wants emphasis himself and giving the order to the listener.

(3) ‘I ,want ‘you to ,talk to the ,principal

      ‘you’ is the nucleus. The speaker wants only that particular listener, not any one else to talk.

          Sometime, if no word is particularly important in a tone-group, the last prominent syllable label will be the nucleus. e.g. Sita hates `ice-cream,  This dress is ‘good.

A few technical term of tone group:-

          The First accented syllable in a tone group is called the ‘head’.  The most prominent syllable in a tone-group on which pitch movement takes place is called ‘nucleus’. The Syllables between head and nucleus constitute the body of the tone-group. The Syllables after nucleus constitute the tail of the tone-group. The syllables before the first accented syllable are the pre-head. e.g.

It ‘looks as if it’s ‘going to ‘rain now.

] It-pre-head. ] ‘looks-head. ] as it’s ‘going to-body, ] ‘rain-nucleus, ] now-tail.

The choice of a tone:-

          Having divided a sentence into tone-groups and having chooses the nucleus, a speaker has to choose one of the various tones. Intonation in English serves a grammatical function and an attitudinal function. 1. With the help of Intonation, the listener can make out whether a particular utterance is a statement or a command or a question or a request. 2. With the help of Intonation, one can find out the attitude of speaker where he is bored, annoyed, interested, sarcastic.

Falling one:-

(1) Low fall:-

Statement: Thanks, you a rrived on Sunday. (uninterested)

Wh-questions: When will she  come (less interest)

Tag-question: Isn’t it? Aren’t we? (expecting agreement)

Commands: Show him. Buy one (calm, uninterested)

Exclamation: How sur  prising! (surprising) 

(2) High fall:-

Statement: No. I’did, certainly  not. (strong agreement or disagreement)

Tag-question:  Do we?  Is it? (demanding agreement)

Commands: Shut the  door.  Go a’way.  (angry command)

Exclamation: what a pleasant  sur  prising! (strong surprising) 

Rising Tone:-

(1) Low-rise:-

Statement:  Cheer  up.  (encouraging)

yes or no-question:  Can you?  (doubtful) 

Commands: Sit here.  Shut the  door.  (polite request)

Exclamation:  Best of  luck. (cheerful good wishes)

(2) High rise:-

          The tone is usually association with question. 

Is she here? (expressing eagerness)  She  Would (dout).

Falling-rising:-

          This tone normally indicates that something is implied-something not expressed in the utterance, thought this tone can express other attitudes as well. The fall and the rise may occur with the syllable.

She is  beautiful (not clever) 2.  The coffee was ,good (but the service was awful).

4. Rising - falling:-

          This tone is a combination of a rise and fall. The rise reinforces the meaning conveyed by the following fall. E.g. 1. How interesting. (Sarcastic).2.  Do you agree? Yes. (Enthusiastic).