This module is not currently running in 2024 to 2025.
This course is an introduction to the linguistic study of speech. It covers how speech sounds are produced and perceived and what their acoustic characteristics are (often referred to as phonetics), as well as how speech sounds are organized into sound systems cross-linguistically (often referred to as phonology). Emphasis will be placed on the sound system of English (including dialectal variation) but basics of sound systems across the world’s languages will also be briefly covered and contrasted with English. Finally, the course will cover the differences between the traditional “static” view of speech sounds as articulatory postures and the organization of running speech, together with the repercussions that our current knowledge about running speech has for our understanding of phonological systems, their organization and formal representation.
Subject to change pending faculty approval
3 hours per week
100% Coursework
50% Timed written in-class test, including questions on articulation, acoustics and phonetic transcription (120 minutes; learning outcomes 11.1-7 and 12.1-4)
50% Take-home problem set, including work with visual representations of speech using relevant software and discussion of phonology problem sets (equivalent 1,500 words; learning outcomes 11.1-7 and 12.1-4)
1. Ashby, Michael and John Maidment (2005) Introducing Phonetic Science. Cambridge University Press.
2. Gussenhoven, C. & Jacobs, H. (1998) Understanding Phonology. London: Hodder & Arnold.
3. Ladefoged, P. & Johnson, K. (2010) A Course in Phonetics (6th edition). Cengage Learning.
4. Ladefoged, Peter (2003) Phonetic Data Analysis. Blackwell.
5. Ladefoged, Peter (1996) Elements of Acoustic Phonetics. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press
See the library reading list for this module (Canterbury)
By the end of the module, the students will:
11.1. have knowledge and understanding of the central areas of the study of speech and of the problems with the traditional separation of the study of speech into phonetics and phonology
11.2. understand how speech sounds are produced and perceived; students should also have an understanding of speech acoustics
11.3. have a good level of familiarity with the types of experimental research that contribute to our knowledge of how speech is produced and perceived and of how this research informs our understanding of sound system organization
11.4. acquire a cogent understanding of the English language and its varieties
11.5. be able to use the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to represent speech sounds and to refer to the IPA for guidance, while being cognizant of the controversies surrounding the use of the IPA and its limitations
11.6. be able to interpret visual representations of speech using relevant software (Praat) and should have mastered the basic functions of Praat (recording and playing files, cutting and pasting speech, doing basic measurements of duration, amplitude and fundamental frequency of speech sounds)
11.7. be able to solve intermediate-level phonology problems using appropriate tests and arguments
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