[Definition: Phonetics]
Phonetics is the scientific study of speech sounds.
We say that phonetics is scientific because it incorporates the methods and the instruments of empirical science. Scientific methods include observation, deduction, and prescription. The scientific instruments used in phonetics include the equipment that make up a good phonetics laboratory.
By stating that phonetics studies speech sounds, we want to make you understand that only human beings communicate with speech. What is often mistaken for speech in animals is a mere collection of instinctive signals. In other words, we do not consider whatever sounds animals make as speech. Even at that, not all human sounds constitute speech. Sneezing, coughing, snoring, and yawning do not usually constitute speech.
Therefore, for the purposes of phonetics, we define speech as:
> Human sounds used for oral communication.
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There have been several brilliant but futile attempts to train animals to speak. A case in point was the effort of some American linguists in the late 1970s to teach a chimpanzee how to speak. The chimp was named Nim Chimsky, after the great linguist Noam Chomsky. Although this experiment created some sensation, it turned out a colossal failure, because Nim, being a chimp, lacked the human intelligence necessary for speech.
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[Branches of Phonetics]
There are three branches of phonetics:
1. Articulatory Phonetics:
This branch focuses on how sounds are produced. It deals with the physical processes and movements of the speech organs when producing speech sounds.
2. Auditory Phonetics:
This branch deals with how we hear sounds and how they are processed by the brain. It examines the perception of speech sounds by listeners, and how the auditory system processes them.
3. Acoustic Phonetics:
This branch concerns the study of the physical and acoustic characteristics of sounds, as well as how sounds are transmitted through the air. It includes studying the frequency, intensity, and duration of sounds.
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The focus of this course is articulatory phonetics, where we will learn about the production of speech sounds. In our discussions, you will learn about the three mechanisms by which speech is produced:
1. Articulatory Mechanism: The operation of speech organs (i.e., parts of the human body used during speech).
2. Airstream Mechanism: What is responsible for airflow during speech.
3. Phonatory Mechanism: What happens in the voice box (larynx or Adam's apple) during speech?
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[Situating Phonetics within Linguistics]
Linguistics is the scientific study of the structure of languages. It has the following branches:
1. Phonetics:
Studies speech sounds.
2. Phonology:
Studies the sound systems of languages. It investigates which sounds are used in specific languages, how important each sound is in a language, and how sound features change when sounds are produced together in words and sentences.
3. Morphology:
Focuses on the formation of words by bringing together different minimal units of meaning called morphemes.
4. Syntax:
Involves the correct arrangement of words to form sentences.
5. Semantics:
Deals with meaning. It explores the different interpretations that can be given to the same words.
For instance, members of a class were once asked to punctuate the following sequence of words:
> A woman without her man is a beast
Their answers:
Men: A woman, without her man, is a beast.
Ladies: A woman: without her, man is a beast.
6. Applied Linguistics:
Studies language and its relevance to society. Fields such as sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, etc., fall under this category.
Note: Phonetics gathers the raw material for other aspects of linguistic study. It deals with sounds, which constitute the building blocks for languages. Just as everything in a building boils down to one brick on top of another, everything in a language boils down to one sound after another.
For instance, syntax is concerned with the proper order of words in a sentence. Yet, words must first be pronounced well before we consider their order. The phonetics must be in place before syntax is considered. Again, a child who substitutes
for [b] is likely to say:
> "Daddy, Laide is beating me."
Note: Perfect syntax, but the phonetic error will make the meaning unclear.
The point here is: whatever the concerns of linguistic investigation, however complex the structures of a language, the conclusions of linguistic investigation are presented and confirmed at the phonetic level.
Therefore, phonetics is the alpha and omega of the field of linguistics.
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Summary
In this lecture, we have discussed articulatory phonetics. We defined phonetics, gave the branches of phonetics, and situated it within the broader scope of linguistics. We also examined the branches of linguistics and noted the centrality of phonetics to the entire field.
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Post-Test
1. State why you consider phonetics a scientific study.
2. Why do linguists think that only human beings speak?
3. Explain the focus of the three branches of phonetics.
4. State two reasons why phonetics is necessary for every branch of linguistics.
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LECTURE: 2
The Chain of Speech: From the Brain to the Lips
Introduction
Perhaps all human activities work in a chain. Like an electric circuit, one stage of speech connects with the other. Speech comes from the mouth, but the activity is initiated in the human brain. That is why a child begins to make coherent speech only after his/her brain is fully developed. Again, like it is with electricity, if there is disconnection along the line from the brain to the speech organ, a speech defect arises.
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Objectives
At the end of this lecture, you should be able to:
1. State the sequence involved in the production of speech.
2. Draw the chain of speech.
3. State the activity that takes place at every stage of the speech chain.
4. Identify two defects that could arise from a break in the chain of speech.
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Pre-Test
1. Do we always think before we speak?
2. Explain the activity that takes place at every stage of the speech chain.
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Content
The Chain of Speech
The process of speech involves a chain that typically includes:
1. The Brain (Psychological Stage)
Speech is a voluntary intellectual action—it involves the conscious use of the human brain. We make utterances because we want to.
Like every voluntary action, speech is conceived in the brain.
Investigations show that the brain sends about 1,400 messages per second to the organs of speech during normal speech.
The speech centers of the brain are:
Wernicke's Area: where speech is conceived and structured.
Broca's Area: where it is encoded before being sent to speech muscles by motor neurons.
Evidence for the brain's role in speech includes:
Aphasia: A speech disorder caused by damage to the brain's language centers (e.g., from a car accident or stroke).
Slips of the Tongue (e.g., Spoonerisms):
"You have hissed all my mystery lectures" instead of "You have missed all my history lectures."
"Queer old dean" instead of "Dear old queen."
"Cake a bake" instead of "Bake a cake."
Try it: Can you create two Spoonerisms of your own?
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2. Muscular Action (Physiological Stage)
Speech is one of the most skilful muscular activities of human beings.
It involves the coordination of over 80 muscles, many of them paired.
The brain sends instructions to these muscles, including:
Muscles of the mouth
Muscles that power the ribs and lungs
Muscles of the voice box
When these muscles contract and move in coordination, speech sounds are produced.
Speech defects such as stammering or stuttering can arise if there is a breakdown between brain signals and muscular action.
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3. Sound Waves and Their Properties (Physical Stage)
Once the muscles generate speech sounds, the sounds travel as waves through the air.
These sound waves have physical properties like:
Intensity and loudness
Frequency and pitch
These physical/acoustic features can be analyzed using equipment in a phonetics laboratory.
They form the core subject matter of Acoustic Phonetics, to be discussed more deeply in LIN 241.
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Summary
In this lecture, we have examined the chain of speech.
We discussed the role of the:
Brain (psychological initiation),
Muscles (physiological coordination),
Sound waves (physical transmission).
Each link is critical. A failure in any stage leads to a speech disorder.
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Post-Test
1. State the function of motor neurons in the speech chain.
2. Explain two speech defects that arise from a break in the chain of speech.