Методика формирования социолингвистической компетенции

house = [haıs]; off = [ɔ:f]; tower =  [tɑ:]; refined = [rı´fæınd] (refained)

In RP there is a tendency at present for certain triphthongs and diphthongs to become monophthongs. Thus the word tyre, which was once most commonly pronounced /´tɑıǝ / (triphthong) came to be pronounced /´tɑǝ /  (diphthong), and is now increasingly reduced to /tɑ:/ (monophthong, with the same pronunciation as the word tar).

A further feature which differentiates the conservative speech of older RP speakers from that of younger speakers involves the pronunciation of words such as off, lost, froth. We know that originally words of this type had the same short /ɒ/ vowel as words like hot, top. At the same stage, however, a change took place in southern English accents (including RP) such that /ɒ/ became lengthened to /ɔ:/ before the voiceless fricatives /f/, /s/, /θ/. During the XX century this innovation has been reversed, and the original short vowel pronunciation is being restored. This restoration appears to have been led particularly by middle-class speakers, with the result that pronunciations such as off /ɔ:f/, lost /lɔ:st/, froth /frɔ:θ/ are now most typical of lower status working-class accents and, within R.P., of older-fashioned more conservative or aristocratic speakers. If, therefore, a speaker says off /ɔ:f/ rather than /ɒf/ he is likely to be older rather than younger, and upper middle class or working class rather than lower middle class.

Where one of the vowels /ɑ:/, /ɔ:/, /ıǝ/, /εǝ/ occurs before another vowel, an /r/ is automatically inserted.

Many RP speakers are careful not to use intrusive /r/ within words, and will not say drawing /drɔ:rıŋ/, as many other non-RP speakers do.

RP speakers may use glottal stop word-initially before vowels: ant [ænt]; or before certain consonant clusters: batch [bæɁtʃ], six [sıɁks], simply [´sımɁplı]. The glottal stop is more widely used as an allophone of word-medial and word-final /t/ in the speech of younger urban working-class speakers.

Most non-RP speakers of English, particularly in informal styles, do not have /ŋ/ in the suffix –ing. In forms of this type they have /n/ instead:

                      singing     /´sıŋın/ walking     /´wɔ:kın/

This pronunciation is also stereotypically associated with older members of the aristocracy, who are often caricatured as being particularly interested in ‘hunting’, ‘shootin’, and fishin’.

In Cockney, although the vowel /Λ/, as in cup, is to be found in the same set of words as it is in RP, its realization is consistently different. To show these differences we shall make use of the vowel charts.

5. Cockney – the accent variety of the lower classes

The most stigmatised broad accent associated with the area in and around London is the nonstandard dialect Cockney.

The label Cockney suggests really broad variety allied with the least educated. Historically, Cockney speakers were born within the sound of “Bow Bells“, that is, about a quarter of a mile from the church of St. Mary-le-Bow in Cheapside near London Bridge and the Billingsgate fish market. The term Cockney refers to both the accent as well as to those people who speak it. The etymology of Cockney has long been discussed and disputed. The term originally was a compound meaning “cock’s egg”, and was used for a pampered child, then for a city person, and finally for a Londoner. Cockney is seen as a show-off variety of language, admired by those who use it and the object of amused interest by others.

Cockney is characterized by its own special vocabulary and usage, and traditionally by its own development of "rhyming slang”.  Rhyming slang, is still part of the true Cockney culture even if it is sometimes used for effect.

Here are some phonetic features of Cockney.

1)              /U/ and /Λ/ are both present and distinguished between, for example, put and putt. /Λ/ is realized as /æ/, Here is a clear example: being, blood.

/æ/ and /ɑ:/ are distributed as in RP /æ/ is realized as [ε], or as a diphthong, [εi].

2) Unlike RP, the final vowel of city etc. is /i/ and not /ı/.

3)              /h/ is almost invariably absent. When it is present, it is likely to be in a stressed position. In the working-class ("common") accents throughout England, ‘h’ dropping at the beginning of certain words is heard often, but it’s certainly heard more in Cockney, and in accents closer to Cockney on the continuum between that and RP. The usage is strongly stigmatized by teachers and many other standard speakers.

Examples:

house = ‘ouse

4)The glottal stop, [Ɂ], is extremely common in Cockney speech. As well as in the environments in which it occurs in RP, it is also found:

a.              accompanying /p/ between vowels

b.              representing /t/ between vowels and before pause

5)The contrast between /θ/ and /f/ is variably lost:

                initially       thin   /fin/

               medially      Cathy /kæfi:/

               finally          both /boUf/

Similarly, the contrast between /ð/ and /v/ is also often lost:

                 medially       together   /tǝ´gevǝ/

                  finally   bathe  /beıv/

Initially, /d/ or zero is more likely to be heard for /ð/:

the   /dǝ/.

7)When /l/ occurs finally after a vowel e.g. Paul, well; before a consonant in the same syllable e.g. milk; or as a syllable in itself e.g. table, it is realized as a vowel. Thus: [poU, wεU, mıUk, tæıbU]. When the preceding vowel is /ɔ:/, there may be complete loss of /l/. Thus Pauls may be [po:z], i.e. identical with pause.

The vowels which represent /l/ can alter the quality of the vowels preceding them in such a way as to make homonyms like pool and pull.

8)Certain diphthongs are markedly different from R.P. in their realization.

/ei/ is [æı]

/ou/ is [æu]

/ai/ is [ɑı].

9)-ing is /in/

In nothing the ending may be pronounced as [ıŋk].

10)When they are initial, /p, t ,k/ are heavily aspirated, more so than in R.P. In the case of /t/ there is affrication (the tongue leaves the alveolar ridge slowly and [s] is produced before the vowel begins).

11)              Prosody. The voice quality of Cockney has been described as typically involving "chest tone" rather than "head tone" and being equated with "rough and harsh" sounds versus the velvety smoothness of the Kensington or Mayfair accents spoken by those in other more upscale areas of London.

6. Estuary English – the accent variety of the middle class

The present century has seen great changes both in the internal social structure of Britain and in the position of Britain in the world. For historical reasons the standard accent RP still serves as a model of pronunciation for foreign students.

However, like any other accent variety throughout history, the standard pronunciation of the southeast of England cannot resist the inevitable and continuous process of change. Since 1950 the phonetic distinctiveness of RP has been becoming blurred, the result of a change in the feelings and subconscious attitudes of speaker and listener towards the non-linguistic homogeneity of the RP speaking group.

Thus, as a matter of fact, RP is slowly but surely on its way out.

One reason for the gradual decline of RP is changes within Britain:

social and geographical barriers have been progressively weakened; a new English middle class with different conceptions and attitudes towards accents has emerged.

In fact, RP is in the process of being replaced by Estuary English (EE), the prevailing accent in the southeast of England.

P. Trudgill insists that “it is necessary to be skeptical about reports of two different types: the first is that RP is disappearing, the second is that RP is being replaced by a new, potentially non-regional accent (EE). These two scenarios are largely myths”.

Estuary English is the “trendy” and fashionable accent of the younger generations. Until recently EE was seen as a variant of RP.

The label actually refers to the lower middle-class accents of the Home Counties which surround London: Essex and Kent, which do border on the Thames Estuary, but also parts or all of Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, and Hertfordshire, which do not. Estuary English is an accent that includes features localizable in the southeast of England.

The new accent variety Estuary English shares features of both RP and Cockney. This linguistic classification reflects the social hierarchy in England; Estuary English speakers are said to be the representatives of a newly emerging middle class bridging the upper and lower classes.

On the level of phonemes, Estuary English exists in a continuum containing characteristics of both forms, Cockney and General RP, in varying degrees. It is basically fairly standard English but with a pronunciation that is quite influenced by the English of London, Cockney. Generally, the grammar is unchanged but features such as the 'glottal stop', where the letter T is not pronounced in the middle of words such as 'bottle' (pronounced 'bo'all') are used.

It is called Estuary English because many upwardly mobile professional people among whom it is fashionable live in the Docklands area of London by the river.

Here are some features of Estuary English.

    1) vocalization of preconsonantal/final /l/, perhaps with various vowel mergers before it (miwk- bottoo 'milk-bottle'). The vocalisation of dark /l/, which sound terribly technical but is essentially very simple. If you watch UK television, you only have to think of The Bill, pronounced The Biw! Another evocative one is the 'l' in 'milk', which in turn becomes 'miwk'. Or think of any of the baddies in the innumerable London gangster films saying Wew, wew, wew. Wha' 'ave we 'ere, then?

2) yod coalescence even before a stressed /u:/ (Chooseday)

Native speakers tend to say something more like 'grad-joo-ull' than 'grad-you-ull'. The process of shedding /j/s is now established in RP. The same can be said, strictly speaking of 'usual'. Few modern native speakers would do it, but the old RP pronunciation really should be 'you-ziou-ull' rather than the modern 'you-zhoo-ull'.. Many speakers of current General RP do not pronounce a /j/ after the l of 'absolute', 'lute', 'revolution', or 'salute'. They would say 'time off in loo' rather than 'time off in lieu'. For many speakers 'lieu' and 'loo' are now homophones. Similarly it is common not to pronounce the /j/ after the /s/ of 'assume', 'consume', 'presume', 'pursuit' or 'suit(able)'.

3) diphthong shift in face, price, goat. It means producing some vowels and diphthongs differently to RP, which can lead to homophones like: way - why , say - sigh, pulls –pools - Paul's (- pause).

4) striking allophony (in goat), leading perhaps to a phonemic split (wholly holy)

5) use of glottal stops for traditional [t] in many non-initial positions (take i' off). It's the 'sound' that is produced when you block off the air in the back of your throat (with a clever little thing called your glottis) and let go again, producing a kind of almost audible pause, often replacing a final 't' or a post-vocalic 't' (righ' for right or wa'er for water).

The intonation of Estuary English is characterized by frequent prominence being given to prepositions and auxiliary verbs which are not normally stressed in General RP. This prominence is often marked to the extent that the nuclear tone (the syllable highlighted by pitch movement) can fall on prepositions. An example of this would be: "Let us get TO the point". There is a rise fall intonation which is characteristic of Estuary English as is a greater use of question tags such is "isn't it?" and "don't I?" than in RP. The pitch of intonation patterns in "Estuary English" appears to be in a narrower frequency band than RP. In particular, rises often do not reach as high a pitch as they would in RP. The overall effect might be interpreted as one of deliberateness and even an apparent lack of enthusiasm.

Приложение 3

Задания диагностирующего среза

1. Listen to the text and answer the questions.

Text 1.

A Job Interview

Rachel: Good morning, Alex. Nice to meet you. I have to say that this is a first! Interviewing a man for this job.

Alex: I know it’s, it’s unusual.

Rachel: Well, certainly a man has never applied for it before. Tell me, have you always been a nanny?

Alex: No, not at all. I was studying ingeneering in Stockholm, and I knew I could earn a lot of money as an engineer but it was boring, so I stopped and decided to look at other careers.

Rachel: OK I understand that. But why a nanny? Why did you choose this career, a career in childcare?

Alex: Well, obviously it’s because I love children, but it’s much more than that. You see my mother died when I was just twelve years old and I had to help my father take care of my younger brother and sister.

Rachel: Ah, I see. So you didn’t have to do a lot of training to be a nanny?

Alex: Oh yes, I did. I had to train for a year. I had to learn how to look after children properly. Actually, I was the only boy on the course – so I really enjoyed it!

Rachel: So what kind of things did you learn?

Alex: Well, you know, how to change nappies …

Rachel: Very important!

Alex: How to cook healthy meals for children. How to play with them and organize their days. We worked hard and we all felt fully-qualified for the job at the end of the course.

Rachel: Well, before I offer you the job I’d like you to meet Jack and spend some time with him to see how well you two get on together.

Alex: I’d love to.

Rachel: Well, let’s go and meet him. He’s adorable! Oh I forgot – do you have any questions for me?

Alex: Just one. Do I have to wear a uniform?

Rachel: No, that’s not necessary. You look just fine.

Alex: Thank you very much.

Rachel: OK, let’s …

1) Why did Alex choose a career as a nanny?

a) Because he couldn’t enter university.

b) Because he had experience in looking after children.

c) Because he is an orphan.

2) How long did he have to train?

a) He didn’t have to study nursing.

b) For 2 years.

c) For a year.

3) Were any boys on his course?

a) Yes, there were.

b) No, there weren’t any.

c) There were both boys and girls.

4) What did he learn on the course?

a) First aid and pedagogics.

b) Languages and cooking.

c) Cooking and changing nappies.

5) Is Alex going to see the child before he starts working with him?

a) He hasn’t get this job, so he is not going to see the child.

b) He has got the job, but he is going to start work without meeting the child.

c) He is going to see the child.

6) Is Alex a native speaker of English?

a) No, he isn’t

b) Yes, he is, but he is not English

c) Yes, he is English

2. Listen to the text and answer the questions.

Pets

Nick: Oh, I, er, got my son a pet dog for his birthday.

Kenny: A pet? A dog.

Nick: Yeah.

Kenny: A dog? For your son?

Nick: He’s been wanting that pet for ages and ages. He’s so happy. You should see him now playing with it all day.

Kenny: But you live in the middle of the city, for God’s sake.

Nick: Well my son, you know, he needs something, he needs something to play with. You know he can’t go out because all of his friends live miles away.

Kenny: But an animal’s a living thing. It’s not, it’s not a plaything for, for someone’s kid. I mean, you know, it’s, it’s cruel.

Nick: Well, it’s helping my son to learn how to care for things. I think, you know, it’s the best thing for my son.

Kenny: That’s great, but if you can’t care for it, it’s a big dog living in the centre of the city. It’s just, it’s just going to suffer, isn’t it?

Nick: Well he’s got no friends. You know, he goes out, there’s a big busy road there, he can’t play in the street, all his friends live, you know, he’s got, he’s he’s only five and he can’t, you know, got on the bus and go see them so I thoughts a dog would be his best friend from now on.

Kenny: No, he’s, he’s just, he’s not even gonna know how to treat it. Anyway, you’re going to have to teach him, and it’s just, like, it’s just there’s no room for him to exercise. I mean, you know, what, what’s he going to do?

Nick: Well, it’s the best thing. And also there’s studies that say that having a pet reduces stress level, makes you, you can live longer, makes you healthier.

Kenny: Well, it does if the animal, if the animal’s healthy, like, out in the country where it can run around in the field.

Nick: Oh, here he is. Oh, look! Here he comes. Here boy! Here boy!

Kenny: Oh, he’s so cute. Here boy! Oh, look I think he might … Oh, isn’t he so cute! Oh I’m getting one of these.

Nick: Yeah, I can see you now. You’ll have one next week.

1) What pet did Nick buy for his son?

a) a cat;

b) a dog;

c) a parrot.

2) Did Nick’s son like the pet?

a) Yes, and he plays with it all the time.

b) No, he wanted a different pet.

c) Yes, but he doesn’t know how to look after pets.

3) Where does Nick live?

a) In a house in the country.

b) In a house in a little town.

c) In a flat in the middle of a busy city.

4) Why did Nick give his son a pet?

a) Because his son wanted it.

b) Because he wants to develop his son’s responsibility.

c) Because somebody abandoned that pet.

5) What does Kenny decide to do at the end of the conversation?

a) take a similar pet;

b) move out of the city;

c) take his friend’s pet.

6) Where are the speakers and what are they doing?

a) They are in an office having a small talk before negiciations.

b) They are in a pet shop.

c) They are friends chatting after work.

3. Listen to the text and answer the questions.

Lost in London

Caller: Hello is that Central Train Station?

Receptionist: It is indeed. How can I help you?

Caller: Actually, I’m a bit lost. I’m trying to get to the Central Train Station.

Receptionist: Where are you?

Caller: I’m at the Imperial Lodge Hotel on Renfrew Street. Do you know it?

Receptionist: I do. It’s a fiteen-minute walk from here.

Caller: OK, great.

Receptionist: OK. Come out of the hotel and turn left. Then, turn right when you get to Rose Street and walk

straight on until it turns into Blythswood Street. After about four blocks, turn right down West George Street and continue until you reach George Square. The station is just in the square – you can’t miss it.

Caller: So, that’s out of the hotel and turn left. Then first right, walk three blocks and go left until the square, right?

Receptionist: No, four blocks.

Caller: Oh, OK. Four blocks. That’s great. Thanks very much.

Receptionist: No problem, see you.

1) Where is the caller?

a) at a train station;

b) in the street;

c) abroad.

2) The Imperial Lodge Hotel is…

a) in a five-minute walk from the train station;

b) in a fifty-minute walk from the train station;

c) in a fifteen-minute walk from the train station.

3) How does the caller get to the station?

a) She has to walk straight, turn right, then left and then go straight.

b) She has to turn left, then walk straight and then turn left again.

c) She has to turn left, then turn right, then turn left again.

4) What does the phone caller want?

a) She wants to book a ticket.

b) She wants to know how to get to the train station.

c) She wants to know where the Imperial Lodge Hotel is.

5) The woman who answers the phone tells the caller that…

a) it is impossible to miss a train;

b) it is prohibited to miss trains;

c) the station is easy to find.

6) Is the caller a native speaker of English?

a) Yes, she is English.

b) Yes, but she is not English.

c) No, she is not a native speaker.

4. Listen to the text and answer the questions.

East and West Coast

Sally: I could never live in the east coast. People there are so fast-paced.

Valerie: Yeah, I know. The west coast people are chilled, calm, easy-going.

Sally: Yeah, and, erm, people from the east coast are like workaholics. And all they do is, like, work everyday.

Valerie: Yeah, I think the west coasters kind of have a slower pace of life. They take things as they come. It's a lot more laid-back.

Sally: Yeah, and people in the, in the east coast are, all they're worried about is wealth, prestige, how they look.

Valerie: Yeah, it's all a bit superficial, wouldn't you say?

Sally: Yes, I think so. I mean, people can be snobby, and think they're better than everybody, and then they come to the west coast and think it's the same down there.