15.The linguistic functions of the syllable. The syllable as a minimal unit of prosody.Prosodic characteristics of syll.

Three main functions of the syllable:constitutive, distinctive and identificatory.The constitutive function of the syllable manifests itself in the fact that the syllable forms higher-level units - words, accentual or rhythmic groups, utterances. Two aspects of this function can be emphasized. On the one hand, the syllable is a unit in which segmental phonemes are realized(the relations between the distinctive features of the phonemes and their acoustic correlates can be revealed only within the syllable)On the other hand, within a syllable or a sequence of syllables prosodic (or suprasegmental) features of speech are also realized. These are distinctive variations in loudness (stress) in pitch (tone), and in duration (tempo, length). Thus syllables may be stressed and unstressed, high, mid or low, rising or falling, long or short. All these prosodic features are significant for constituting the stress—pattern of a word and the tonal and rhythmic structures of an utterance.The distinctive function of the syllable is to differentiate words and word combinations. It has been mentioned that phonemes exist and function within the syllable. Therefore words are actually differentiated by the syllable as one articulatory and perceptible unit. For instance, the monosyllabic words /bi :t/ "beat" and /b i :d/ "bead" differ not only in their consonant phonemes/t/and /d/, but also in the length of/h/, which is conditioned by the neighbouring fort is and lenis consonants.The i dent i f icatory function of the syllable is conditioned by the hearer's perception of syllables as entire phonetic units with their concrete allophones and syllabic boundaries.The listener identifies two syllables in "plum pie" and "plump eye" with the corresponding boundaries before /p/ and after /p/, because in the first example /p/ is aspirated and /m/ is as tang as if it were final, whereas in the second example /p/ is unaspirated and /m/ is shorter on account of the following fortis /p/.

16. Prosoody and intonation. Prosodic units, structure of intonation group.

Phonemes, syllables and words, as lower—level linguistic units, are grouped by various prosodic means into a higher unit — the utterance. Every concrete utterance, alongside of its phonemic and syllabic structures has a certain prosodic structure, or intonation.Most Soviet phoneticians define intonation as a complex unity of speech melody, sentence stress, tempo, rhythm and voice timbre, which enables the speaker to express his thoughts, emotions and attitudes towards the contents of the utterance and the hearer. Speech melody, sentence stress, tempo, rhythm and timbre are all components of intonation. These are perceptible qualities of intonation. Acoustically, intonation is a complex combination of varying fundamental frequency, intensity and duration. Some phoneticians apply the term "prosody" and "prosodic" only to the features pertaining to the syllable and phonetic word, or rhythmic unit (which are regarded as meaningless prosodic units) i and oppose prosody to intonation (which is a meaningful phenomenon). The syllable is widely recognized to be the smallest prosodic unit. A rhythmic, or accentual, unit (or group) is either one stressed syllable or a stressed syllable with a number of unstressed ones grouped around it. The stressed syllable is the nucleus of the rhythmic unit.The intonation group is hierarchically higher than the rhythmic unit. It has also been termed "syntagm", "sense—group", "breath—group", "intonation contour", "divisible accentual unit", "tone—group", "tune", "tone—unit". The intonation group is a meaningful unit. The most general meanings expressed by the intonation group are, for instance, those of completeness, finality versus incompleteness, non—finality.The structure of the intonation group varies depending on the number of syllables and rhythmic units in it. Minimally , an intonation group consists of one (stressed) syllable — the nucleus. Maximally, it contains the prehead, the head, the nucleus and the tail.