Components of intonation and the structure of English tone-group.
1. Definition and functions
Most foreign authors consider intonation as pitch variations only. Russian phoneticians (V. A. Vassilyev, G. T. Torsuyev, E.Y. Antipova and others) state, that intonation is a complex unity of
speech melody (pitch of the voice)
sentence stress
rhythm
voice timbre
pausation and tempo (rate)
Intonation on perception level is:
a complex, a whole, formed by significant variations of pitch, loudness and tempo.
Some Russian linguists regard speech timbre as the fourth component of intonation.
Though speech timbre definitely conveys certain shades of attitudinal or emotional meaning there is no reason to consider it alongside with the three prosodic components of intonation, i.e. pitch, loudness and tempo.
M. Sokolova and others write that the term prosody embraces the three prosodic components and substitutes the term intonation.
The main functions of intonation
the constitutive – intonation forms sentences
the distinctive – intonation serves to distinguish the communicative types of sentences, the actual meaning of a sentence, the speaker’s emotions and attitudes.
Functions of intonation (according to D. Crystal )
• Emotional - expresses attitudinal meaning -sarcasm, surprise, reserve, impatience, delight, shock, anger, interest, and thousands of other semantic nuances.
• Grammatical - helps to identify grammatical structure in speech, performing a role similar to punctuation.
• Informational - helps draw attention to what meaning is given and what is new in an utterance (the word carrying the most prominent tone presents new information).
