内容预览
第一部分 课后练习
第1章 导 论
1. Definethe following terms briefly.
linguistics language arbitrariness
duality competence performance
stylistics phatic communion functionalism
formalism synchronic linguistics diachroniclinguistics
Key:
·Linguistics: Linguistics is the scientific or systemic study of language. (It is ascience in the sense that it scientifically studies the rules, systems andprinciples of human languages. It deals with a wide range of linguisticphenomena, analyzes them, and makes general statements about them.)
·Language: Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for humancommunication.
·Arbitrariness: Language is arbitrary. As a design feature of human language,arbitrariness refers to the fact that there isno logical or intrinsic connection between a particular sound and the meaningit is associated with. The relationship between the sounds and their meaning isquite accidental. The onomatopoeic words are exceptions.
·Duality: Duality is a design feature of human language. Human language operateson two levels of structures. At one level are elements which have no meaning inthemselves but which combine to form units at another level which do havemeaning. This organization of language into two levels—a level of sounds whichcombine into a second level of larger units—is called duality or doublearticulation.
·Competence: According to Chomsky, competence refers to the knowledge that nativespeakers have of their language as a system of abstract formal relations.
·Performance: According to Chomsky, performance refers to the actual linguisticbehavior of native speakers.
·Stylistics: Stylistics is a branch of linguistics and which is the study of howliterary effects can be related to linguistic features. It usually refers tothe study of written language; including literary texts, but it alsoinvestigate spoken language sometimes. It can be called the “science of literature”since it is the scientific study of literary style.
·Phatic communion: Phatic communion is a function of language. Language is used to establish an atmosphere or maintainsocial contact between the speaker and the hearer. Greetings, farewells andcomments on the weather serve this function.
·Functionalism: Functionalism or functional linguistics refers to the study of theforms of language in reference to their social function in communication.Functionalism tends to explain the forms of language by attributing adetermining role of its function.
·Formalism: Formalism or formal linguistics is the study of the abstract forms oflanguage and their internal relations. It fixes on the forms of languages asevidence of the universals without considering how these forms function incommunication and the ways of social life in different communities.
·Synchronic linguistics: Synchronic linguistics refers to the study oflanguage at a given point in time. It focuses on the state of language at anypoint on history.
·Diachronic linguistics: Diachronic linguistics refers to the study oflanguage developments through time. It focuses on the differences in two ormore than two states of language over decades or centuries.
2. Iflanguage is partially defined as communication, can we call the noises thatdogs make language? Why or why not?
Key: No, we can not call the noisesthat dogs make as language even though language is partially defined ascommunication. There are two reasons for that: first, language ishuman-specific, it is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used only for humancommunication. Second, language has design features which are totally lack inanimal communication systems. For example, language has two levels ofstructures: at one level are elements which have no meaning in themselves butwhich combine to form units at another level which do have meaning. Noises madeby dogs represent certain meaning but can not be further analyzed into smallerunits. Language can be used to refer to things removed from the present timeand context. We can talk about things happened in the past and future and indistant places, which dogs can never tell things they did the day before.
3. One ofthe main features of our human languages is arbitrariness. Can you brieflyexplain what this feature refers to? Support your argument with examples.
Key: Language is arbitrary. As a designfeature of human language, arbitrariness refersto the fact that there is no logical or intrinsic connection between aparticular sound and the meaning it is associated with. For example, we Chinesepeople use the sound “yizi” and Japanese use “isu” for the same meaning of“chair”; and we can not explain why we use the letter symbol “book” for a bookand “pen” for a pen. A dog may be called a pig if the first man happens to nameit as a “pig”. So, the relationship between the sounds and their meaning isquite accidental. However, the arbitrariness of language is a matter of degree,the onomatopoeic words and the compounding words, for instances, are motivatedin a certain degree.
4. What kind of evidence supports the idea that language isculturally transmitted?
Key: Language is culturally transmittedand it cannot be transmitted through heredity. Evidences are as follows: Ahuman being brought up in isolations simply doesn’t acquire language, as isdemonstrated by the studies of children brought up by animals without humancontact. Animals transmit their cries simply from parent to child, while humanbaby doesn’t speak any language at birth. What language a baby is going tospeak is determined by the culture he is born into. A Chinese baby born andbrought up in London by an English family will speak English, while an Englishkid brought up in a Chinese community will speak Chinese.
5. Point out three major differences between linguistics andtraditional grammar.
Key: Linguistics differs fromtraditional grammar at least in three basic ways:
First, linguistics is descriptive whiletraditional grammar is prescriptive. Linguistics describes languages anddoesn’t lay down rules of correctness .Linguistics are interested in what issaid, not what they think ought to be said. While tradition grammar emphasizesuch matters as correctness, literary excellence and try to impose on languagescertain regulations.
Second, linguists regard the spoken languageas primary, not the written one, which is another important point that differlinguistics from traditional grammar. It is believed by linguists that speechcame into being first for any human language and the writing system came alongmuch later.
Third, traditional grammar is based on Latinand it tries to impose the Latin categories and structures on other languageswhile linguistics describes each language on its own merits.
6. What is the difference between a prescriptive and a descriptiveapproach to language?
Key: Descriptive approach to languageattempt to tell what is in the language, while prescriptive approach tolanguage tells people what should be in the language. Most contemporarylinguists believe that whatever occurs naturally in the language should bedescribed. Certain forms are used more regularly than others and by differentpeople. Though some forms occur less frequently, they should not be ignored.They can all be recorded and explained as aspects of the languages since theyare actually used.
7.Distinguish between synchronic and diachronic linguistics.
Key: Language can be studied at a givenpoint in time or over time. When we study language at one particular time, itis called synchronic linguistics. When we study language developments throughtime, it is called diachronic linguistics. Synchronic linguistics focuses onthe state of language at any point on history while diachronic linguisticsfocuses on the differences in two or more than two states of language overdecades or centuries.
8. A wolfis able to express subtle gradations of emotion by different positions of theears, the lips, and the tail. There are eleven postures of the tail that expresssuch emotions as self-confidence, confident threat, lack of tension, uncertainthreat, depression, defensiveness, active submission, and complete submission.This system seems to be complex. Suppose there were a thousand differentemotions that the wolf could express in this way. Would you then say a wolf hada language similar to man's? If not, why not?
Key: No, we can not say a wolf has alanguage similar to that of men even though there were a thousand differentemotions that the wolf could express with his positions of body parts. Thereare two reasons for that:
First, language is a system of arbitraryvocal symbols used only for human communication. The primary medium for humancommunication is sound, so the kind of communication system composed bypositions of body parts are different from human language fundamentally.
Second, language has design features whichare lack in animals’ communication systems. For example, language has twolevels of structures: at one level are elements which have no meaning inthemselves but which combine to form units at another level which do havemeaning. But in wolf’s communication system, one position stands for onecertain meaning, and cannot be further analyzed into smaller units. And on theother hand, human linguistic units can be grouped and regrouped, arranged andrearranged according to certain rules but those positions owned by wolf have nosuch features. Therefore, wolf’s this system is not so productive as humanlanguages.
第2章 语 音
1.Define the following terms briefly.
articulator assimilation consonant elision
intonation phoneme phonetics phonology
stress voicing voiceless vowel
Key:
·Articulator: Different parts of the vocal tract involved in the production of speechsound are called organs of speech or articulators, including lips, teeth,alveolar ridge, hard palate, soft palate, tongue, uvula and vocal cords.
·Assimilation: Assimilation refers to the way that sounds belonging to one word or onesyllable can cause changes in sounds belonging to neighboring sounds orsyllables. There are two kinds of assimilation. It is called regressiveassimilation when the changes were brought about by the following sound; whilechanges brought about by the preceding sound is called progressiveassimilation.
·Consonant: Consonants are sounds in which there is obstruction to the flow of airas it passes from the larynx to the lips. There are altogether 24 consonants inEnglish.
·Elision: Elision refers to the loss of a sound or sounds in speech under certaincircumstances. It is typical of rapid, casual speech.
·Intonation: Intonation refers to a greater degree of loudness and the change ofspeech rhythm in the utterance of some syllables.
·Phoneme: Phoneme is the abstract element of a sound, identified as beingdistinctive in a particular language. It is the smallest phonological unit oflanguage which can distinguish meaning.
·Phonetics: The study of the speech sounds that occur in all human languages iscalled phonetics. The study of phonetics can be divided into three mainbranches: articulatory phonetics, auditory phonetics and acoustic phonetics.
·Phonology: Phonology is the description of the systems and patterns of speechsounds in a language.
·Stress: When a word has more than one syllable, one of them will be pronouncedwith more prominence than others and this speech sound phenomenon is calledstress.
·Voicing: Voicing is a distinctive phonetic feature of speech sound that candistinguish one word from another, which refers to the vibration in the larynxcaused by air fro the lungs passing through the vocal cords when they arepartly closed. A speech sound can be defined as voiced or voiceless. Forexample, the only difference between [z] and is voicing.
·Voiceless: One of the two branches in voicing. It is used to describe soundsproduced without causing vibration of the vocal cords.
·Vowel: Vowels are sounds in which there is no obstruction to the flow of airas it passes from the larynx to the lips. There are altogether 21 vowel soundsin English.
2. What isthe test most often used for determining phonemes in a language? Illustrate howthe test works with examples.
Key: The minimal pair test or substitutiontest is the first rule of thumb to determine the phonemes of any language, thatis, to see whether substituting one sound for another result in a differentword. If it does, the two sounds represent different phonemes. For example, wesee from the contrast between fineand vine and between chunk and junk that [f], [v], [t?] and [d?] mustbe phonemes in English because substituting [v] for [f], or [d?] for[t?] produce a different word.
3.What's the difference between an open and a closed syllable?
Key: The units, which are often longerthan one sound and smaller than a whole word, are called syllables. Syllablescan be divided into two sorts: the open syllables and the closed syllables.Syllables like me, by or no that have an onset and a nucleus, but no coda are called opensyllables; while the coda is present in the syllables like up, cup or hat, which is called closed syllables.
4. For eachgroup of sounds listed below, state the phonetic feature or features which theyshare.
Example: [p] [m] Feature: bilabial, stop, consonant
(1) [g][p][t][d][k]
(2) [u:][ C]
Key: (1) [g][p][t][d][k] shared features: stop, consonant.
(2) [u:][C] shared features: back, rounded,vowel.
5. Name the single feature that distinguishes the following pairsof sounds.
(1) [e] : [θ]
(2) [p] : [f]
(3) [I] : [e]
(4) : [m]
(5) : [?]
(6) : [e]
Key: (1)[e] : [θ] voicing. (voiceless vs. voiced)
(2) [p] : [f] place of articulation. (bilabial vs.labio-dental)
(3) [I] : [e] the height of the tone rising. (high vs.mid)
(4) : [m] manner of articulation. (stop vs. nasal)
(5) : [?] place of articulation. (alveolar vs.palatal)
(6) : [e] place of articulation. (alveolarvs. dental)
6. Thefollowing sets of minimal pairs show that English [p] and contrast in initial,medial and final positions.
Initial Medial Final
pit/bit rapid/rabid cap/cab
Find similar sets of minimal pairsfor each pair of consonants given:
(1)[k]-[g]
(2)[m]-[n]
(3)-[v]
(4)-[m]
(5)[p]-[f]
Key: Initial Medial Final
(1) kook/gook raking/raging lak/lag
(2) moon/noon dime/dine beam/bean
(3) berry/very dribble/drivel dub/dove
(4) be/me ribbed/rimmed rib/rim
(5) pat/fat depend/defend rap/raff
7. The English data below provide examples of stress placement oncertain verbs.
A B C
ap'pear a'dapt as'tonish
col'lide col'lapse con'sider
e'rase e'lect i'magine
ca'rouse ob'serve de'termine
cor'rode tor'ment 'promise
(1) Describe in words the stress placement onthese verbs. Make sure you refer to syllable structure in your statement.
(2) Provide syllable representations of thewords col'lide, e'lect, and con'sider in order to illustrate yourconctusion about stress placement in these forms.
Key: (1) Stress in languages may bepredictable by rules: lexical category, morphological structure and number ofsyllables all seem to be relevant factors for the placement of stress inEnglish words.
For two-syllable verbs, the final (ultimate)syllable will receive main stress if it has a long vowel or ends in at leasttwo consonants. In this case, the first (penultimate) syllable may havesecondary stress, contain an unstressed full vowel, or contain a reduced vowel.For example, a'dapt, e'lect.
If the ultimate syllable does not have a longvowel or end in two or more consonants, the penultimate syllable is stressed,as in 'promise. Otherwise, the mainstress will be put on the second syllable. For example, ca'rouse, ob'serve, as'tonish, de'termine.
If there is a double-letter in the word, themain stress should be put between them, or in other words, on the second one ofthe two. Such as ap'pear, cor'rode, col'lide, col'lapse.
(2) They are two-syllable words; thereforethe final (ultimate) syllable will receive main stress, as col'lide, e'lect and con'side.
