Fifth Edition

SPEAKING CLEARLY
The Basics of Voice and Articulation
Noah Franklin Modisett James G. Luter

Los Angeles City College

Cover Art: Pattern 6. Copyright 2006 by Pearson Custom Publishing Copyright 1996, 1988, 1984, 1979 by Burgess International Group, Inc. All rights reserved. This copyright covers material written expressly for this volume by the editor/s as well as the compilation itself. It does not cover the individual selections herein that first appeared elsewhere. Permission to reprint these has been obtained by Pearson Custom Publishing for this edition only. Further reproduction by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, must be arranged with the individual copyright holders noted. All trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, and registered service marks are the property of their respective owners and are used herein for identification purposes only.

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Copyright Acknowledgments

Grateful acknowledgment is made to the following sources for permission to reprint material copyrighted or controlled by them: Figures: Structure of the larynx and The larynx, front and side view, by Peter B. Denes and Elliot N. Pinson, reprinted from The Speech Chain, (1963), Doubleday. Figure: The vocal folds and glottis as seen through a laryngeal mirror in three actions, by E. Hahn and C. Lomas, reprinted from Basic Voice Training for Speech, Second Edition, (1957), by permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies. Excerpt from For the Time Being, A Christmas Oratorio, by W.H. Auden, reprinted from Collected Poems, edited by Edward Mendelson, (1944, 1972), by permission of Random House, Inc. Excerpt from Jonathan Livingston Seagull, by Richard Bach, (1970), by permission of Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group. Excerpt from Go Tell It On the Mountain, by James Baldwin, (1953), Doubleday. Excerpt from Jaws, by Peter Benchley, (1974), Doubleday. The Bill of Rights, by Hugo L. Black, reprinted from New York University Law Review 35, (April 1960), by permission of New York University School of Law. Excerpt from Manhattan Transfer, by John Dos Passos, (2000), Houghton Mifflin Co. Excerpt from The Female Eunuch, by Germain Greer, (2001), Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Excerpt from Catch-22, (1955), by Joseph Heller, reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group. I Have a Dream, by Martin Luther King, (1963), by arrangement with the Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., c/o Writers House as agent for the proprietor. Excerpt from A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, (1959), Curtis Brown, Ltd. Culture and Communication, by Robert T. Oliver, reprinted by permission from Vital Speeches of the Day, (September 15, 1963). Excerpt from Nineteen Eighty-Four, by George Orwell, (1949), by permission of Harcourt, Inc. Richard Cory, by Edwin Arlington Robinson, reprinted from The Children of the Night, (1897), R. G. Badger and Company.

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COPYRIGHT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Chapter 5, from The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, (1939), by permission of Viking Penguin, a division of Penguin Group (USA), Inc. The Owl Who Was God, by James Thurber, reprinted from Fables for Our Time and Famous Poems, (1940), James Thurber Literary Properties. University Days, by James Thurber, reprinted from My Life and Hard Times, (1933), James Thurber Literary Properties. The Voice You Hear When You Read Silently, by Thomas Lux, reprinted from New & Selected Poems, (1997), Houghton Mifflin Co. Navajo Ceremonial Chant, translated by Washington Matthews, reprinted from The Night Chant, (1995), University of Utah Press. Meaning, by Czeslaw Milosz, reprinted from Czeslaw Milosz: New and Collected Poems (19312001), Ecco Press, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Finishing the Hat, by Stephen Sondheim, reprinted from Sunday in the Park with George, Alfred Publishing. New Words, by Maury Yeston, (1975), Cherry Lane Music Publishing.

Contents

Preface

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To the Student

Basics for Speaking Clearly

Language, Accent, and Dialect 1 Dialects in the United States 2 Geographic Dialects 3 Socioeconomic Dialects 6 Ethnocultural Dialects 7 Voice and Articulation Analysis 10 Speech Production 11 Summary 13

Respiration
Anatomy and Physiology of Respiration Respiration for Life 18 Respiration for Speech 18 Respiration Functions Compared 19 Breathing for Life 19 Breathing for Speech 19 Muscle Interaction in Respiration 19 Relaxation 20 Relaxation Exercises 21 Respiration Exercises 21 In-Class Exercises 21 Out-of-Class Exercises 23 Summary 24 15

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Phonation

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Anatomy of Phonation 25 Functions of the Larynx 28 The Process of Phonation 28 Characteristics of Phonation 29 Vocal Pitch 30 Vocal Loudness 32 Vocal Fold Mode 32 Vocal Tract Dimension 33 Vocal Fold Vibrance 33 Vocal Tract Focus 34 Vocal Fold Contact 34 Vocal Effort 34 The Ideal Voice 35 Phonation Exercises 35 Exercises to Improve Vocal Tract Dimension 36 Exercises to Achieve and Strengthen Balanced Vocal Focus 37 An Exercise to Improve Vocal Fold Vibrance 38 Exercises to Combine Openness, Balanced Focus, and Full Vibrancy Exercises to Improve Pitch 39 Exercises to Improve Loudness 41 Summary 43

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Resonation
Anatomy of Resonation 45 Amplification (in speech) 45 Denasality 45 Harmonics 47 Nasality 47 Overtones 47 Resonation (in speech) 47 Resonators (in speech) 47 Resonant Frequency (in speech) 47 The Process of Resonation 47 Resonant Frequency 47 Amplification and Reinforcement in Resonation Overtones in Resonation 48 Selection in Resonation 48 Resonance in the Vocal Tract 48 Throat Resonance 49 Mouth Resonation 49 Nasal Resonance 49

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CONTENTS

vii Resonance Problems 49 Jaw Closure 50 Tongue Retraction 50 Denasality 50 Nasality 50 Resonance Exercises 50 Exercises to Increase Oral Resonance Tongue Retraction Exercises 51 Denasality Exercises 52 General Nasality Exercises 54 Assimilation Nasality Exercises 56 Nasal Emission Exercises 58 Summary 58

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Fundamentals of Articulation
Classification of Sounds Vowels Anatomy of Articulation 61 Diacritic and Phonetic Symbols Clear Articulation 65 Accurate Formation 65 Sufficient Support 65 Complete Finish 65 Articulation Exercises 65 Lip Exercises 65 Tongue Exercises 66 Jaw Exercises 67 Soft Palate Exercises 67 Articulation Practice 67 Summary 68 60 62

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Vowel Articulation
Formation of Vowels 69 Characteristics of Vowels 72 Vowel Articulation Practice 73 Summary 104

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Diphthong Articulation
Characteristics of Diphthongs 105 Formation of Diphthongs 106 Diphthong Articulation Practice 106 Corrections 118 Summary 118

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8 9

Consonant Articulation
Formation of Consonants 119 Articulation Practice 120 Summary 171

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Pronunciation
Types of Mispronunciation 174 Omission of Sounds 174 Addition of Sounds 175 Substitution of Sounds 176 Reversal of Sounds 176 Misplacement of Stress 177 Summary 178

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Vocal Variety and Expression

Pitch Variety 179 Inflection 179 Step Shifts 181 Time Variety 186 Rate Variety 186 Duration Variety 188 Pause Variety 189 Loudness Variety 191 Word Emphasis 191 Materials for Practicing Unstressed Words Vocal Integration 193 Summary 194

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Reading Selections
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Appendix A: Voice Analysis and Articulation Analysis Appendix B: Pronunciation Lists 245 261 279

Appendix C: Dialects and Accents for Actors Appendix D: From Other Languages to English Appendix E: Consonant Blends Appendix F: Letters and Sounds Glossary of Speech Terms Bibliography 331 327 299 315

Preface
Speak the speech . . . as I pronounced it to you, trippingly on the tongue. Shakespeare, Hamlet

How fortunate it would be if we were all able to follow easily Hamlets advice to the players. Unfortunately, instead of speaking trippingly, we sometimes trip or stumble and fall over our words. Listeners may say, Speak up, Repeat that, please, or maybe even, Huh? Some of our voices are too soft, too loud, too rough, or too breathy; articulation may be incomplete or indistinct. For many reasons, some of us may need help to improve our speaking ability. This text is designed for just that purpose: to help you to understand how speech is produced and to guide you in the improvement of your speech production. Specifically, it provides instruction in the processes of respiration, phonation, resonation, and articulation and their coordination in pronunciation and effective vocal expression. Based on professional users reviews, the organization of this fifth edition remains the same as the previous ones. The artwork and charts have been completely redone and two new appendices have been added. In the first chapter, the dialects of American speech are presented. This discussion is followed by basic information about speech production. In Chapter 2, the process of respiration is described, with emphasis on breathing for speech. Updated terminology is introduced in our discussions of phonation and resonation in Chapters 3 and 4. Vocal production is explained behaviorally. Chapters 5 through 8, on articulation, present both diacritic and phonetic symbols for each of the sounds of Standard American English. The International Phonetic System used is from the Longman Advanced American Dictionary. In the articulation chapters, each sound is defined and described on a single page. Its facing page contains practice material (single words, contrasting word pairs, sentences, and a tongue twister). New word pairs and word lists are introduced and arranged in consistent order. Word pairs for consonants emphasize the more troublesome contrasts and likely substitutions. Chapter 9, on pronunciation, demonstrates common pronunciation faults and gives exercises to correct them. Chapter 10, on vocal variety and expression, illustrates different pitch, time, and loudness patterns. The use of stair step sentences is particularly effective for the visualization of pitch changes. Chapter 11, as before, contains a wide selection of readings. ix

SPEAKING CLEARLY

Appendix A provides worksheets for voice and articulation analysis. Frequently mispronounced words are listed in Appendix B to provide pronunciation practice and vocabulary development in conjunction with Chapter 9. The Appendix C provides instruction and practice for students wishing to learn different dialects and accents for acting. Appendix D is written for students coming to English from other languages, particularly Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. Appendix E describes consonant blends, and Appendix F presents the relationships between spelling and pronunciation. The exercises throughout this text have been selected from those used successfully in a large college voice and articulation program (900 students per year). An Instructors Manual is available with this edition. It contains diagnostic tests for vowels and selected consonants and sample test questions. Especially useful is the transparency master section which contains eighteen anatomical line drawings, as well as the complete pronunciation lists from Appendix B, prepared for easy duplication. We are indebted to James E. Hansen, M.D. for his review of the respiration chapter and to our students and colleagues at LACC for their insightful suggestions. We would also like to give special thanks to the following reviewers: Dwight Freshly, University of Georgia; Douglas Harris, Illinois State University; and Elaine Klein, Westchester Community College.

Noah Franklin Modisett James G. Luter, Jr. March 2006

To the Student

You are unique. Unlike the nonhuman inhabitants of our planet, you can speak. Like other humans, you do so in your own personal way. Your speech has been influenced by those around youyour family, friends, and teachers. Nevertheless, your voice, pronunciation, vocabulary, and manner of speaking are, like your fingerprints, original. This uniqueness makes you special. At some point you have probably heard yourself talk on an audio and/or video recording. More than likely, you heard some characteristics in your speech that you did not like. Perhaps you mumbled or ran words together. You may have found that you kept your mouth nearly closed while speaking, hardly moving your lips. Or, you spoke in a controlled manner, allowing only short bursts of words to come to the surface. Perhaps your speech came out in a rush. Your thoughts may have come so fast that you interrupted yourself in the middle of one thought and jumped to another. Maybe your voice sounded too high, too low, too loud or too soft. You may have noticed errors in pronunciation and word choice. Of course, you also may have heard no problems in your speech. In any case your speech now reveals you as you are at this moment. It is the product of your inheritance, environment, and learning experiences. Your speech abilities are closely related to your personality. If you have a good self-image and are generally an outgoing person, your speech will reflect these characteristics. If your self-image is poor and you tend to be fearful in speaking situations, this too will be expressed. The close relationship between speech and personality provides an effective self-teaching tool. As you learn and practice ways of improving your manner of speaking, your self-confidence will improve and your self-image will strengthen. Conversely, as you improve your self-image, your speech, will show gains. These two human attributes are so interrelated that they mutually assist each other in the speech improvement process.

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As a college student, you may be planning a career that will involve social and professional contact with others. Your speech, therefore, should be as clear as possible. The better you can be understood, the more effective you will be in meeting and influencing others. What Will a Course Like This One Do for You? You are probably enrolled in this course because it is required, but we believe there are excellent reasons for you to be here, anyway. Taking this course will improve your chances of reaching your personal, social, and professional goals. Your current friends probably speak the same way you do. Your future friends likely will, too. One way a person becomes accepted by a particular group of people is by possessing and using the speech of that group. Your professional success and advancement may depend on your speaking skills. Many jobs require clear, understandable speech. You have probably seen help-wanted ads that say, good communication skills required. This phrase can be translated as: applicant must speak clearly and accurately and have an appropriate vocabulary. In fact, studies indicate a direct relationship between the size of an individuals vocabulary and probable lifetime earnings. For these reasons you are smart to be enrolled in this course-even if it may be required. What Will Happen in This Course? First you will need to learn how speech is produced. With the guidance of your professor, you will analyze your own speaking habits and, more than likely, discover one or more that need improvement. When you have devoted enough time and effort to study and practice, you will accomplish the following: 1. Acquire the sounds and stress patterns of the Standard American English dialect, the most easily understood dialect in the United States. This does not necessarily mean that you must give up your present dialect; you can have both, if you wish. 2. Increase the strength of your voice; that is, you will be able to control its volume to suit any speaking situation. You will master breathing skills to reduce fatigue when talking for long periods. 3. Improve the resonance of your voice; that is, you will develop a richer, fuller tone quality. 4. Develop clear, articulate speech. As you learn to articulate each sound accurately and completely, you will develop the skill of pronouncing each word exactly. No more mumbling or garbling for you. As you integrate these talents with vocal expression based on your thoughts and inner feelings, you will accomplish the purpose of this course. You will be speaking clearly.

TO THE STUDENT

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What Will You Need to Do to Make All These Changes? A puzzled tourist standing on a street comer in Manhattan stopped a New York pedestrian carrying a violin case and asked, How do I get to Carnegie Hall? The musician replied, Practice, man, practice! A similar answer might be given to the question, How do I improve my speaking skills? Practice, practice, and more practice. This book and your professor will show you what you need to do, but you are the one who needs to do it. To succeed, you should try to practice aloud each day at least a page of exercises of sounds, words, and sentences. Practice in front of a mirror and observe your movements. Record a minute of each practice period. Listen to your recording, re-record and listen again. Learn to recognize your errors and your correct production. Ask your professor for advice and instruction on any exercise you do not understand, but do not expect lectures and books to improve your speech skills. Practice, they say, is what makes perfect.