What is phonetics?

Sooner or later, any educated modern person encounters the question "What is phonetics?" Why? Well, firstly, such sciences as phonetics and phonology are superficially studied in general education schools (in-depth - in specialized schools), because it is within the walls of educational institutions that pupils are taught the correct pronunciation of sounds.

Secondly, it is not uncommon for the question "What is phonetics in general?" We ask the teachers, having just signed up for the popular language courses today.

I will try to answer this question in great detail, but at the same time in a simple and understandable manner. For convenience, the article will be divided into several parts.

1. Phonetics and phonology - sections of modern linguistics

In modern linguistics, the sound side of the language is usually considered in two main aspects: acoustic-articular (from the point of view of phonetics) and functional (from the point of view of phonology). The unit of phonetics is sound, phonology - phoneme.

The phonetic aspect presupposes the study of sounds from the articulatory-acoustic position, i.e. Answers the question of exactly how sounds are formed and how the speech organs interact during the process of speaking.

Sounds of speech , linguistic scientists define as minimal units of the speech chain, which are the result of a complex articulatory activity rights. They are also characterized by certain acoustic and perceptual (associated with the perception of speech) properties. The phonological aspect studies the linguistic side of the phoneme itself and determines what function it performs in the process of communication.

2. What is phonetics? Main Sections of Science

Phonetics is a science that studies the sound side of a language. But this is not just a doctrine of sounds, as is commonly believed. Phonetics also considers intonation, accent, syllables and pauses. But the main subject of research still are the sounds produced by man, the ways of their formation and acoustic properties, the laws of sound changes, and the role of sounds in the language as a means of communication.

The basic units of phonetics, isolated from sounding speech, are called linear (segment) ones. These include:

• sound;
• syllable;
• tact;
• Phonetic word;
• phrase.

But there are also supersegmental: stress, pause, intonation. They make out already sounding speech, helping to make it more expressive.

3. Phonetics and orthoepy

Under orthoepia, one should understand the doctrine of the norms of oral speech, of special rules that are applied when not only individual sounds are being pronounced, but also their combinations. Science also affects the patterns in the formulation of stress.

Orthoepic norm is the pronunciation variant, which is only possible in this word. It corresponds to both the pronunciation system and the basic laws of the development of a particular language.

Orthoepic norms include the phonetic system of language, namely the composition of phonemes distinguished in modern language, their quality and changes occurring in certain phonetic positions. Orthoepy also covers the pronunciation of individual grammatical forms.

It should be noted that this science does not cover, for example, such an important aspect of sounding speech as diction. Many believe that, for example, stuttering and kartism are also separate branches of linguistics. It's a delusion. Problems of diction are treated by medicine. Why? Because theoretically a person can have an ideal diction, but at the same time absolutely not have a literary pronunciation.

I think I was able to answer the question posed at the very beginning of the article, what is phonetics, and at the same time I managed to explain and prove to the readers that a person can not exist without language knowledge. Without it, any development of society, art, technology and science would certainly stop. The ability to express thoughts figuratively, accurately and clearly is not given by nature, it is an acquired skill that has to learn long, patiently and persistently. Learning a language helps those who want to write and speak better, because in order to express thoughts, it is important to be able to find the right words in the right time.