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SOME INTONATION FEATURES OF BUSINESS PEOPLE'S SPEECH

E. Malyuga, M. Ivanova, S. Orlova

Abstract

The issues of English intonation patterns are a significant part of phoneticiansВ’ research. However, much in this field remains a matter of considerable debate. This can be largely attributed to the multifunctional nature of intonation, as well as the complex emotional and volitional aspects involved. Prosodic arrangement of business speech is a separate topical research issue. The speech of business people is typically characterised by some specific features, including intonation peculiarities, and reflects the specific patterns in the development of a national language variety. As business networks are communities of educated people, their speech should be phonetically accurate and exemplary. The authors consider business speech as a model reflecting the norms of standardised pronunciation in a particular linguistic community. The paper investigates the specific features of intonation patterns inherent in British business discourse, which are melody, rhyme and pitch contours typical of business peopleВ’s speech behaviour. Literature review suggests that the predominant terminal tone in business speech is a falling tone. Along with that, a flat tone of different registers is typically being used. Besides, in business speech terminal tones (Rise+Fall and Fall+Rise) are usually combined in order to reinforce expressiveness and stress the importance of a word or phrase. These tones tend to occupy the final position in the sentence and are used to indicate emphatic stress (High+Fall, Fall+Rise, or Rise). The authors also consider key pitch contours and the syntagmatic division of business speech, arguing that the latter is distinguished by regularity and clarity in terms of duration and rate of recurrence. The clear rhythmic organisation is achieved by emphasising stressed syllables and sentence stress, which in its turn shapes the utterance and singles out the semantic center of the sentence. The article relies on the methods of research known as auditory description and instrumental analysis. In the present paper, auditory description boils down to generalised observations regarding pitch contours found in English business discourse, while instrumental analysis of intonation features of business speech relies on oscillographic registration of prosodic patterns. The topic of the present research appears relevant inasmuch as fulfilling intonation requirements helps ensure efficient professional communication. Prosodic formalisation of professional speech is considered one of the most important means of pragmatic influence.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/SGEMSOCIAL2017/HB31/S10.030

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