ABSTRACT
In the process of reading words on a page, we translate visual marks (letters) into mental representations of sounds (phones, or phonemes). English uses a ‘phonetic-alphabetic script’ in which letters stand for sounds, or serve to represent particular patterns of sound. For example, the letter ‘p’ in ‘pin’ stands for a single sound (which we write phonetically as [p]); the two letters ‘th’ in ‘thin’ stand for a single sound (which we write phonetically as [θ]); the letter ‘i’ in ‘time’ stands for a combination of sounds called a diphthong (which we write phonetically as [a ]). We can represent the way a word is made up of sounds using a phonetic script, and so can compare the letter-spelling of a word with the phonetic structure of the word:
letter-spelling: thing queen come phonetic structure: θ ŋ k w i n k m
In this unit we are interested in the phonetic structure of words rather than their spelling. Because of the relatively small number of distinct sounds used in a language, the sounds of a text inevitably occur and recur as we read. and make up a kaleidoscope of repetitions and permutations. In casual conversation and most kinds of written texts, this repetition of sounds occurs for the most part apparently randomly, ordered only by the historical accidents governing which sounds make up which words. However, it is also possible for speakers and writers to organize the sounds of utterances in more systematic ways – ranging from motivated but irregular instances through to fully predictable patterns – in order to achieve certain effects. Many different types of discourse employ such sound patterning: poetry, jokes, slogans, proverbs, advertising copy, sound-bites in political speeches and interviews, pop lyrics, rapping, etc.
