英语文体学Chapter5PhonologicalOverregularity.pptVIP

English Stylistics Chapter 5 Phonological Overregularity Phonological Overegularity Phonological overregularity is characteristic of such literary genres as poetry. It consists of two aspects, namely — Phonemic Patterning Phonemes may be patterned in different ways in English. The most important types of patterning in English literature are: alliteration, rhyme, assonance, consonance and onomatopoeia. 5.1 Phonemic Patterning Alliteration is the repetition of the initial consonant cluster in stressed syllables. 5.1 Phonemic Patterning Two points about alliteration need to be explained. 5.1 Phonemic Patterning Firstly, what is meant by initial consonant cluster? Let’s look at the following syllabic structure. S Onset Rhyme Nucleus Coda s t r i: t 5.1 Phonemic Patterning As we can see from the above figure, in English a basic syllable contains an initial consonant (consonant cluster), a vowel, and a final consonant (consonant cluster). 5.1 Phonemic Patterning The initial consonant cluster can be formed by up to 3 consonants, and the final consonant cluster can be formed by up to 4 consonants. In the above example, the word ‘street’ has a largest initial consonant cluster. While in the word ‘sixths’ there is a largest final consonant cluster. 5.1 Phonemic Patterning Secondly, a misconception may arise that it is the initial syllable of a polysyllabic word which carries alliteration. 5.1 Phonemic Patterning It should be pointed out that it is usually the first stressed syllable of a word that carries the alliteration, not necessarily the initial syllable. E.g. In Tennyson’s “Here in the long unlovely street”, ‘long’ alliterates with ‘unlovely’. 5.1 Phonemic Patterning Alliteration is frequently found in proverbial and idiomatic expression