Слике страница
PDF
ePub

6

Now, whether this sentence be read in a loud angry tone, or in a milder and more sorrowful one, the emphatic syllables 'false," ut-' and 'false,' will be given with more force than the others. In this case, we see that the element of force is used to give emphasis.

without giving

But now let us take another sentence: And Nathan said unto David.' Read this sentence emphasis to any of the words in it. The syllables "Na-said' and Da-' will still be louder than the others. Here, then, we have the elements of force used more on one syllable than on another, without making it emphatic.

When the element of force is used to make a word emphatic, we commonly call it stress. What is the difference between stress, and that kind of force which was given to the unemphatic words in the last example? In order to explain this, we must describe more minutely the nature of the slide, which has been shown to be made on every syllable in speaking.

It has been shown already, (Chap. iv.) that whenever we speak, there is a greater or less change of pitch between the beginning and the end of the sound we make. This change, we may now say, is a gradual one, that is, the voice passes quickly through all the sounds that can be made between the pitch where we begin, and that on which we end. There is another thing, too, to be noticed. In common speaking, it will be found that the voice begins more or less loud and full, and gradually dies away, becoming weaker and weaker as it rises or falls in its slide. This dying away of the sound at the end of the syllable, led Dr. Rush, who first noticed it, to give the name of the vanishing movement,'

or 'vanish' to the latter portion of the slide. To the beginning, he gave the name of the 'radical movement.' or 'radical.'

This gradual dying away of the sound takes place, we have said, in ordinary speaking. All unemphatic words have it, whether they are sounded loud or not. This may be seen by a reference to the example already given. And Nathan said unto David.' Let the whole be read without emphasis, just as one would say the words in the middle of a story. The syllables 'Na-' 'said and Da-' will be louder than the rest, as has been already shown. Now let each syllable be repeated separately, exactly as it was given in reading the whole sentence, and it will be found that on every one there will be made a gradual and even lessening of sound from the beginning to the end. This, as we shall see, is the reason why the louder syllables in the sentence do not strike us as emphatic. Why some syllables should receive this unemphatic force will be explained in the chapter on Accent. It will be enough here to state that, whatever may be the force of voice with which we may be speaking, if this full opening and regular vanish is given, it will not be emphatic, i. e. it will not be what we have called stress.

It is only where this proportion between the radical and vanish is not preserved, that we have stress or emphatic force. Now this may happen in several ways.

1. The radical may be sounded fully, and the vanish be given very faintly, and of course very short. This is what we call radical stress.

2. The radical may be sounded faintly, and the

force may be given on the vanish. This has been termed vanishing stress.

3. Force may be given at both ends, i. e. first on the radical, and then at the end of the vanish.

we call compound stress.

This

4. Force may be given in the middle of the sound. This is called median stress.

Each of these four kinds of stress will require some explanation.

[blocks in formation]

By radical stress, then, we mean the giving a full sound to the radical, and a much feebler and shorter sound to the vanish of the syllable. It is, in fact, giving it what we may call an abrupt or sudden sound. It may be named either radical stress, or abruptness.

[ocr errors]

An example of this kind of stress may be had in the words out with you.' Let this sentence be uttered in a very hasty and passionate manner, and after it, in a natural manner, such a sentence as he went out.' In the first case, the word 'out' will have radical stress given to it, in the second it will not. The difference may be very easily perceived, and when once perceived will not be very easily forgotten.

We shall notice, if we attend to the above example, a very important fact in regard to this kind of stress.

The tonic element ou in the word 'out,' is one of the eight long tonics, and is therefore capable of having a somewhat long sound given to it. In the second sentence, he went out,' where radical stress is not given to the word, we shall find that we may make it as long a syllable as custom will permit us; but in the first, where radical stress is to be given, we must make it as short as possible.

Radical stress, then, or abruptness, gives us a means of emphasizing a class of words, which we very often cannot emphasize in any other way. We cannot make a naturally short syllable emphatic, by giving it a longer sound than others. It is also very difficult to make the long slides with perfect distinctness on such a syllable. Wide intervals of radical pitch, together with the employment of radical stress, are the only means we can make use of to distinguish it.

It is then of great importance, that every pupil should acquire a perfect command over this mode of employing the element of force. For this purpose let him practise diligently on the following tables, until he is able, without apparent effort, to give to every one of the sounds which they contain, the abrupt expression heard on the word 'out' in the preceding example. This sudden, coughing effort of the voice will be the radical stress which he has to learn.

It may be observed, that, as radical stress means nothing more than the giving to the radical a considerably greater degree of force as compared with the vanish, than it would have had in ordinary speaking, it by no means follows, that it must always have a great degree of general force or loudness of voice, combined with it.

Radical stress may be given to a syllable just as completely when we are speaking in a low voice, as when we are declaiming in a very loud one. It is true, indeed, that the addition of general force to radical stress gives it much greater intensity and energy, but still it must never be forgotten, that it is not necessary to its exist

ence.

The tables must be practised on, in the order in which they are here arranged; first, the short tonic elements, as it will be found to be most easy to a beginner to give to them this kind of sound; next, the eight long tonics to be sounded as short as possible; and last, the list of words subjoined. It may be well also, in order to become entirely master of radical stress in all its varieties, to practise on these tables, first with a moderate degree of loudness or force of voice, then with its utmost power, and afterwards with as little force as possible. Care must be taken, however, that the sudden short explosive sound be always given, whatever be the degree of force which we employ. This exercise will be found to be of very great utility, and must therefore be persevered in, till the pupils have acquired a very perfect command over the use of radical stress. A public speaker who cannot use this element well, will never make himself HEARD in a place of any size.

[blocks in formation]

II. ee, oo, a, a', a", o, ou, i.

III. it, end, edge, odd, at, up, eat, ask, art, all, ought, oaf, old, out, ice, ev-er, of-fer, act-ive, un-der, other, art-ful, ov-er, oust-ed, ic-y.

« ПретходнаНастави »