FUNCTIONS OF ORGANS OF SPEECH
The tongue’s surface is conventionally divided into three parts corresponding to the parts of the roof of the mouth. They are: the blade with the tip, the front and the back.
When the tongue is at rest, the blade of the tongue with the tip lies opposite the alveolar ridge; the front of the tongue lies opposite the hard palate and the back of the tongue lies opposite the soft palate.
The air stream released by the lungs goes through the windpipe and comes to the larynx, which contains the vocal cords. The vocal cords may be kept apart (the air stream passes between them freely, they do not vibrate and no voice is produced) or brought together without entirely closing the air-passage (when the air stream is forced between them, they vibrate and produce voice). Voiced sounds are produced with the vibration of the vocal cords. Voiceless sounds are made with the vocal cords kept apart.
There is one more state of the vocal cords which results in the glottal stop. When the vocal cords are brought close together and then opened suddenly by the air stream there comes a sort of coughing noise, a kind of the ‘click’ of the vocal cords,- the glottal stop.
The space between the vocal cords is called the glottis. This is the usual state of the vocal cords, when we breathe out.
On coming out of the larynx the air stream passes through the pharynx. The pharyngeal cavity extends from the top of the larynx to the soft palate, which directs the air stream either to the mouth or nasal cavities, which function as the principal resonators.
The very end of the soft palate is known as the uvula. The soft palate can easily move. When the soft palate is in its lowered position, the air goes up into the nasal cavity and then out through the nose. When the soft palate is raised, the uvula forms a full contact with the back wall of the pharynx and the air stream goes through the mouth cavity.
The soft palate is the furthest part of the roof of the mouth from the teeth. Most of the roof of the mouth is hard. This hard and fixed part of the roof of the mouth is divided into two sections:
§ the hard palate (the highest part of the roof of the mouth)
§ the teeth ridge (alveolar ridge) – the part immediately behind the upper front teeth
One can touch the teeth ridge with the tongue-tip.
The most important organ of speech is the tongue. Phoneticians divide the tongue into four sections, the part which lies opposite the soft palate is called the back of the tongue; the part facing the hard palate is called the front; the one lying under the teeth ridge is known as the blade and its extremity the tip. By the central part of the tongue we mean the area where the front and back meet. The edges of the tongue are known as the rims. The tongue may lie flat or move in the horizontal or vertical directions. It can also change its shape so that the sides are curved up forming a groove.
The lips can take up various positions. They can be brought firmly together or kept apart- neutral, rounded, protruded.
The organs of speech are divided into movable and fixed. The movable speech organs take an active part in the articulation of speech-sounds and are called active organs of speech. The fixed speech organs with which the active organs form obstruction are called passive organs of speech. The passive speech organs serve as points of articulation.
Active organs of speech:
a) the lungs, providing air for sounds;
b) the vocal cords which produce voice;
c) the back wall of the pharynx, contracted for some sounds;
d) the soft palate with the uvula, directing the air stream either to the mouth or nasal cavities;
e) the tongue which is the most flexible and movable organ;
f) the lips, affecting very considerably the shape of the mouth or nasal cavities;
g) the lower jaw, which movement controls the gap between the teeth and also the disposition of the lips.
Passive organs of speech:
a) the teeth;
b) the teeth ridge;
c) the hard palate;
d) the upper jaw.
Vocabulary Notes
1. the lungs - / ð 'lz / - легені
2. the windpipe - / ð 'wndpap / - дихальне горло
3. the larynx - / ð 'lærks / - гортань
4. the vocal cords - / ð 'vkl 'k:dz / - голосові зв’язки
5. the glottis - / ð 'lts / - голосова щілина
6. the epiglottis - / ð p'lts / - надгортанник
7. the pharynx - / ð 'færks / - глотка
8. the pharyngeal cavity - / ð f'rnl 'kævt / - порожнина глотки
9. the mouth cavity - / ð 'm 'kævt / - ротова порожнина
10. the nasal cavity - / ð 'nezl 'kævt / - носова порожнина
11. the resonators - / ð 'reznetz / - резонатори
12. the soft palate - / ð 'sft 'pælt / - м’яке піднебіння
13. the hard palate - / ð 'h:d 'pælt / - тверде піднебіння
14. the uvula - / ð 'ju:vjl / - язичок
15. the teeth ridge - / ð 'ti: 'r / - альвеоли
16. the alveolar ridge - / ð æl'vl 'r / - альвеоли
17. the tongue - / ð 't / - язик
18. the back of the tongue - / ð 'bæk v ð 't / - задня частина язика
19. the central part of the tongue - / ð 'sentrl 'p:t v ð 't / - центральна частина язика
20. the front of the tongue - / ð 'frnt v ð 't / - передня частина язика
21. the blade of the tongue - / ð 'bled v ð 't / - передня спинка язика
22. the tip of the tongue - / ð 'tp v ð 't / - кінчик язика
23. the rims (the edges) of the tongue - / ð 'rmz ('ez) v ð 't / - краї язика
24. the lips - / ð 'lps / - губи
25. neutral - / 'nju:trl/ - нейтральні
26. rounded - / 'rndd / - округлі
27. protruded - / pr'tru:dd/ - витягнуті
28. the upper jaw - / ð 'p ':/ - верхня щелепа
29. the lower jaw - / ð 'l ':/ - нижня щелепа
30. the active organs of speech - / ð 'æktv ':nz v 'spi: / - активні органи мови
31. the passive organs of speech - / ð 'pæsv ':nz v 'spi: / - пасивні органи мови
32. the roof of the mouth - / ð 'ru:f v ð 'm / - піднебіння
33. the air stream - / ð 'e 'stri:m / - повітряний потік