XIV Международная студенческая научная конференция Студенческий научный форум - 2022

Intonation is a complex unity of speech melody (pitch), sentence-stress, voice quality (timbre), speech tempo and rhythm, which is used to denote the speaker's attitude to the topic. I will consider how to use the intonation in exclamations and commands on the example of the TV-series Downton Abbey. It depicts the lives of the different classes of British people, with all peculiarities of pronunciation which were common for different social strata in early 20^th century.

Exclamations could be divided into several groups by the attitude which they express:

Strong exclamations

Exclamations which express real gratitude

Exclamations which are used to greet and say good-bye

Questioning exclamations

Exclamations referring to something not very exciting or unexpected

To express strong exclamations, High-Falling tune shape should be used. Example: You're upsetting Mrs. Bryant! I say you are upsetting Mrs. Bryant! (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 7, 34:50)

To express real gratitude, either High-Falling or Low-Falling tune shape should be used. Example: M’lady, thank you very, very much. (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 8, 58:20). In this episode, Anna, the maid, is very grateful to Lady Mary for preparing a room for her and her new husband.

To greet or to say good-bye, Low-Rising tune shape is used. Example: Good morning, Lord Grantham. (Downton Abbey, Season 2, Episode 6, 01:50)

To express questioning exclamations, High-Rising tune shape should be used. Example: What? (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 7, 25:43). In this episode, Anna, the maid, is struck by the fact that her fiancé, Mr. Bates bought the rat poison himself, not his wife.

In exclamations referring to something not very exciting or unexpected Low-Rising tune shape is used. Example: Pretty good. (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 7, 12:06). In this episode, a man, Mr. Carson, is not very interested or enthusiastic about what's going on at Haxby because he doesn't want to work there.

Commands

Commands could be divided into 3 groups by the attitude which they express:

Strong commands

Pleading, soothing, reassuring

Commands with only one important word

To express strong commands, Descending Scale with Low-Falling of High-Falling nuclear tone should be used. Example: Come to the house. (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 7, 16:01)

To express pleading, soothing or reassuring, in more a request, than an order way, Fall-Rising tune shape should be spread over the whole sentence. Example: Shall I tell him you won’t come? (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 5, 38:15). In this episode, an older woman, Mrs. Hughes, asks a younger girl, Daisy, to come and visit a wounded soldier, William, who loves her. Daisy doesn’t like him that much and thinks that it is not good to deceive him. Mr. Hughes knows that the man is going to die soon, Mrs. Hughes tries to reassure Daisy to come.

In commands with only one important word Fall-Rising tune shape is used. Example: Tell me. (Downton Abbey, Season 2 Episode 5, 27:20)

In this work I studied the different tune shapes which are used in exclamations and commands on the examples from Downton Abbey, which is the popular TV-series about different social strata in early 20^th century England.

Библиографический список

A. Pierce, A. Goddard, B. Kelly, J. Strong. Downton Abbey [Электронный ресурс]. http://englishsub.ru/serialy/abbatstvo-daunton-na-anglijskom-s-subtitrami/ (дата обращения: 12.01.2021)

Практическая фонетика английского языка: продвинутый уровень : учебно-методическое пособие / С. П, Хорошилова ; Мин-во науки и образования РФ, Новосиб. гос. пед. ун-т. – Новосибирск : Изд-во НГПУ, 2015. – 300 с.

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