The Prague Phonological School

The phoneme theory in other countries

A great number of linguists have written on the subject of phonemes. And it is impossible to discuss their views within the limits of one lecture. However, it is necessary to make a few preliminary remarks on de Saussure’s conceptions and the main phonological schools.

Ferdinand de Saussure has no connection with the phoneme theory but there are 2 reasons to take his works into account:

1. He used the term “phoneme”

2. Some of his conceptions have been adopted and developed by a number of linguists (N.S. Trubetzkoy).

According to him a phoneme is defined as a total sum of acoustic impressions and articulatory movements. The linguistic aspect is lacking in this definition. He ignores the sense differentiating function of the phoneme and draws a line between language and speech, considering it as a system of signs, expressing ideas. All linguistic studies consist of two parts: languag e which is a social phenomenon and is independent of the individual speaker and the individual aspect of language, that is s peech, which includes phonation. His approach is called physio-psychic.

Another of F. de Saussure’s conceptions is the conception of semiology. According to him, “language is form, not substance” and “language is a system of signs expressing ideas”. The signs of which language is composed are the subject of a special branch of science that he termed semiology. This system of signs may be compared to any other signs used by man.

It is also necessary to mention de Saussure’s “ oppositions” because they have been widely used by certain linguists. The whole mechanism of language is based upon oppositions.

His conceptions greatly influenced a great number of linguists and schools.

The representative of this school is N. S. Trubetzkoy. The main points of his theory are:

1. The separation of phonology from phonetics

2. The theory of phonological oppositions

3. The theory of arch-phoneme.

N. S. Trubetzkoy developed de Saussure’s principle of the separation of speech from language by proclaiming a new science – phonology as distinct from phonetics.

According to N. S. Trubetzkoy, phonology is a linguistic science and should concern itself with the distinctive features of a language only, with those features which are connected with meaning. While phonetics is a biological science and should concern itself with the sounds of a language as they are pronounced and as they are heard without paying any attention to their function in the language.

Phonetics investigates the material (physical) side of language. Phonology should investigate:

1. Which sound features in a given language are distinctive

2. What connection there is between these distinctive elements

3. According to what rules they may be combined into words or sentences

N. S. Trubetzkoy further develops his system of oppositions by giving special prominence to the most essential members:

1. The phoneme, which he defines as a unity of the phonologically relevant features of a sound

2. The speech sound, which defines as a unity of all features, both relevant and irrelevant of a sound representing the phoneme in connected speech.

N. S. Trubetzkoy says that the inventory of the phonemes of a language is practically a correlation of its system of phonological oppositions.

Some oppositions may be neutralized and the phoneme in the position of neutralization is the arch-phoneme and in this case it may be defined as “a non-nasalized dental stop”. The arch-phoneme is defined as “a unity of relevant features common to two phoneme”. It is therefore an abstraction.

Дата добавления: 2014-01-04