HOW IS STRESS DEFINED
BY DIFFERENT AUTHORS
WORD STRESS in the isolated word is termed word
stress, stress in connected speech is termed sentence
stress. Stress is indicated by placing a stress mark
before the stressed syllable: [‘]
Stress is defined differently by different authors.
B.A. Bogoroditsky defined stress as an increase of
energy, accompanied by an increase of expiratory and
articulatory activity.
D. Jones defined stress as the degree of force, which is
accompanied by a strong force of exhalation and gives an
impression of loudness.
H. Sweet also stated that stress is connected with the
force of breath.
A.C. Gimson also admits that a more prominent syllable
is accompanied by pitch changes in the voice, quality and
quantity of the accented sounds.
If we compare stressed and unstressed syllables in the words contract ['kυntrækt]
договор, to contract [tə kən'trækt] заключать договор, we may note that in the
stressed syllable:
a) the force of utterance is greater, which is connected with more energetic
articulation;
b) the pitch of the voice is higher, which is connected with stronger tenseness of
the vocal cords and the walls of the resonance chamber;
c) the quantity of the vowel /æ/ in /kυn'trækt/ is greater, the vowel becomes
longer;
d) the quality of the vowel /æ/ in the stressed syllable is different from the quality
of this vowel in the unstressed position, in which it is more narrow than /'æ/.
According to the most important feature, different types of word stress are
distinguished in different languages.
a) If special prominence in a stressed syllable or syllables is achieved mainly
through the intensity of articulation, such type of stress is called dynamic,
or force stress.
b) If special prominence in a stressed syllable is achieved mainly
through the change of pitch, or musical tone, such accent is called musical,
or tonic. It is characteristic of the Japanese, Korean and other oriental
languages.
c) If special prominence in a stressed syllable is achieved through the
changes in the quantity of the vowels, which are longer in the stressed
syllables than in the unstressed ones, such type of stress is called
quantitative.
d) Qualitative type of stress is achieved through the changes in the quality of
the vowel under stress.
English word stress is traditionally defined as dynamic, but in fact, the special
prominence of the stressed syllables is manifested in the English language not
only through the increase of intensity, but also through the changes in the
vowel quantity, consonant and vowel quality and pitch the voice.
Russian word stress is not only dynamic but mostly quantitative and
qualitative. The quality of unaccented vowels in Russian may differ greatly
from the quality of the same vowels under stress.
[a] in трáвы, травянóй is realized as [ā, ă, ъ]. [а, о, э] undergo the greatest
changes, [y] and [и] are not so much reduced when unstressed.
Stress difficulties peculiar to the accentual structure of the English language are
connected with the vowel special and inherent prominence. In identical
positions the intensity of English vowels is different.
The highest in intensity is [a:], then go [o:, з:, i:, u:, æ, υ, e, u, I].
The quantity of long vowels and diphthongs can be preserved in:
a) Pretonic
b) post-tonic position
For example:
idea /aı'dıə/ - placard /'plæka:d/
sarcastic /sa:kæstık/ - railway /'reılweı/
archaic /a:keık/ - compound /'kυmpaund/
All English vowels may occur in accented syllables, the only exception is
/э/, which is never stressed. English vowels /i, u, əu/ tend to occur in
unstressed syllables. Syllables with the syllabic /1, m, n/ are never
stressed.
In English and Russian word-stress is free, that is it may fall
on any syllable in a word:
on the first — 'mother мáма
on the second — oc'casion возмóжность
on the third — deto'nation детонáция
Stress in English and in Russian is not only free but also
shifting.
In both languages the place of stress may shift, which helps
to differentiate different parts of speech, e.g. 'insult — to
irisult, 'import — to im'port.
In Russian: ýзко, кúсло, мáло are adjectives, узкó, кислó,
малó are adverbs, что, как, когда may be pronouns and
conjunctions: чтó читает — что читает; кáк
вошел — как вошел; когдá уехал — когда уехал.
In English 'billow is морской вал, be'low — вниз.
Similar cases can be observed in Russian: мýка — мукá,
зáмок — замóк, крýжки — кружкú.
American descriptivists (B. Bloch, G. Trager) distinguish the follow
ing degrees of word-stress: loud /'/, reduced loud /^/, medial / ` /,
weak, which is not indicated.
H.A. Gleason defines the degrees of stress as primary /'/,
secondary /^/, tertiary / ` /, weak /ˇ/. H. Sweet distinguishes week /ˇ/,
medium, or half-strong /:/, strong /•/ and extrastrong, or
emphaticstress /;/.
V.A. Vassilyev, D. Jones, R. Kingdon consider that there are three
degrees of word-stress in English: primary — strong, secondary —
partial, weak — in unstressed syllables.
For example: certification /,sз:tıfı'keςən/.
The dictionary of accent for TV and radio workers gives some words
with two stresses / /́ — primary, /`/— secondary (побочное).
Scientists distinguish between stressed and accented syllables.
O'Connor states that accent is indicated by stress and pitch
combined.
Stressed syllables in the text have the symbol /'/, accented syllables
have the symbol /`/.
For example: 'Are you 'coming 'back again on ˛Sunday? On
tonograms stressed and unstressed syllables, according to O'Connor,
correspond to big and small dots.
There are certain factors that determine the place and different de
gree of word-stress.
V.A. Vassilyev describes them as follows:
a) Recessive tendency results in placing the word-stress on the
initial syllable. It can be of two sub-types: (a) unrestricted
recessive accent, which falls on the first
syllable: father /'fа:ðə/, mother /'m Λ ðə/ and (b) restricted
recessive accent, which is characterized by placing the word
accent on the root of the word if this word has a prefix, which
has lost its meaning: become /bı'k Λ m/, begin /bı'gın/.
b) Rhythmic tendency results in alternating stressed and
unstressed
syllables, e.g. pronunciation /prə˛n Λ nsi'eıςən/.
c) Retentive tendency consists in the retention of the primary
accent of the parent word, e.g. person — personal /'pз:sn —
'pз:sn/. More
commonly it is retained on the parent word as a secondary
accent, e.g.
similar — similarity /'sımılə — ˛sımı'lærıtı/.
d) Semantic factor.
The rules of word-stress in English:
1. In words of 2 or 3 syllables the primary stress mostly falls on the first syllable, e.g. 'error, 'cabinet, 'sensible.
2. In prefixal words the primary stress typically falls on the syllable following the prefix, e.g. impossible, re'call,
be'hind.
3. In prefixal words with prefixes having their own meaning, the place оf secondary stress is on the prefix,
e.g. anti-capitalist,,ex-'minister, ˛Vice-'president, ˛ultra-́fashionable.
4. In prefixal verbs which are distinguished from similarly spelt nouns and adjectives, the place of stress is on the
second syllable, nouns and adjectives have their stress on the initial syllable.
5. Suffixes: -esce, -esque, -ate, -ize, -fy, -ette, ique, -ee, -eer, -ade have the place of stress on the preceding
syllable or on themselves, e.g. p'ctu'resque, ciga'rette, ˛tech'nique, refe'ree, pio'neer, mari'nade, dic'tate.
6. Suffixes: -ical, ic, -ion, -ity, -ial, -cient, -iency, -eous, -ual, -uous, -ety, -itous, -ive, -ative (-itive), -itude, -
ident, -inal,-ital, -wards have the place of stress on the preceding syllable, e.g. eco'nomic, gra'mmatical,
po'sition, ma'jority, 'special, etc.
7. In words of four or more syllables the place of stress is on the
antepenultimate syllable (third from the end), e. g. e'mergency, ca'lamity, his'torical.
In compound words the first element is stressed when:
1. compounds are written as one word, e.g. 'appletree,
'bedroom, 'caretaker, 'watchdog, 'downcast;
2. nouns are compounded of a verb and an adverb, e. g. a
'pickup, a 'make-up; but: ,knосkеr 'up,,runner 'up;
3. nouns in the possessive case are followed by another noun,
e.g. a 'doll's house, 'lady's maid.
In compound words the second element is stressed when:
4. food items have the first element which is of a material used
in manufacturing the whole, e.g. apple 'tart.
5. names of roads, parks and squares are implied,
e.g. Cathedral 'Road, Park 'Place (but Ca'thedral street);
6. parts of the house and other buildings are implied, e.g., front
'door, ˛ kitchen 'window;
7. adjectives with past participles characterizing persons,
e.g.. ˛thick 'skinned, fold-blooded (but 'downcast);
8. compound nouns ending in -er or -ing are followed by
adverbs, e.g. ˛passer 'by, gumming 'up.
Two equal stresses are observed:
a) in composite verbs, e.g. to 'give 'up, to 'come 'in — emphatic; in
speech stress may be neutral: 'give up, 'come in;
b) in numerals from 13 to 19, e.g. ˛six'teen, ˛fif'teen.
The semantic factor is observed in compounds:
c) when compound nouns denote a single idea, e. g. 'blacksmith (куз
нец), 'walking stick (палка, трость); 'drawing room (гостиная);
d) when the first element of the compound is most important e.g.
'birthday (день рождения), 'darning fieedle (штопальная
игла; Am. стрекоза);
e) when the first element of the compound is contrasted with some
other word, e. g. 'flute player (флейтист), not 'violin
player (скрипач);
f) when a compound is very common and frequently used it may
have
a single stress, e.g. 'midsummer (середина
лета); 'midnight (полночь).
The rhythmic tendency is very strong in modern English. Due to its
influence there are such accentual variants
as: capitalist /'kæpıtəlıst/, /kə'pıtəlıst /, hospitable /'hυspıtəbl/,
/hυs'pıtəbl/, etc.
