David Crystal discussed how it is important to pay attention to the phonetic variations that can occur, to ensure that we make the right decisions about which sounds are phonemes and which are allophones. He also talked about how we focus on the way sounds combine in a language to produce typical sequences. When I was studying the pronunciation of Farsi, I was faced with brick wall, if you will. In most cases, vowels are not written. Instead the letter is pronounced with either an "ah," "eh," or "oh" sound. Wow! This is so different from English. My language partner was trying to teach me and she said that you practically have to guess. But wait, there is a right answer. So, is it really "guessing" and how do you know if you are right? There are indicators that CAN be placed either above or below the letter but they are never written. So again, how are you supposed to know you are right?
The text also discussed that sequences can be divided into rhythmical chunks. Crystal used the example of memorizing a string of number. This example didn't help me directly but it made me reflect back on learning the pronunciation. My language partner kept telling me to look at two letters, "n" and "r" for instance, and think of the most logical way to connect the letters. So, even though Crystal's discussion of prosody didn't directly relate to my language learning it did trigger a learning technique for pronunciation.
Thinking ahead, I want to set a realistic vocabulary goal for myself. Right now I am still focusing on pronouncing words so it is going to be harder to learn new words now compared to the end of the semester. This week I want to learn 15 new words with a focus on apparel and accessories. Hopefully, and more than likely, this number will increase each week.
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