Chapter 9.pdf

Chapter 9 of "The Sound Structure of English" by McCully focuses on long vowels and diphthongs. The chapter contains numerous in-text and end-of-chapter exercises, suggesting that the material may require two weeks to cover. The exercises explore the nature of long vowels, including whether they are "pure" or composed of two non-identical short phonemes.

The chapter discusses the theoretical advantages of analyzing long vowels as comprising two non-identical segments, which would be in accord with the sonority or strength hierarchy in the nucleus of an English syllable. However, the complexity of the issue leads to a return to the traditional transcription of "pure" vowels.

Exercises include constructing lists of monosyllables containing /i:/ and /u:/, analyzing one's own long vowel phonology, and comparing findings with colleagues. The chapter also explores the non-occurrence of certain theoretically possible diphthongs and the transcription of words and phrases in non-rhotic accents.

A personal analysis of long vowel phonology is provided, detailing the subject's ethnicity, gender, and birth year, as well as their long vowel phonology, including gaps and inconsistencies. The chapter aims to establish the existence of contrastively lower long vowels and to make readers aware of the long vowels associated with Cardinal positions 2-4 and 5-7.