Linguistics Course in Detail

LIN 01: English Sounds and English Verse

Tutor: Gillian Brown
Day and time: Tuesday 10.00 - 11.00
Venue: Thirkill Room, Old Court, Clare College (up 20 steps)
Terms: Autumn, spring.
Number of places: 20
Autumn Term: We shall consider the English consonants, adding 3 or 4 new sounds each session, examining how they are pronounced and spelled (with a brief glance at history, ongoing sound change and dialectal variants), looking at how some consonants and consonant combinations relate to particular areas of meaning, and how different types of consonant have been exploited in different ways in various types of verse.
Please bring a small mirror with you.
Spring Term: This will build on last term's work, and continue in the same manner, in the first four sessions focussing on sets of vowels, how they're spelled, how they've changed over time, associated meanings, and how they're used in verse. In the later sessions, we shall discuss syllable length, stress, speech rhythm and various metrical effects in verse.
Please bring a small mirror with you.
Note: Autumn term 7 weeks only, starts 26th October.
Spring term 8 weeks only, starts 11th January.

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