Theory of phonetics

I. The vocal mechanism of producing oral speech.
II. Groups of organs.
III. Segmental and suprasegmental phonetics.


I. The vocal mechanism of producing oral speech.
Psychological → physiological → physical (acoustic) → reception →
→ transmission
Human speech is a result of a highly complicated series of events. The formation of the concept takes place at a linguistic level (in the brain of a speaker). This stage is called psychological. It starts with an idea (prelude). The message formed within the brain, the impulse goes from the back of our mind to organs of speech (it is transmitted along the nervous system to the speech organs). The human brain controls the behaviour of the articulating organs which effects in producing a particular pattern of speech sounds. The second stage is called physiological when the movements of the speech apparatus disturb the air stream thus producing sound waves. We move an air around. Speech organs move. Reception starts with the physical (or acoustic) stage. Any communication requires a listener, as well as a speaker. The last stages are the reception of the sound waves by the listener’s hearing physiological apparatus (ear drums start vibrating. While vibrating the ear drums are tuned in the same way as the tune of the speaker’s voice if your hearing is not defective) and the transmission of the spoken message through the nervous system to the brain (the ear drums respond to the pressure by reproducing the vibration. Thus the reception begins. The listener and the speaker sing the same tune). The linguistic interpretation of the information is conveyed.
Subconsciously we repeat for ourselves in inner speech what we hear (together with the speaker). Two sides of one process are very closely intervolved. It’s now proved that when we listen to somebody, we actually reproduce what is being said by the speaker.