Directed Pronunciation - A New English Grammar

Introdução The modal auxiliary of the Past – DID The emphatic form: Pronoun + modal + action He did play Negative phrases are essentially emphatic: Pronoun + modal + negative + action He did not play The separation of the modal and negative elements produces a stronger hammered negative. When the two are contracted, the negative form becomes less marked, making the sound and our expression smoother: Pronoun + modal /negative + action He didn’t play The modal DID is thrown behind the verb to reduce the emphatic weight in the affirmative: Pronoun + action/ modal He play (did) The standard written form results in the -ed ending: He play -ed

Introdução The Grammar Mechanic of the PAST FACTUAL The modal of past pacts is DID 1 DID = fact in the past – a deed – meaning it happened! Placed before the verb, the modal is emphatic and strong sounding. When we wish to reduce the emphatic force, the auxiliary inverts with the verb, bringing more stress onto the verb word. The modal is contracted as an ending and is softer when spoken. The modal did converts into the -ed ending of the so-called regular past verbs. As we can see from the mechanics of the grammar, the modal of fact in the past did, just as we saw with do , can be manipulated, depending on the emphasis we require. With the modal placed behind the verb, we get the sensation that there is a conjugation of the verb; nevertheless, even though the leading sound of each of our so-called regular verbs does not change, there is an ending added to this pure sounding verb. Having said this, we mustn’t forget ...

THE PAST The typical vision which students learn about the Past Tense in English is that there are some regular verbs that form the past with the ending -ed, others with various irregular changes and yet others that strangely never change at all. Even without conjugational differences in the first, second and third person forms, whether singular or plural, the mere idea that there are regular verbs and irregular verbs casts uncertainty onto the issue and many students even embark on that terrible list-learning, in an attempt to memorize every last verb in the English language. And all this trouble and strife, without mentioning the pronunciation, even with just the so-called “regular” verbs! Nevertheless, if we perceive the past through our new vision of Directed Pronunciation, we can skip around this problem, without the slightest of difficulty. The idea is simple and the best part about it is that there are just two aspects to observe. 1.Shift the verb in the mouth by directing the p...

Timeline - How the Present Perfect Tense works Experiences The essence of the present perfect tense pulls the verbal expression down, inside us. This movement reflects our experience and even belief and true knowledge, which even in mediaeval times was placed in the heart. The sense we are aiming for is very similar in all of the following three examples: • I have visited the Louvre. • I believe in aliens. • I know it’s true. No Details The movement physically collapses our lungs. For this reason we do not go into detail, because in simple structures, we can not add extensive information. To add detail of past experiences, we typically use the simple and progressive past tense or use an adverb. • There has been a plane crash • A Transatlantic flight out of Paris crashed at 7.45 pm, twenty minutes after take off. Nobody was killed …etc. Recent Time In a similar movement - a slight variation on the theme - the expression is pulled back and released until the ...

Back on the subject of emphasis and we can see how we can make the negative more or less emphatic by the simple separation or contraction of the modal negative idea: She does not like chocolate - more emphatic She doesn’t like chocolate - less emphatic In our negative question, the separation of the negative will force the emphatic not to return to its preverbal emphatic position leaving the emphatic inversion of does and she intact: Doesn’t she like chocolate? Does she not like chocolate? Here we can see that the pre-verb position holds the true key emphatic position. When we look at this in illustrated form, we can see how the emphasis provokes a kind of dip or stop, in the sentence, before the release of the verb. Furthermore, the more marked our dip (or stop) is, the greater the emphasis we create. Conversely, the smoother our horizontal line of projection is, the less emphatic our sentence becomes. It also becomes easier to understand that the smoothe...

Emphasis is a fundamental aspect of language and plays a great part in determining the basic structure of the syntax. Unfortunately, most visions of grammar underestimate this importance; nevertheless, it is the important tool which is not only used to stress one part of an idea or another but also transfers the weight of importance of the phrase from one part of the structure to another through inversions, etc. To discuss the English verb system without an understanding of the importance of emphasis would be to miss several important and fundamental arguments about structure, logic and interpretation. Vocal and Structural Emphasis There are two basic forms of emphasis: vocal and structural emphasis. In the former, one word or another is simply given more force than the rest through emphasized speech, leaving it quite clear which word carries the greater importance: She doesn’t like chocolate - indicates who. She doesn’t like chocolate - emphasizes the negative. She doe...

With each movement and directional vector (or sense) of each modal, we can start to map out the areas of modal expression. The chart (illustrated above) shows how each aspect is directed;a skill we certainly need to emulate, if we are to give the correct language signals. As the chart shows , the high area is reserved for probability, the degree of which ranges from positive certainty through possibility to uncertainty at the back of the head. The forward area (ahead of the eye) carries the different notions of future modality, rising from the low downward driven decisive intention or acceptance (will) and determination (shall) through obligation(must), permission (may) and advice – or deferred obligation (should) to prediction (will) and desire (will, must, should). The past forms are set back or directed behind us, with past probability looped high in speculation but ending low - so as to combine with the auxiliary have and the past pa...