Special education of the republic of uzbekistan

Unit 16. Intonational Peculiarities of Reading Tales
Tales occupy a somewhat intermediate position between the so-called oral and written types. Tales all round the world have certain similarities in their structure. They usually begin and end with a specific embellishment, the beginning of each presents series of typical formulas. For instance, many English tales begin with the words: “Once upon a time there…”. The so-called “binary oppositions” are typical of all tales. Good is opposed to Bad, Genuine to False etc. Alongside this binary principal, the principle of thrice-repeated actions or phenomena exists in the structure of the plot of the tale. The classical example of this is the trebling of characters and actions: three brothers, three helpers, etc.

Compositionally this trebling serves the aim of breaking the development of the plot.

Originally tales existed in oral forms. Nowadays when many tales are published the forms of realization are various.

Tales can be read, told and even dramatized. The variety of realizations and the variety of plot determine the variety of intonational characteristics.

1. 
   The division into sense-groups depends on the type of the text. The narrative part reveals features common with the descriptive prose. The number of stressed words in most cases varies from two to four. In the dialogue parts the sense-groups are shorter (from one of three stressed words).
   

2. 
   In the narrative part the tonetic contour of a sense-group often consists of a Falling Tone and a Gradually Descending Scale. In Non-final sense-groups the Rising Tone is more frequent than in the descriptive prose.
   

In the dialogue parts complex tones are often used. The tonetic contour is characterized by more pitch fluctuations.

3. 
   The Decentralized Stress is prevailing in the narrative part. The Centralized Stress is more frequent in the dialogue parts.
   

4. 
   The rhythmic organization of tales depends greatly on their syntactical and compositional structure.
   

In the narrative part simple rhythm based on the isochronism of rhythmic groups is more common. Sense-groups characterized by a similar tonetic structure constitute a periodicity which contributes to the rhythmic organization.

Repetitions (lexical and syntactical) which are frequent in tales, play an important role in rhythmization. In some tales a regular alternation of descriptive and dialogue parts produces a peculiar rhythm of units higher than a sentence.

Some tales are built on similar repetitions (syntactical, lexical and intonational).

V. The tempo in the narrative part is rather slow and often constant. The tempo of the dialogue is quicker and often changeable.

VI. Logical pauses are prevailing in reading or telling tales as the narrator knows the plot well.