The Sounds of French An Introduction [Paperback]

This introductory textbook is principally addressed to English speakers who want systematically to improve their pronunciation of French.Principally addressed to English speakers wanting to improve their French pronunciation, this text describes the difficulties typically encountered, explains why they occur, and suggests ways to improve them.Principally addressed to English speakers wanting to improve their French pronunciation, this text describes the difficulties typically encountered, explains why they occur, and suggests ways to improve them.Tranel's textbook is principally addressed to English speakers who want to improve their French pronunciation. It describes the difficulties typically encountered, explains why they occur and suggests ways to improve them. In addition, from a more theoretical perspective, the book provides readers with a fundamental understanding of the way French sounds are produced and how they behave according to general linguistic principles. Perfect for both relative beginners and more advanced students, Tranel's book draws on contrastive analysis, general phonetics, traditional knowledge, and more modern developments in phonology, historical linguistics, and orthography. Intended for classroom use, the book will appeal to teachers because of its wide scholarship and firm grasp of instructional principles, while students will welcome Tranel's clear style and organization.Preface; Special note to English speaking students learning French; Organization of the book; The language of reference; Acknowledgments; Part I. Introductory Concepts: 1. Orthography, pronunciation, and phonetic notation; 2. Basic notations of phonetics; Part II. Vowels and Glides: 3. Vowel systems; 4. Distribution of vowels; 5. Nasal vowels; 6. E; 7. Glides; Part III. Consonants: 8. Consonantal systems; 9. L and R; 10. Double consonants and final consonants; 11. Liaison; Part IV. Suprasegmentals: 12. Stress and intonation; Part V. Appendices; Bibliography.