Are subjects produced differently based on the transitivity of the clause they are embedded in? Based on data from a narrative reading experiment, it is shown that transitive subjects are produced with a lower f0 than intransitive subjects and that this difference is statistically significant (p∠0.05). It is suggested that the purpose for such a difference originates from a propensity for English speakers to accent new referents, which are common in the object position. By lowering the f0 of the subject, speakers increase the efficacy of an accent on a new object later in the clause. Finally, the read narrative procedure is evaluated for its strict control of stimuli, while also reproducing known intonational phenomena.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:RICE/oai:scholarship.rice.edu:1911/70288 |
| Date | January 2011 |
| Contributors | Crosswhite, Katherine |
| Source Sets | Rice University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Text |
| Format | 126 p., application/pdf |
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