ELOCUTION. E LOCUTION is the mode of utterance or delivery of any thing spoken. It may be good or bad. 2. Good Elocution is the art of uttering ideäs understandingly, correctly, and effectively. It embraces the two general divisions, ORTHOEPY and EXPRESSION. Elocution Orthoepy ORTHOËPY. 1 RTHOËPY is the art of correct pronunciation. ACCENT. Articulation Orthoepy Syllabication Accent ORTHOËPY has to do with separate words-the production of their ōral elements, the combination of these elements to form syllables, and the accentuation of the right syllables. 1 Blackboard Diagrams.-Regarding blackboard diagrams as indispensable, in conducting most successfully class exercises in elocution, they are here introduced not less for the convenience of young teachers than to serve as constant reminders, to all educators, of the importance of employing the perceptive faculties in connection with ōral instruction. I. ARTICULATION. I. DEFINITIONS. RTICULATION is the distinct utterance of the Aral elements in syllables and words. 2. Oral Elements are the sounds that, uttered separately or in combination, form syllables and words. 3. Oral Elements are Produced by different positions of the organs of speech, in connection with the voice and the breath. 4. The Principal Organs of Speech are the lips, the teeth, the tongue, and the palate. 5. Voice is Produced by the action of the breath upon the larynx.1 6. Oral Elements are Divided into three classes: eighteen TONICS, fifteen SUBTONICS, and ten ATONICS. 7. Tonics are pure tones produced by the voice, with but slight use of the organs of speech. 8. Subtonics are tones produced by the voice, modified by the organs of speech. 9. Atonics are mere breathings, modified by the organs of speech. 10. Letters are characters that are used to represent or modify the oral elements. 11. The Alphabet is Divided into vowels and consonants. 12. Vowels are the letters that usually represent the tonics. They are a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y.2 13. A Diphthong is the union of two vowels in a syllable; as ou in our, ea in bread. 14. A Proper Diphthong is the union of two vowels in a syllable, neither of which is silent: as ou in out. 1 Lǎrynx. The larynx is the upper part of the trachea, or windpipe. 2 W not a Vowel.-W, not representing a tonic, is only a consonant. 15. An Improper Diphthong is the union of two vowels in a syllable, one of which is silent; as ōa in lōaf. 16. A Triphthong is the union of three vowels in a syllable; as eau in beau (bō), ieu in adieu (adū'). 17. Consonants1 are the letters that usually represent either subtonic or atonic elements. They are of two kinds, single letters and combined, including all the letters of the alphabet, except the vowels, and the combinations ch, sh, wh, ng; th subtonic, and th atonic. 18. Labials are letters whose ōral elements are chiefly formed by the lips. They are b, p, io, and wh. Mis a nasal labial. Fand v are labio-dentals. 19. Dentals are letters whose ōral elements are chiefly formed by the teeth. They are j, s, z, ch, and sh. 20. Linguals are letters whose ōral elements are chiefly formed by the tongue. They are d, l, r, and t. N is a nasal-lingual; y, a lingua-palatal, and th, a lingua-dental. 21. Palatals are letters whose ōral elements are chiefly formed by the palate. They are g and k. NG is a nasal-palatal. 22. Cognates are letters whose ōral elements are produced by the same organs, in a similar manner; thus, f is a cognate of v; k of g, etc. 23. Alphabetic Equivalents are letters, or combinations of letters, that represent the same elements, or sounds; thus, i is an equivalent of e, in pique. IN II. ORAL ELEMENTS. N sounding the tonics, the organs should be fully opened, and the stream of sound from the throat should be thrown, as much as possible, directly upward 1 Consonant.-The term consonant, literally meaning sounding with, is applied to these letters and combinations because they are rare ly used in words without having a vowel connected with them in the same syllable, although their oral elements may be uttered separately, against the roof of the mouth. These elements should open with an abrupt and explosive force, and then diminish gradually and equably to the end. In producing the subtonic and atonic elements, it is important to press the organs upon each other with great firmness and tension; to throw the breath upon them with fōrce; and to prolong the sound sufficiently to give it a full impression on the ear. The instructor will first require the students to pronounce a cătch-word once, and then produce the ōral element represented by the marked vowel, or Italic consonant, four times-thus; age—ā, ā, ā, ā; äte—ā, ā, ā, ā; ătă, ǎ, ă, ǎ; ǎsh-ă, ǎ, ǎ, ă, etc. He will exercise the class until each student can utter consecutively all the elementary sounds as arranged in the following TABLE OF ORAL ELEMENTS. 66 hē, these. 7. ē, 1 Long and Short Vowels.-The attention of the class should be called to the fact that the first element, or sound, represented by each of the vowels, is usually indicated by a horizontal line placed over the letter, and the second sound by a curved line. 2 A Fifth.-The fifth element, or sound, represented by â, is its first or Alphabetic sound, modified or softened by r. In its production, the lips, placed nearly together, are held immovable while the student tries to say ā. A Sixth.-The sixth element represented by å, is a sound intermediate between a, as heard in at, ash, and a, as in arm, art. It is produced by prolonging and slightly softening ǎ. 4 E Third. The third element represented by ẽ, is e as heard in end.prolonged, and modified or softened by r. 5 O modified.-The modified oral element of o, in this work, is represented by ŏ, the same mark as its regular second power. This modi |