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TfiE CONSONANTS. 65 |
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only heard at the beginning of words; at the end of words it has a smooth soft sound. There is another variety-heard in English, as in the word pretty; an R following a labial possesses so much labial quality that it may be styled a labial R. The German R is produced by the vibration of the uvula, it is made at the place of NG. To make the vibrating R it is necessary to make the tip of the tongue vibrate by allowing the vibrating breath to pass between it and the top of the upper gums. It is really either the right side of the tip or the left side of the tip that vibrates, not the centre.
Students who cannot satisfactorily make a vibrating R sound are advised to put the syllable -er- in front of each word beginning with an R in the following sentence. Keep the lips and the teeth apart.
Er-right er-round the er-rugged er-rock the er-ragged er-rascal er-ran.
The smooth R is an aspirate and is chiefly important from its effect upon the preceding vowel, as exemplified in the words oar and mercy. It is a diminishing sound in standard English, and will probably in time disappear altogether. When a word ending in R is followed by a vowel, it becomes slightly more audible, and this causes confusion between words which do and words which do not end in R, giving rise to the ugly fault so noticeable in dramatic singing and speech of adding R to words ending in A : like Ada, A~h, India, when they stand alone or when they are followed by a word beginning with a vowel.
The Scotch people allow smooth R to affect the preceding vowel and to force it back, thus p'u'rfect becomes p'airfect, and they make an exaggerated difference between Ah and Ar.
v. t. 5 |
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