Presenting Unsupported Claims As A Survey: Contact & Tone

Martin (1992: 532):

A number of the key realisations for involved and uninvolved contact are surveyed below.

Table 7.12. Tenor — Aspects of the realisation of contact
Contact proliferation contraction [phonology foregrounded]	involved	uninvolved
phonology	Pre-tonic delicacy	basic tone
	marked tonality	unmarked tonality
	marked tonicity	unmarked tonicity
	varied rhythm	constant rhythm
	fluent	hesitant
	reduction processes	full syllables
	native accent	standard accent
	range of accents	single accent
	acronym	full form

Blogger Comment:

Table 7.12 contains a list of unsupported claims, made without reference to any data.

The claim here is that:

• the phonological feature of "Pretonic delicacy" construes the tenor feature of 'involved' contact (a lot of previous contact between interlocutors), whereas
• the phonological feature of "basic tone" construes the tenor feature of 'uninvolved' contact (less previous contact between interlocutors).

The distinction alluded to here is the distinction between primary and secondary tones.  Secondary tones are more delicate classifications of the primary tones (Halliday 1970: 9). Accordingly, the degree of delicacy resides in the analysis, not in the speech.  However, some secondary tones are the 'neutral' options, so for present purposes, these will be assumed to be what is meant by "basic tone".  The claim then becomes:

• the pretonics -1, …1, -2 and -3 construe the tenor feature of 'involved' contact (a lot of previous contact between interlocutors), whereas
• the pretonics 1, 2 and 3 construe the tenor feature of 'uninvolved' contact (less previous contact between interlocutors).

So, for example:

• the listing (…1) pretonic in a pound of apples, a grapefruit and half a dozen oranges is claimed to construe the tenor feature of 'involved' contact (a lot of previous contact between interlocutors), whereas
• the even (1) pretonic in John's decided to become a doctor is claimed to construe the tenor feature of 'uninvolved' contact (less previous contact between interlocutors).

The claim is thus falsified by every use of the listing pretonic by interlocutors who have never met, as when placing an order over the telephone.