Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
General Editor
E.F. K O N R A D KOERNER
(University of Ottawa)
Volume 92
Fernando Poyatos
Paralanguage
PARALANGUAGE
A LINGUISTIC A N D INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH
TO INTERACTIVE SPEECH A N D SOUND
FERNANDO POYATOS
University of New Brunswick
Fredericton, N . B . , Canada
Poyatos, Fernando.
Paralanguage : a linguistic and interdisciplinary approach to interactive speech and
sound / Fernando Poyatos.
p. c m . - (Amsterdam studies in the theory and history of linguistic science.
Series I V , Current issues in linguistic theory, ISSN 0304-0763; v. 92)
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
1. Paralinguistics. 2 . Nonverbal communication. I. Title. II. Series.
P95.5.P69 1993
414'.6--dc20 92-42014
I S B N 90 272 3527 9 (Eur.)/l-55619-149-9 ( U S ) (alk. paper) CIP
Introduction 1
Chapter 3: Language-Paralanguage-Kinesics
The Basic Triple Structure of Communication in Face-To-Face
Interaction 121
3.1 The progressive phonetic-visual approach to speech 121
3.2 The expressive limitations of spoken and written words 123
3.3 A brief introduction to language, paralanguage and kinesics 129
3.4 The intervening silences and stills as elements of the basic triple struc-
ture 135
3.5 Segmental and nonsegmental elements within the basic triple structure 137
3.6 A note on the redundancy vs. complementarity of segmental and non-
segmental features of speech 139
3.7 Anthroposemiotic coherence and ontogenetic and social development
of the structure language-paralanguage-kinesics 140
3.8 Language markers and identifiers as the closest paralinguistic and
kinesic accompaniments to words 147
3.9 The ten different realizations of language, paralanguage and kinesics in
discourse 150
3.10 Intrasystem, intersystem, and environmental/cultural interrelationships 153
3.11 The total conditioning background of paralanguage 156
3.12 The basic triple structure in full interaction, reduced interaction, non-
interaction and environmental interaction 159
3.13 O n the concept of usage 166
3.14 The joint transcription of language-paralanguage-kinesics in their total
interactional context 167
3.15 Conclusion 171
Notes 172
CONTENTS ix
Chapter 5: Qualifiers
The M a n y Voices of Interaction 199
5.1 Nature, classification and problems of voice types 199
5.2 Breathing control 202
5.3 Laryngeal control 203
5.4 Esophageal control 218
5.5 Pharyngeal control 219
5.6 Velopharyngeal control 221
5.7 Lingual control 227
5.8 Labial control 228
5.9 Mandibular control 229
5.10 Articulatory control 230
5.11 Articulatory tension control 233
5.12 Objectual control 233
5.13 Conclusion 235
Notes 242
Appendix: Transcription symbols for paralinguistic qualifiers 243
Chapter 6: Differentiators
The Eloquence of Emotional and Physiological Reactions 245
6.0 Introduction: the status of differentiators as a paralinguistic category
and as components of interaction 245
6.1 Laugther 248
6.1.1 T h e needed research perspectives on laughter 248
6.1.2 T h e morphology of laughter as a paralinguistic-kinesic c o m p o -
nent of interaction 249
χ CONTENTS
Chapter 7: Alternants
T h e Vocabulary Beyond the Dictionary 379
7.1 Nature, meaning, iconicity, and lexicality of alternants 379
7.2 T h e needed research perspectives on alternants 387
7.3 Identified and unidentified alternants: verbal and visual representation 389
7.4 T h e inconsistency of written forms and the ambiguity of labels 403
7.5 T h e paralanguage of comics: sounds m a d e visible 407
7.6 Toward a classification of alternants 416
7.7 T h e paralinguistic and kinesic qualifiers of alternants 435
7.8 T h e paralanguage of animal calling as a topic of interdisciplinary
paralinguistic research 443
7.9 T h e communicative status of random alternants 446
7.10 Conclusion 448
Notes 449
Conclusion 451
References 453
Literary References 463
List of Illustrations 467
N a m e Index 469
Subject Index 473
Preface
Acknowledgements:
Fernando Poyatos
University of N e w Brunswick
September 1991
Introduction
from the point of view of one language may be phonemic in another" (37).
Twenty years later Catford (1964) would still complain that "phoneticians
have always been primarily concerned with setting up descriptive categories
for phonemic features which are utilized phonologically in languages [and
therefore] no great delicacy of description or classification has seemed to be
called for", and that there was no attempt "to set up a systematic
framework of categories for the description or classification of different
kinds of voice quality" (29).
A more insightful attempt to see verbal language and paralanguage
together in the speech stream had been the book by the psychiatrist-lin-
guist-psychiatrist team of Pittinger, Hockett and Danehy (1960), a trans-
cription-analysis of The First Five Minutes of a psychotherapy interview.
That allowed them to keep a more faithful record, not only of what the
patient would say, but h o w he would say it, a method that would culminate
in The Natural History of an Interview, by M c Q u o w n et al (1971) (unfortu-
nately still in microfilm form), which already acknowledged what I was then
discussing both at conferences and in some papers as the unquestionable
'triple structure' language-paralanguage-kinesics, as the speaker 'sounds'
but 'moves' what he says. However, the pervasive disagreement and limita-
tions as to what to include under paralanguage incited m e to m a k e some
classifications of categories and phenomena (e.g., Poyatos 1975, 1976a,
1979), as I recognized the m a n y gaps in the theoretical literature and the
m a n y needed applications in various fields. A t the same time, amidst a pro-
liferation of kinesic studies, there was still a typical neglect of the fact that
those very kinesic acts cooccurred with paralanguage and verbal language
in various combinations and that a knowledge of paralinguistic behaviors
was a prerequisite for any realistic study of language or kinesics or, for that
matter, of the structure of conversation. In other words, m y initial identifi-
cation and classification of paralinguistic and kinesic phenomena (e.g,
Poyatos 1977a) responded to m y thoughts concerning what I later found
Abercrombie (1968) had referred to as the "unfortunate separation of the
visible and the audible" (58), naturally agreeing with him that "fact-finding,
not theorising, is what is wanted at this juncture" (58). In fact, I realized
the great need for both simultaneously in view of the misconceptions (e.g.,
that language was cognitive, paralanguage emotional) and understatements
(e.g, that paralanguage was marginal to language, m a d e only of affects and
effects) which relegated paralanguage to the most ambiguous state of what
I saw as a perfectly established vocal system shunned through ignorance of
the communication processes.
INTRODUCTION 3
ous that, as Crystal (1975) would point out, "just because this area of
behaviour is difficult to describe and quantify, it does not m e a n that it lacks
systems altogether" (169).
Further proof of the état d'âme noted by Slama-Cazacu were Crystal's
(1974) masterful state-of-the-art paper and a paper (Poyatos 1975) and a
book (Poyatos 1976a) of mine, as they contained m a n y interesting coinci-
dences of thought with respect to the kind of development needed in
paralinguistic studies, the lack of some of which would still be criticized
m u c h later by Scherer (1982): (a) Crystal advocated a phonetic criterion
(i.e., not a phonemic one from the standpoint of English or any particular
language) to allow for crosscultural comparison, actually in keeping with
Catford's (1968) efforts to show man's anthropophonetic possibilities, while
Poyatos (1975) worked in that direction in his I C A E S paper "to elaborate
a realistic phonemic chart of a culture or subculture beyond what is pro-
vided by the International Phonetic Alphabet", applying it to the analysis
of paralinguistic 'alternants' (299-311); (b) Crystal referred to the need for
functional definitions, so far insufficient, while Poyatos' (1977b) functional
classification for kinesic behavior could be applied to paralanguage; (c)
Crystal complained about the lack of serious research for structural or
denotative functions and a potential structural function, while Poyatos
(1975,1976a, 1976b, and earlier) claimed for paralanguage not only a struc-
ture in its o w n right, but its costructuration with language and kinesics
within the 'basic triple structure' and within the structure of interaction; (d)
Crystal referred to the lack of descriptive studies, especially outside English,
while Poyatos suggested phonetic descriptions of a number of constructs,
trying to encourage further systematic study; (e) consequently, Crystal
complained also about the absence of a "systematic survey of paralinguistic
effects [as a] routine part of [the fieldworkers'] investigations" (276), and
the few attempts to transcribe utterances, while Poyatos' (1975, also in 1976b)
suggested at least transcriptions and n e w symbols (echoing Pike's complaint
[1943:39]) for s o m e sixty paralinguistic constructs of our daily repertoire
and expressed the great need for n e w labels for m a n y of them, as they func-
tion as true dictionary items but cannot be referred to by verbs and nouns;
which in turn agreed also with (f) Crystal's plea for normal data;,(g) Crystal
encouraged the search for the functional roles of paralanguage, away from
the purely 'emotional' or 'affective' types of information usually mentioned
in the literature, and m o r e in relation to social function, while Poyatos
(1975, 1976b) emphasized precisely social functions, socioeducational
INTRODUCTION 5
(notably Scherer 1972, 1973, 1978, 1979a, 1979b), age (e.g., Helfrich 1979),
emotions (Scherer 1979b, Scherer and E k m a n 1984,), etc., in which some-
times, as should be expected, experimental control would impede a realistic
knowledge of m a n y subtle paralinguistic behaviors and features. There
appeared then excellent state-of-the-art treatments and other discussions
and compilations, mainly Harper, Wiens and Mattarazzo's (1978), Weitz's
(1979); Scherer's (1982; 1984, analyzing the shortcomings and needs in this
area), all with very useful bibliographies, as well as very helpful voice
analyses in the field of voice disorders and speech therapy (e.g., Travis
[Ed.] 1971). A t the same time, the field of nonverbal communication had
been gaining m u c h m o m e n t u m through a rapidly growing serious literature,
by its frequent discussion at interdisciplinary congress sessions and sym-
posiums (many of which I organized myself within anthropology, linguis-
tics, applied linguistics, psychology, applied psychology, crosscultural
psychology, psycholinguistics, sociology, semiotics, etc.), and through a
number of very useful textbooks (e.g., K n a p p and Hall 1992; Malandro and
Barker 1989; Burgoon, Buller and Woodall 1989), all with ample bibliog-
raphies, yet typically lacking references to, for instance, the fields of litera-
ture, theater, film-making, architecture, etc., thus missing some very
important perspectives for lack of sufficient interdisciplinarity.
have kept the non-English-speaking readers very much in mind when com-
piling the different lists of words and phrases as well as the great number of
examples from everyday language and the literary quotations, which should
be a useful source of vocabulary build-up and of usages with which one can-
not be in contact away from the daily cultural experience of the language.
INTRODUCTION 11
tion may coincide with the act of smelling a rose; the Japanese (mostly
feminine) paralinguistic expression of delight referred to food, [ao∫I:::],
conditions the congruent facial expression.
This obvious intrapersonal, intersystem costructuration is thus an
essential fact in discourse (though, again, so neglected in so m a n y otherwise
worthy studies of language and communication) and the main characteristic
of the triple structure language-paralanguage-kinesics. A s for interpersonal
exchanges, m a n y have attempted to investigate h o w language functions in a
communication situation between dyads or larger groups, but have failed to
realize to what extent that situation depends o n m o r e intersomatic
exchanges of signs and messages that w e wish to acknowledge, that those
individuals are socializing organisms equipped with a unique highly cogni
tive and intellectual ability that combines their mutual sensorial and intel
ligible perception and the perception of their sensibly apprehended envi
ronment; and further, that they are, at the time of our analysis and propor
tionally to their ages (i.e., according to their stored experiences of self and
others), inevitably conditioned by the two vital dimensions of space (i.e.,
the social and geographical or cultural locus) and time (i.e., not only their
o w n cultural-historical time, but the storage of previous sensory and mental
experiences as well as the duration of the very situation under analysis).
In earlier research I emphasized the fact that, despite the preponder
ance of sound and m o v e m e n t , one must not overlook the six different ways
of perceiving directly the behavioral and nonbehavioral activities and static
characteristics of others (vision, audition, olfaction, gustation, and cutane
ous and kinesthetic sensations), nor the sender's systems, consisting of both
active stimuli (kinetic, acoustic, chemical, thermal and dermal) and static
characteristics (shape, color, size, consistency and weight). These emitting
and perceiving systems generate a total of twenty-one channels along which
travel all the messages that are possible between two bodies (Poyatos 1983:
56-66, with two useful diagrams). W e must not, however, underestimate
the relationship of verbal and nonverbal signs, as w e should consider (a)
that all nonverbal acts can be mutually related and finely costructured
a m o n g themselves, as has just been illustrated, and (b) that both activities
and nonactivities, and the latter a m o n g themselves, can be also mutually
related and even conditioned in ways which I have discussed in detail
elsewhere (Poyatos 1985). Furthermore, w e cannot ignore either the
twenty-one synesthesial ways in which w e can perceive our cointeractants,
in addition to the twenty-one direct channels (e.g., the truly synesthesial
THE SIGNS OF THE H U M A N BODY 15
'soft look' suggested by soft voice, or the glottalized, nasal and breathy
voice and intense stare of the stereotyped television model). 2
But, again, sound and m o v e m e n t account for the transmission of ver-
bal language and paralanguage along the vocal/narial-auditory channel, and
kinesics along the kinetic-visual channel. Which compels us to acknow-
ledge, by necessity, the intervening silences and still positions as opposed to
language-paralanguage and kinesics, respectively (Poyatos 1981, 1983:
Chapter 6). F r o m that arsenal of sign-conveying systems, which has been
suggested only in passing, w e can single out the topic of sound production
and then specifically of paralanguage. Paralanguage, however, must be
seen, first, as part of the body's kinetic articulatory possibilities determined
by its physiology and anatomy; then as part of its kinetic-acoustic systems;
next as part of the basic triple structure language-paralanguage-kinesics;
and finally, and only then, as a phonetic system in itself. This chapter, then,
attempts to develop the first two aspects of bodily communication.
Bang vi.t .He banged against the wall, «-with his fist on the table, *-the door; adv * H e
closed the door with a bang.
Bat vi.t °He batted him with his fists, H e didn't bat an eye.
Batter vt °They battered him mercilessly.
Beat vt °He beat him until he knocked him d o w n , * H e was beating the clay with a piece
of w o o d .
Belt vt °He belted him [with his fist] across the face.
Biff vt °She biffed [cuffed] the child's face.
Bite vi.t »She bit into the apple, She bites her lip w h e n she hesitates; η »She gave it a big
bite.
Bounce vi.t .She bounced into the r o o m noisily, * H e bounced the ball forcefully.
Brush vt + S h e brushed her hair back with her hand, °He brushed her arm lightly, »-some
flecks of dust from the chair, *-her teeth vigorously; η °She felt a light brush on
her arm.
B u m p vi.t °She b u m p e d against m e , °-me; η ·Ι heard a b u m p against the floor and then
the child began to cry.
Bundle vi .He bundled [moved hastily] across the house.
Bustle vi »She bustled [busily, noisily] across the house; η ·Ι could hear the bustle in the
upper rooms.
Butt vi.t °The wrestler butted him in the stomach, .He butted the wall with his head like
a ram!; η He expresses his anger with a butt of his head.
D
Dart vi «She darted across the room in a panic.
Dash vi H e dashed out of the house and ran, *-something violently into the drawer and
closed it.
Diddle vi She diddled along [moved back and forth jerkily].
Drag vt «He dragged his feet as he walked.
Drop vi.t »She dropped to the floor unconscious, -her head on the pillow, —her eyelids,
She dropped her jaw open in unbelief.
D r u m vi + H e kept drumming with his fingers on his belly, «-on the table.
E
Edge vi H e edged [walked sideways] awkwardly toward the door.
F
Fall vi »She fell d o w n , -forward, -back, His mouth fell open in bewilderment.
Flail vi »The crippled m a nflailedalong [walked in an uncoordinated way]; adv H e
walked with aflailinggait through the snow.
Flap vi.t »She flapped into a chair, »He flapped his arm against the water.
Flick vt + H eflickedm y ear from behind, «-a crumb with her fingers; η + S h e struck the
child's ear with a flick.
Fling vi.t »She flung [quickly] out of the room, H e flung his arms about her, * H e flung
the book on the table.
Flip vi.t She flipped from the surprise, *-the box shut [with a quick jerk]; adv. She
walked up with a flip.
Flitter vi Sheflittered[moved rapidly and lightly] about the house.
Flop vi H e flopped onto the couch exhausted, «-his hand on the table; adv H e walked
with afloppinggait.
Flounce vi «She flounces girlishly across the room remembering her young days.
Flounder vi H e floundered around awkwardly.
Flutter vi Sheflutterednervously about the house, -her eyelids flirtatiously.
Flump vi T h e fat m a n was flumping along the hall.
G
G n a w vi.t »He was gnawing on a piece of candy, »-an apple, -his lips.
THE SIGNS OF THE H U M A N B O D Y 21
H
Halt vi H e halted [walked with uneven, limp gait] along.
Hobble vi H e hobbled [halted], -unsteadily on one leg.
H o p vi H e hopped on one foot.
H u g vt °They hugged each other tensely; adv °He greeted m e with a hug.
Hurl vt * H e hurled the stick over the ravine, *-his cap to the floor in anger.
Hurtle vi H e hurtled up theflightof steps and stormed into the room.
Hustle vi.t +-them [pushed] very rudely.
J
Jab vi.t °He kept jabbing his opponent with quick blows.
Jerk vi.t H e jerked abruptly as he walked, «He walks with a jerk.
Jiggle vt * H e jiggled the door handle softly, then violently.
Jog vi.t «He jogged along heavily [in slow, heavy manner], *The beggar jogged his plate
to m a k e the coins jingle, *-the piggy bank to see h o w m u c h he had.
Jostle vt °He was jostling [pushing roughly] people in the crowd.
J u m p vi »She jumped from joy, -to his feet w h e n he saw m e .
L
Lap vi.t »He bent d o w n and lapped the water, »-the water up loudly.
Leap vi H e leaped in the air from joy, -to his feet.
Limp vi »She limps after the accident; adv «She walks with a limp.
L u m b e r vi »The big m a n lumbered up the stairs, — like an elephant.
L u m p vi «The m a n with his heavy load was lumping along up the street.
M
Massage vt °She was massaging his back; η °She was giving him a good massage.
Mince vi «She was mincing around the room as in a delicate dance; adj »She did a minc
ing step around the room.
Ρ
Paddle vi H e paddled [toyed with his fingers] absently on the table, -[walked] like a
toddler across the room.
Pat vt °He patted the child's cheek affectionately, +-his [own] thigh impatiently, * H e
was patting the dough with a wooden spatula.
Peck at vi »-at the table with the handle of her teaspoon.
Pelt vt °The children pelted [beat, pound repeatedly] each other.
Pitter-patter vi »Stop pitter-pattering all over the room! [with quick tapping steps]; η ·Ι
could hear a pitter-patter upstairs; adv H e walked with a pitter-patter.
Plod vi ·Α very obese m a n , slowly plodding along.
22 PARALANGUAGE
R
R a p vi.t »She rapped nervously on the door, »-on the table; η H e opened the newspaper
and gave it a sharp rap with the back of his hand.
Rattle vi.t *The door rattled, it was him, * H e rattled the handle; η I heard the rattle.
Reel vi H e reeled as if he were drunk and fell on the floor.
R u b vt + H e rubbed his hands together in anticipation, +-his nose trying to remember,
°-her back with sun lotion.
R u n vi.t «He ran fast, +-through his hair nervously, °-his fingers d o w n her back seduc
tively.
S
Scamper vi «They scampered [walked quickly] through the garden.
Scrape vt «She scraped the ground [with her feet].
Scratch vi.t + D o n ' t scratch or you'll itch even m o r e , + H e scratched his face.
Scud vi »She scudded across the lawn swiftly [as if skimming along it].
Scuff vi.t She scuffed along [with a dragging motion], She sat scuffing the floor ) with
her feet, + T h e teacher scuffed the back of his neck; η ·Ι could hear her scuffing
upstairs.
Scuffle vi H e scuffled [dragged his feet] as he walked.
Scurry vi H e scurried [walked hastily] along and disappeared.
Shake vi.t *He was shaking the piggy bank.
Shamble vi «The poor m a n shambled into the luxurious mansion [walking clumsily,
hardly lifting his feet].
Shove vi. H e walked with a shoving gait.
Shuffle vi.t «She shuffled along the r o o m , »-her feet impatiently, H e shuffled embarras-
sedly.
Sink vi «She sank into her chair and cried, «-to her knees.
Sit vi H e sat quietly, -up in bed, H e sat d o w n .
Slam vt * H e slammed the door angrily, *-the box into the cupboard; adv * H e closed the
door with a slam.
Slap vt °He slapped him on the back, °-his face, °-across the face, +-his [own] thigh
laughing at the joke, »-his hand on the watermelon, * H e slapped the hamburger
onto the hot plate; η °He gave him a slap on the back.
Slide vi.t * H e slid the bolt open slowly, H e slid the hand along the top of his n e w car.
Slip vi.t »He slipped on the ice and fell, °She slipped her fingers through his hair.
Slump vi H e slumped d o w n in his chair and bowed his head pensively.
T H E SIGNS OF T H E H U M A N B O D Y 23
Smack vi.t + H e smacked his lips after drinking, * H e m a d e the snowball smack loudly
against the window, °He smacked the face of the child sharply.
Snap vi.t + H e snapped his fingers, * H e snapped the lock closed, *-the whip loudly,
+ H e could play a tune by snapping his cheek.
Sock vt °He socked him unexpectedly and knocked him d o w n .
Spank vt °She was spanking the child.
Spat vt + H e spatted his knee with his palm and got up decidedly, °-my knee.
Splash vi »The child splashed on the surface of the water.
Squeak vi * H e m a d e the door squeak mysteriously, »He m a d e his shoes squeak loudly
and rapidly.
Stagger vi He staggered from weakness and then fell.
Stalk vi.t «She stalked haughtily out of the room, -the chicken trying to catch it.
Stamp vi He stamped in anger, »The flamenco dancer stamped on the floor.
Step back vi H e stepped back startled.
Stir vi.t H e stirred in his bed and opened his eyes, *-his coffee nervously.
Stomp vi.t He threw it on the floor and stomped on it with rage.
Stride vi.t He strode haughtily across the room, H e strode the street, H e strode to pass
over the puddle.
Strike vt + S h e struck him on the face, «-her head against the cupboard, *-a match on the
sole of his shoe.
Stroke vt °He stroked her hair gently, +-her (own) armflirtatiouslywhile she talked,
•She was stroking the velvet cushion sensually.
Strut vi He strutted with a swagger to show his contempt; adv H e walked with a strut.
Stuff vi He stuffs his hands violently into his pants' pockets, then jerks them out again.
Stumble vi He was so weak that he stumbled terribly.
Swap vi.t He swapped quickly to his left, +-him in the hand.
Swat vt + H e swatted the child in the hand and told him not to touch.
Sweep vi.t + S h e swept her hand through her hair, *She swept her fingers over the
keyboard, «-the crumbs off the table; adv H e put it away with a sweep of his hand.
Τ
Tap vi.t H e kept tapping on the table with his fingers, --with his feet, * H e tapped a stick
against m y window, *The blind m a n tapped his cane on the pavement as he went
on impatiently, + H e tapped his temple to signify he was smart; + * H e could play
a tune by tapping the edge of his teeth with his fingernail or with a pencil; η °She
gave him a tap on the shoulder.
Tear vi H e tore d o w n the stairs in a big hurry, * H e tore at the curtains and brought
them d o w n to the floor.
Thrash vt + H e was thrashing his arms to fight the cold.
Throw vt H e threw his cap on the floor in anger, She throws her arms around him.
Thud vi + H e thudded on his chest proudly; adv °He hit him with a thud, «-the cushion
with a thud.
T h u m p vi.t + H e thumped on his chest, »He thumped the sandbag; adv °He hit him with
a thump.
Thwack vt °He thwacked [whacked] him on the face with the back of his hand.
24 PARALANGUAGE
Toss vi.t He tossed about in bed all night, He tossed about the room,
Totter vi She tottered [unsteadily] on the step, »-away but then regained his balance.
T r a m p vi He tramped [firmly and heavily] d o w n the street.
Trample vi He trampled [tramped] heavily.
Tremble vi H e was trembling all over.
Tumble vi »She tumbled out of bed half awake.
Twirl vi.t »She twirled around the dance floor, -her hair with two fingers.
W
Wallop vi.t He walloped along clumsily.
W a m b l e vi He wambled unsteadily from dizziness.
W h a c k vt °He whacked her on the face, *The piano lid as hard as he could; η H e gave
her a good whack.
Whirl vi «They whirled around the dance floor, H e whirled quickly to face the m a n
behind him.
Whisk vt He whisked off the crumbs from her lap.
W h o p vi*HeHewhopped on the couch.
Wriggle vi.t »She wriggled nervously in her chair, -her foot.
Ζ
Zigzag vi He zigzagged to avoid the bullets.
O n the other hand, those actions have generated the words with which w e
refer to them, most of the time out of a necessity to follow an echoic acous-
tic-phonetic-written coining process and utilize in interaction the verbal
evocations of the communicative movements and their sounds, as with 'bif-
fing', 'drumming', 'slapping', 'thudding', 'whacking', etc. Beyond those,
however, w e always leave out of the established lexicon a series of lower-
status (from a linguistic point of view), purely paralinguistic formations that
must be studied, however, as 'alternants' (Chapter 7), a m o n g which only
some will eventually acquire the linguistic status by generating also a verb
and a noun. But there is a further communicative consequence in these
coinages. A s w e speak about those actions our synesthesial associations
function in two ways. First, w e evoke the contactual perception of those
actions, as w h e n w e hear someone say, or w e read, that ' H e was pounding
on his chest defiantly', 'She kept stroking her leg as she talked flirtatiously',
although w e might describe it, if asked about it, as the imagined visual per-
ception only. T h e other association is the audible evocation of the audible
self-adaptors and alter-adaptors, as in 'The two m e n hugged each other
heartily', 'She slapped him angrily'.
In addition, linguists cannot fail to acknowledge the evocative pos-
sibilities of descriptions of audible movements and kinesics contained in
narrative literature (Poyatos 1977b; 1983: Chapter 9), an important part of
the recreative process of reading.
and so often are truly part of the triple structure (e.g., a pat on the shoulder
with or without a verbal encouraging expression, a slap given with glower-
ing eyes, or while muttering something) qualify as articulations as m u c h as
the self-adaptors discussed above do. T w o facing interactive bodies with
their articulatory systems can engage each other in a great number of ways
as alter-adaptors, both in a tactual visual-manner and in a tactual-visual-
audible one as well, and the communicative functions they perform will
depend m u c h , of course, on the degree of socialization and sensitivity of the
participants.
These few actions, however, should not be neglected, since they pro-
vide two distinctive audible experiences. O n e is produced by the sound of
biting on solid food and pseudonutritionals like hard candy, that is, objects
on which w e can bite, chew, c h o m p and crunch. Depending on their speed
and their intensity, w e produce sounds that can be interpreted as betraying
certain feelings, as w h e n w e m a y , intentionally or not, convey contempt or
derision by chewing and crunching, which, again, becomes part of our
expressive repertoire in an ontogenetic way; or social status (e.g., the care-
30 PARALANGUAGE
There is one more kind of movements in which the body can produce
sounds, namely, w h e n w e engage in object-adaptor behaviors in contact
with cultural artifacts (e.g., furniture, a bell) and organic and inorganic
objects of the surrounding environment (e.g., thefloor,the wall, a tree, a
watermelon), performed mostly with the hands and the feet:
banging hand
beating hands
brushing hand, forearm, foot
bumping upper body
drumming fingers
flapping hand
flicking fingertips
flopping trunk, body
knocking knuckles
patting hand
ounding side of fist
punching fist
raking fingers
rapping knuckles
rubbing hand
shuffling feet
scratching fingernails
scraping feet
sliding hand, forearm, foot
slapping hand
splashing hand
stamping feet
32 PARALANGUAGE
stomping feet
striking hand, head
sweeping palm/edge of hand
tapping fingers, feet
thudding hand
thumping fist, foot, knee, chest, back
tramping feet
trampling feet
wiping fingers, hand
whisking hand
Object-adaptor activities possess always the communicative qualities
that qualify them as an integral part of the triple structure language-
paralanguage-kinesics in discourse (e.g., pounding on a lectern as an e m o -
tional language marker). That is w h y they sometimes stand by themselves
as powerful communicative, segmental elements (e.g., that same pounding
by itself, or an impatient, insistent rapping on a table) and, in addition, pro-
vide peculiar tactile and even synesthesial experiences, as w h e n stroking the
velvet arm of an upholstered chair, perhaps even while interacting with an
opposite-sex person, or the tingling sensation associated with the mere vis-
ual perception of someone scratching a plaster wall.
Through the frequency, intensity and duration (of the contact) w e can
infer with varying reliability certain personality traits, and, with more accu-
racy, m o o d , emotional state and medical state, as w h e n hearing the charac-
teristic footsteps of the different types of gait (e.g., dragging, floundering,
halting, hobbling, hopping, kicking, plodding, scraping, shuffling, totter-
ing, tramping), the gentle or authoritative door-knocking that can 'speak'
as clearly as words, contemptuous finger-drumming, the slow, sensual fig-
ure-tracing stroking of a smooth surface. "She rapped imperatively at the
w i n d o w " (Laurence SL, I, 30).
A n exhaustive study of audible object-adaptors beyond the aims of this
chapter would include, of course, percussion musical instruments, task-per-
forming activities like punching and slapping dough in kneading, etc.
tact of the body with objects, but through other mediating objects or agents
that w e manipulate, that is, object-adaptors which sound either by them-
selves or, mostly, come in contact with something else. While it is true that
these artifactual externalizers4 or object-mediated sounds are not truly
somatic they are, however, projections of somatic movements and in that
way they are somatic and convey a great deal of information. The charac-
teristics of the sounds of object-mediated externalizers depend, of course,
on the material those artifacts are m a d e of as well as that of the objects they
contact. That audible repertoire is formed mostly by sounds such as:
banging H e banged the door, H e closed the chest with a loud bang
brushing She was brushing her teeth vigorously
clacking The latch opened with a loud clack and I started
clanging H e threw the shovel at him, but it hit the wall with a clang
clanking The heavy metal door closed with a clank.
clattering I could hear the furious clatter of his typewriter, I can imagine the
clattering of the chariots!
clicking Her heels clicked forcefully on the pavement
clinking They clinked their glasses gently while staring at each other
creaking Every step of those stairs creaked, M y boots were creaking all the
time
crunching I heard the rejected sheets crunching in his nervous hand
jiggling She was jiggling the door handle
jingling His hand kept jingling the coins in his pocket
knocking H e knocked the ashes out of his pipe against the desk
patting She was patting the dough gently with a wooden spatula
rattling The door handle rattled insistently, His cup rattled against its saucer
when he was nervous, The carriage wheels rattled
rustling She m a d e her long skirt rustle as she walked
scraping I could hear his scraping the paint off hurriedly
screeching H e m a d e his tires screech on purpose
slamming H e slammed the door furiously, -the book closed
slapping She slapped the hamburger onto the grill, -the wall in excitement
smacking She m a d e the snowball smack loudly against m y back
snapping H e snapped the lock into place, -her with a rubber band
squeaking His new shoes squeaked embarrassingly, The door squeaked slowly
squelching M y wet shoes squelched as I walked.
swishing I heard the swishing of her corduroy pants
tapping H e tapped a stick against m y window to wake m e up
thumping The officer's night stick thumped on each door
tinkling H e m a d e his bunch of keys tinkle loudly, H e tinkled his glass with
the knife to call our attention, The very American morning sound of
the milkman's bottles tinkling towards the house
34 PARALANGUAGE
This list, unlike the previous ones, is not meant to be nearly exhaustive
at all, as the important issue here is only sound that can be produced
directly by the body. However, if w e set out to study h u m a n sounds w e can-
not ignore those which are produced by things that function as extensions of
the organism. A glance at the examples just offered reveals that, while the
basic characteristic nature of each of those sounds depends only on the
material and consistency of both the manipulated objects and the objects
they c o m e in contact with (wood against w o o d , glass against glass, w o o d
against dough, metal against metal, meat against metal, metal against
w o o d , etc.), it is again the parakinesic somatic qualifiers of intensity, range
and velocity that qualify them with their meaningful, even intentionally
communicative qualities, for example: ' H e slammed the door angrily', ' H e
walked out furiously kicking thefloorboardswith his heels', ' W e could hear
the slow scraping sound of the old man's shoes', ' H e kept tapping the table
nervously with his fork', 'By the slow, spaced rattle of her dishes I could tell
her mind was fixed on that idea only'.
W h e n w e imagine 'how those actions sound' w e again find the mysteri-
ous language-like effects of those auditory experiences and, even w h e n the
objects that produce the sounds seem to be disconnected from the person,
one needs to be but minimally sensitive and perceptive to associate the
audible experiences to emotions and intentions that originally cause them
to sound the way they do, whether that language-like quality lies in their
loudness, speed or resonance. " M r . Dedalus's cup had rattled noisily
against its saucer [...] that shameful sign of his father's drinking bout"
(Joyce P A Y M , II, 93).
It should be beyond any doubt that all those sounds are m u c h more
than just 'noises', and w h e n they happen in interaction (but interaction can
be also imagined, accompanied perhaps by soliloquy) they are far from
being marginal to it. The person w h o walks into our room and slams the
door behind m a y have communicated already the central message of our
encounter.5 W h a t he is going to verbalize later, or rather, what he is going
to express through certain verbal-paralinguistic-kinesic structures, has
already been encoded by his body and conveyed by such mediating agents
as the door banging against its frame, such a powerful component of the
interaction; for the interaction has started already, even though not strictly
conversationally, before any words are uttered; and, if the slam closes the
interaction instead, its intensity then expresses all the emotional content of
that encounter. A s has been suggested with regard to the other modes of
THE SIGNS OF THE H U M A N BODY 35
It should follow then that the sounds discussed in this chapter, that is, pro-
duced autonomously by the body (i.e., verbal language and paralanguage),
by the body in direct contact with other bodies and with the environment at
large (whether artifactual or natural) and those caused by the body but
mediated by sound-producing objects (e.g., door-slamming) should also be
seen, for a truly realistic and total picture of communicative sounds and
communicative events, as forming part of a m u c h larger communicative
complex which, as suggested by the diagram in Fig. 1.1, 'The Interrelation-
ships of H u m a n and Environmental Sounds', includes (beyond whatever
can be initiated by the h u m a n body): the sounds of the artifactual world,
whether generated by themselves (e.g., a whirring engine, a ticking clock),
that is, as if they were some sort of mysterious organisms, or in contact with
other objects (e.g., the clanking of a train crossing a metal bridge in the
stillness of night), and even beyond all those man-deviced sounding ele-
ments, the natural environmental sounds, such as the rumbling storm, the
howling wind, the pattering of rain or the murmuring brook.
36 PARALANGUAGE
Functions
Ontogenetic development
Segmentality
ping someone else's back we might say 'Well!'; instead of rubbing one's
pants back and forth one might say 'Well, let's see!'. It is true, on the other
hand, that the visible-audible behaviors, like conversational kinesic
behavior, do not always convey a different message, but rather reinforce
the verbal one (which does not m a k e it necessarily 'redundant' but ' c o m
plementary' [see on this topic Poyatos 1983:81-82]). Other times, however,
the nonverbal behavior m a y carry an independent message, or what truly
qualifies the verbal part, as w h e n an emotion is expressed in the nonverbal
behavior and not in the verbal one. A t any rate, w e can see once more w h y
these nonlinguistic sound- producing behaviors must occupy such an impor
tant place in the realistic, total transcription of interaction and discourse.
While some attempts have been put forth by novelists to represent these
sounds in writing, mainly since last century, the majority of them however
have been only described, some in addition to having specific labels to
define them (e.g., to slap, to click, to thump, to clank), others being still
unidentified, except by periphrastic descriptions. In fact, the very limited
repertoire of such written forms has been enormously engrossed by the
written, 'visible' sounds, or 'soundgraphs', invented (most of the times
quite sensibly) by cartoon, comic strip and comic book authors (discused in
Chapter 7 within paralinguistic 'alternants'), certainly a challenge to our
traditional inability and inertia as regards this sort of unofficial vocabulary
that w e use freely in conversation but cannot write.
1.10 Conclusion
Notes
1. Titles of literary works quoted (except biblical books) appear in initials through-
out the book. [/] in quotations indicate separation of lines or, in poetry, of verses;
w h e n enclosing other examples they indicate kinesic behaviors. Literary Refer-
ences appear after the References at the end of the book.
2. T h e importance of synesthesia (the physiological sensation on a part of the body
other than the stimulated one, or the psychological process whereby one type of
sensorial stimulus produces a secondary subjective sensation from a different
sense) can never be emphasized enough in the study of the sign-exchange proces-
T H E SIGNS OF T H E H U M A N B O D Y 43
4. 'Externalizers' are not illustrations of the words said, but reactions to other
people's past, present, anticipated or imagined reality, to what has been said, is
being said or will be said, silenced, done or not done by us or someone else, to
past, present, anticipated or imagined events, to our o w n somatic p h e n o m e n a , to
animal and environmental agents, to esthetic experiences and to spiritual experi-
ences (Poyatos 1983: 128).
5. T h e slam of a door can actually be said to belong to two subcategories within this
category: to be holding the door w h e n it produces the slamming sound is one
thing; another is the same sound generated by an intentional thrust, but whose
characteristics are not functioning anymore as a continued extension of the pro-
ducing organism.
6. T h e opening exclamation and question marks [¡], [¿] (as in Spanish) are used
throughout whenever they reflect better the reality of loud voice and interrogation
as overriding features (see on this topic, Poyatos 1983: 273-275; cf. c o m m e n t in
favor of [¡!] by Potter [1964:72]).
Chapter 2
The Anatomy and Physiology
of Vocal-Narial Sound Production:
A n Audible-Visual Approach to Language and Paralanguage
Figure 2.1 Basic anatomy and muscular physiology of language and paralanguage
50 PARALANGUAGE
During both egressive and ingressive breathing, but more noticeably during
inspiration, the asthmatic person, particularly during mild attacks which
will allow him to carry out a conversation, will let out his typical whizzing,
due to the production of mucus in the bronchioles, while the also typical
bronchial rattling characterizes the breathing and speech of bronchitis and
similar problems, which, again, contribute to the visual-acoustic interactive
characteristics of certain persons: "his weak wheezing voice out of hearing
[...] a plump woollengloved hand on his breast, from which muttered
wheezing laughter" (Joyce ΡΛΥΜ, V , 210-11).
52 PARALANGUAGE
T h e esophagus (the gullet), the narrow food passage behind the larynx and
the trachea and below the pharynx (Fig. 2 . 1 . A ) , has a sphincteric (ring-
like) muscle, the pharyngoesophageal segment between the laryngopharynx
and the esophagus proper (the cricopharyngeal ring being the best-known
part), that keeps it closed from the pharynx, except w h e n swallowing. B y
expanding and contracting the esophagus as an initiator of esophagus air,
which is used mainly in belches and belch-like sounds, that opening can be
used as a vibrator similar to the vocal bands, but of course, with the charac-
teristic belch timbre given to the m a n y sounds that can still be produced
there. S o m e of their characteristics, although losing m a n y of the typical fea-
tures of normal voice produced with lung air, are masked out in that
esophageal type of voice, distinguished by vibratory trill quality, in which
the separate pulsations of a typical trill are not clearly audible (hence its
vibratory quality). O n the other hand, during belched sounds the lungs m a y
also let air through the vocal bands, thus adding true vocal-band voice to
them.
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 53
If the larynx has been removed due to cancer the person must learn to
speak with esophageal voice, a type of alaryngeal speech produced by swal-
lowing air and talking in controlled belches using the pharyngoesophageal
segment as a pseudoglottis in the absence of vocal bands, which sounds bur-
bly. Esophageal initiation is generally used to produce certain open articu-
lations such as fricatives. T h e speaker does not have at his disposal a breath
stream because the windpipe is closed at the top to prevent food, etc., from
going into the air passages and he has to breathe through a tracheotomy
tube in the neck. In esophageal speech, through controlled belches, the
amount of air from the esophagus is m u c h smaller than the one used from
the lungs in normal speech and only sounds that depend on resonance in the
upper cavities are produced in this w a y (see a succinct explanation in
O ' C o n n o r 1973:280-81; or the more scientific one in Snidecor [1971]; and
his vivid photographs of the pseudoglottis showing the mucus bubbles that
cause the burbly, rough tone). Pitch is also very difficult to control through
the vibration of the sphincteric opening.
Thus the role of the esophagus should not be shunned just because it does
not contribute to normal speech. N o t only is that esophageal voice of
laryngectomized persons an important part of their communicative reper-
toire — which elicits in them other paralinguistic behaviors (e.g., higher
volume for fear of not being heard sometimes) as well as kinesic behaviors
(e.g., compensating gesticulation in some) and certain attitudes on the part
of their cointeractants — but there are other esophageal paralinguistic
utterances displayed in interaction which must be studied within paralan-
guage because of their social connotations. Besides, there are equally
accompanying kinesic behaviors that m a y serve to identify certain cultural,
socioeducational and personal characteristics (e.g., a belch can be executed
in various ways and accompanied by facial and hand acts that will
emphasize it or deemphasize it), as will be seen w h e n discussing paralin-
guistic 'qualifiers' and 'alternants'.
54 PARALANGUAGE
Basic anatomy
A s for the basic muscular physiology of the larynx (the details of which can
be found in Sonesson 1968, Abercrombie 1967, Malmberg 1968, Catford
1977, Laver 1980, etc.), it m a y reflect, within a limited range of possibilities
and together with external kinesic behaviors (as do pharyngeal, vocal and
nasal activities), voluntary or involuntary indexical information as varied as
sex, age, socioeducational status, emotional attitude and medical state.
Those movements affect the position of the larynx in the throat (by raising
or lowering it) and the opening-closing and tension of the vocal folds. T h e
vocal folds and their opening or glottis, where the air stream, and thus
voice, is first affected on its way up, can be modified by four basic types of
activities (Fig. 2 . 1 . A and B ) and corresponding muscles: opening, narrow-
ing, closing, widening, and raising and lowering of the larynx.
Opening. T h e only muscle that separates the vocal folds and opens the
glottis is the paired posterior cricoarytenoid, behind and joined to the
arytenoids on the cricoid wall. T h e vocal folds (and the arytenoids) are
open in a triangular w a y for normal breathing and deep breathing. During
normal breathing the air produces at the most a gentle rustling or hissing
sound (of obvious paralinguistic value at times, as during certain types of
silences), which can augment with the tension of the muscular action and as
the flow of lung air through the glottis becomes turbulent, until in distressed
breathing there can be not only audible friction in the larynx and pharynx,
but even visible muscular tension in the neck, truly a paralinguistic-kinesic
56 PARALANGUAGE
whisper', when only the vocal bands are together but a narrow chink is left
between the two arytenoids in a Y-shape glottis, glottis friction and air pres-
sure increasing accordingly as they c o m e closer and closer to actual voice,
while in normal breathing the larynx is relaxed. A s Abercrombie (1967:28)
points out, one thing is 'whisper' as a phonetic term, applied to any speech
segment uttered with a closed glottis, and another what w e commonly refer
to as 'whispering speech', in which all segments are voiceless, not just the
normally voiceless or whispered ones. For Catford (1977:96) whispering is
"a strong 'rich' hushing sound, generated by turbulent air-flow through a
considerably narrowed glottis". O n e form of whisper, mentioned by Pike
(1943:128), is false whisper, with the in position for false voice but not vib-
rating, which he describes as "sharp and high-pitched", but not so m u c h as
a whisper, "which has voice position of the vocal cords and simultaneous
faucal constriction".
A s for the actual closing of the glottis, both the vocal bands and the
arytenoids can c o m e tightly together interrupting completely the pulmonic
air stream, as opposed to the minimal interference seen in silent breathing.
Total interference is what happens, first of all, if w e close the larynx inter-
rupting respiration momentarily and then release that closure, called glottal
stop, as a soft h-like explosive sound [?h]. Glottal stop (or glottal catch) —
the only c o m m o n laryngeal articulation — is, of course, the first phase of
retching, coughs, hiccups, expressions of physical exertion (e.g., during
heavy lifting) or repugnance ('Eeugh!') and other paralinguistic alternants.
Glottal stop in language appears at the beginning of a vehement expression
like 'Idiot!', and, besides other languages, in G e r m a n consonants before
stressed initial vowels, in London cockney and American English 'bo'el'
and 'wa'er' (bottle, water), in Arabic, and sometimes with ventricular stops
in certain other languages (Catford 1977:105).
Besides glottal stop, produced with lung air, complete closure of the
vocal cords and sounds with just pharynx air occurs using the so-called glot-
talic air-stream mechanism or pharynx-air mechanism for the production of
two types of consonants: (egressive) ejectives (sometimes called glottalized
stops or glottalic pressure stops), for which, having formed an isolated c o m -
pressed-air cavity between the glottal closure (by raising the larynx "as a
plunger in a syringe" [Abercrombie 1967:28] and the tongue), the closed
velum and some point in the mouth, w h e n this mouth closure (for instance,
at the lips) is opened suddenly there is the explosive sound of an ejecrive p
(also possible for d, k, even without complete mouth closure, and in s, ƒ);
58 PARALANGUAGE
A more complete study of the forms and function of laryngeal voice pro-
duction would include also the physiological and audible characteristics of
voice disorders localized in the larynx. O n e , for instance, is pathological
hoarseness, one of the most c o m m m o n dysphonias, which can be produced
by anything that interferes with the normal vibration of the vocal folds,
such as the inflammation typical of laryngitis caused by c o m m o n cold or
bronchitis, the hoarseness from vocal-fold cancer, or the irritation from
smoking or after shouting; the latter associated with emotional excitement,
and thus with specific facial and bodily gestures, as well as with certain
occupations in which the person has to spend hours shouting in public. O n e
form is called 'rough hoarseness', a two-toned type of voice caused by vib-
ration in two different points of the vocal folds. T h e double voice or dip-
lophonia, mentioned w h e n discussing ventricular voice, can be also a
speech disorder, as can the so-called eunuchoid voice, that is, a high pitched
falsetto. Again, any of the laryngeal disfunctions tend to be accompanied
by typical muscular activities of the face that can become long-term charac-
teristics in the individual and part of his kinesic repertoire as perceived by
others.
the vocal folds as the box of a violin is to its strings, for it serves, together
with the nasal cavities and the mouth, as a resonator of the vibrations rising
from the larynx to be amplified by the air contained in those cavities.
A s for swallowing, one must acknowledge, besides its physiological
function, the kinesic behavior of swallowing for its various communicative
roles. While it can be an unconscious muscular movement triggered by
social tension, fear, etc., it can be used also as part of a kinesic repertoire
and accompanied by facial gestures, typically in children, but also used by
others in, for instance, m o c k fear, as stereotyped by comic performers quite
hystrionically. T h e muscles used include those mentioned below as deter-
mining the changes in the pharynx and it can be accompanied by an
unnecessary and exaggerated sound of swallowing produced by extreme
pharyngeal constriction and release. T h e up-and-down movement of a
man's A d a m ' s apple can sometimes be a subtle silent clue to concealed ten-
sion and emotion.
Muscular physiology
back of the tongue even until the epiglottis touches the back wall of the
oropharynx; and by the inferior constrictor muscle, which raises the larynx
and, when the larynx is fixed, narrows the upper and lower pharynx in a
sphincteric way. The effect of all these activities is that of raising pitch and
producing a tense, metallic and strident voice (often called 'sharp') which in
typically extreme cases can be externally correlated with muscular tension
of face and neck, intense gaze, tense articulation and high-volume or con-
trolled but vehement words. W h e n the wall of the pharynx and the tongue
root approximate each other the voice becomes pharyngealized, a feature
mentioned later as a paralinguistic qualifier of both verbal and paralinguis-
tic voice.
Expansion. The pharynx can be expanded when the stylopharyngeal
muscle, which pulls the larynx and the pharynx walls upward, widens the
pharynx laterally if the larynx is fixed by other muscles, and when w e push
the body of the tongue forward and away from the pharynx wall, which low-
ers pitch and makes voice sounding muffled and relaxed through damping
of the laryngeal vibrations. The congruent kinesic behaviors for low
pharyngeal speech (which, as with the kinesics of sharp voice, can be eli-
cited first and then in turn determine the paralanguage) can be shortening
of the neck, sometimes lowering the chin too, lip rounding, sometimes
slight frowning and slight eyelid dropping, accompanied by slower speech
and slightly breathy voice.
Within the pharyngeal area, the fauces, that is, the muscular faucal pillars
or arches (Fig. 2.1.A and F), are two arched folds between the pharynx and
the mouth which join the soft palate to the tongue, pharynge side walls and
pharynx. The back one (formed by the palatopharyngeal muscle) on the
pharyngeal wall with the tonsils between its two pillars, the front one (made
up of the palatoglossal muscle) formed by the soft palate, with the uvula
projecting in its center. Besides helping in swallowing and in keeping food
or drink from returning to the mouth (except when regurgitating or retch-
ing, with the typical accompanying kinesic behaviors), the posterior pillars
help to raise the larynx and shorten the pharynx, while the anterior ones
raise the tongue, both pulling the velum (soft palate) downward, thus con-
tributing to the regulation of the nasality of sounds.
66 PARALANGUAGE
palatal area, the first part of the concave mouth-roof; and then its rear part,
the soft palate or velar area. While the hard palate is a stationary potential
passive articulator for the tongue, the soft palate or velum is a moveable
m e m b r a n e that ends in the uvula, theflexiblepart seen before as the princi-
pal tool in the velopharyngeal activities (besides being articulated against
by the tongue) (Fig. 2.1. , and E ) . Thus, from the uvula to the upper
teeth and their alveolar ridge the upper part of the mouth forms an
articulatory continuum from front to back. T h e velum can be pulled d o w n
by the two paired faucal muscles, the palatoglossal (front faucal pillars) and
the palatopharyngeal (rear faucal pillars), and raised by the paired palatal
muscles {levators and tensors) and, variably, by one of the pharyngeal con-
strictors acting in a sphincteric w a y and closing the velopharyngeal valve in
a velic closure.
Although nasality vs. orality will be identified as 'velopharyngeal con-
trol' within paralinguistic qualifiers, it must be said that lowered velum and
raised velum do not radically produce oral and nasal voice respectively and
that the production of nasality depends very m u c h on personal anatomical
differences of the oral and nasal cavities. But the nasal cavity can resonate
without air passing through it (as w h e n w e hold the nostrils closed), w h e n
adenoidal inflammation on the nasopharynx impedes the flow of air and
neither nasal nor nasalized sounds are possible, or w h e n the nostrils are
blocked by a cold but air resonates in the cavities without leaving through
the nostrils.
A s one of the main sources of h u m a n sounds, the alveolar-palatal area
gives audible form to and semantically modify our mental constructs. But
those alveolar, palatal and velar articulations can also correlate with visible
facial and bodily behaviors mainly, as in apicoalveolar clicks of commisera-
tion or disapproval ('Tz-'tz'), in palatalizing and nasalizing speech of m o c -
kery, or w h e n expressing repugnance with a '¡Yeeugh!' sound, all of which,
even if heard over the telephone, evoke congruent facial expressions.
Since the alveolar-palatal-velar areas act as passive articulators (al-
though the velum moves up and d o w n against the nasopharynx) contacted
by the tongue, which is the active one, alveolar, palatal and velar articula-
tions will be identified w h e n discussing the tongue, while velic ones will be
included in the discussion of the nasal cavities.
Certain p h e n o m e n a involving the alveolum, the hard palate and the
soft palate or velum include another initiation mechanism and three voice
modifiers or secondary articulations.
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 69
The communicative functions of the lips: anatomy and dynamic visual fea
tures
Next in the oral cavity, and in constant contact with the maxillary and m a n
dibular teeth in neutral position, are the upper and lower lips and the inner
cheek surfaces. Besides their anthropomorphic and anthropophonic pos
sibilities — by themselves and articulated with the teeth, the tongue and,
unlike any other sound organ, with the hands and fingers — the lips can be
more expressive and communicative than any of them, as they become in
speech an object of visual and acoustic perception. "The pronunciation of
certain syllables gave to her lips this peculiarity of formation — a formation
as suggestive and moving as pathos itself" (Dreiser SC, X V , 153).
T h e lips alternate between (a) periods of rest as one of the static signs
of the face (along with eyes, brows, nose, cheeks, chin and forehead), intel
lectually evaluated as attractive (sensual, beautiful, innocent), unattractive
(repulsive, cold), emotion-laden (sad, happy, nervous, angry, surprised,
74 PARALANGUAGE
contemptuous, scornful) or simply neutral and not 'thought of; (b) due to
their great plasticity, periods of everchanging communicative mobility, giv-
ing bodily shape to those utterances and allowing us to 'see what w e hear':
words that express abstract concepts, moral and physical qualities of
people, the environment, etc. But, even further, the sounding lips give also
visual form to functional utterances like interjections (e.g., ' ¡ W o w ! ' ) , con-
junctions (e.g., an emphatic ' B U T be careful!'), prepositions (e.g., 'That's
for you'), pronouns (e.g., ' O h , I love you'). Particularly interjections can be
m u c h m o r e expressive w h e n , for instance, w e add to the audible expression
of fear, hate, repulsion, grief, surprise, or disapproval its visible kinesic rep-
resentation as well, qualified, as all kinesic acts, by muscular tension or
intensity (akin to articulatory tension), range or extent of the m o v e m e n t
(similar to syllabic duration) and velocity or temporal length (similar to
speech tempo). This 'audible-labial' exteriorization of abstract and physical
concepts falls clearly within the nonverbal categories I have studied
elsewhere (Poyatos 1983: Chapter 4, 1986), for example: identifiers, illus-
trating with truly bodily form what w e are saying (e.g., pursing them in
hesitation or deep thinking), and externalizers, which are not illustrators but
reactions to what is being said, silenced, done or not done by us or someone
else, to past, present or anticipated or imagined events, to our o w n somatic
p h e n o m e n a , to esthetic or spiritual experiences, etc. (e.g., lips distended
downward while saying '!Eeugh!', or biting the lower lip in an anticipatory
' M m m m m ! ' ) . That is w h y the lips, besides our evaluation of their appear-
ance, can blend the phonetic construction of words — which m a y have had
slightly different visual form back in their etymological history — with h o w
the speakers 'feel' them in a unique individual, circumstantial way; and
further still, those visible sounds m a y blend with, for instance, a smile, and
thus w e speak through a smile, or 'smile our words', adding another dimen-
sion to speech in its true triple verbal-paralinguistic-kinesic reality, a reality
that can be so powerfully evoked by a painting or photograph.
In addition, the visual appearance of the lips as 'speakers' can be the
object of artificial manipulation, which can change both their interactive
role according to the interpersonal proxemic relationship and the percep-
tion of their m o r e permanent characteristics (e.g., fleshy, moist) and their
dynamic ones (i.e. their shaping of words and h o w they qualify those words
by additional changes, smiles, etc.). This can be enhanced, first, naturally
by moistening them against each other and (less frequently, but with clear
unconscious or conscious social functions) with the tongue — two charac-
teristic kinesic behaviors in themselves — and also by the use of female's
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 75
lipstick of various colors and shades that can even modify the shape of their
outer edges. All those modifications will congruently or incongruently
accompany the vocabulary, paralanguage and kinesics of the speaker
(again, as sensual, mannish, uncouth, etc.), the kinesic component being in
the lips themselves.
Finally, another aspect of the lips which is not included in the
taxonomy of labial settings offered below is their anatomical configuration
as a permanent postural conditioner. T h e most typical configurations are:
permanent opening posture of the interlabial space, due to a lowered m a n -
dible or to a raised upper lip; permanent moderate protrusion of both lips
as if ready to speak in the open-rounded position; very fleshy lips or very
thin ones; protraction and, m o r e out of habit, a lateral tendency of the
mandible, with or without permanently opened lips. T h e visual effect of
any of these postures during conversation can be consciously or uncon-
sciously evaluated by the listener, while a protracted mandible can lend
voice slight nasality. Another thing which is not included, as it falls within
kinesics only, is any posture of the lips independent from speech, although
it precedes and follows it and m a y definitely combine visually with it in
expressing, or rather, supporting, emphasizing or even contradicting what
sounds seem to communicate.
F. Mandibular Settings
Vertical Lateral
Horizontal Rotational
Figure 2.3 The kinesic possibilities of the lips, cheeks and mandibles
kind of study at hand the reader could verify with the help of a mirror the
characteristics of each scalar series and posture, considering his or her per
manent settings (whether anatomical and/or habitual or attitudinal), which
on occasion m a y hinder the ability to achieve certain configurations. A s
well, one should weigh the communicative functions of the kinesic aspects
of those configurations (an aspect of labial behavior that would not be pos
sible to discuss properly in this book) by imagining in which ways he or she
would combine specific labial postures.
A. D o m i n a n t expansion
Expansion of the lips can be horizontal, stretching from the center toward
the cheeks, or vertical from the transversal center line upward and d o w n -
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 79
ward (both combining in quite a few typical settings), and diagonal, the
three in turn susceptible of occurring symmetrically or unilaterally (although
the unilaterality of vertical expansions can be included better within
diagonal postures), and laterally displaced if the lower jaw is swung right or
left, for which reason these actions are included within labial settings,
besides their subsequent discussion as mandibular settings.
3. Diagonal-Expansion Settings
Although lip postures and movements other than vertical and horizontal
have been neglected, one can see their importance acoustically and even
more kinesically for their affective (grief, contempt, etc.) and social (tough-
ness, superiority, etc.) functions and permanent personal characteristics.
Symmetrical upward. A basic setting (favored by a protracted config-
uration of the mandible), without changing the vertical basic position, with
the mouth corners raised toward the cheekbones: slightly expanded —
expanded — very expanded — maximally expanded (the positions in smil-
ing speech);
- this same basic setting can be modified by: increasing upper-lip raising
and tooth showing, lower-lip lowering and tooth-showing, or both; upper/
lower lip/both retracted against the teeth; lower lip turned inwardly against
and around the lower teeth; awning-shaped lip stretching, etc.
Symmetrical Downward. A symmetrical diagonal setting, favored in
some speakers by a permanent 'tragedy-like' mouth posture (typically with
permanent or momentary furrows running from the sides of the nostrils to
the corners of the mouth): slightly expanded — expanded — very expanded
- maximally expanded;
- this same setting can be modified by: lips retracted against the teeth, as
in some childish or feminine forms of crying, or as typical of the old comic
actors Stan Laurel and Joe E . B r o w n ; awning-shaped stretched lips, etc.
Unilateral Upward. Each of them can also occur on the right or left side
only (without necessarily moving the mandible) but the expanded side
draws the opposite one slightly in that same direction (although the upper
lip can be turned slightly outward, doing it with the lower lip neutralizes the
upper diagonality) ; the same settings modified by awning-shaped stretched
lips, etc.
Unilateral Downward. T h e symmetrical downward diagonal settings
can also occur on the right or left side only (also without lower jaw partici-
pation), but the expanded side draws the opposite one slightly in that direc-
tion. Although the lower lip can be slightly turned outward, doing the same
thing with the upper lip neutralizes the downward diagonality on the right
or left side; the two unilateral realizations of the basic symmetrical d o w n -
ward diagonal setting + awning-shaped stretched lips, etc.
Mandibular Shifts of Diagonal-Expansion Settings. A n y of the possible
diagonal-expansion settings can be modified by the four lower-jaw positions
of lateral shifting, retraction and protraction. In the upward settings the
82 PARALANGUAGE
B. Dominant constriction
Constriction of the lips can be horizontal, narrowing from the mouth corner
toward the center, and vertically, that is, narrowing the interlabial space
from above and below and bringing the lips closer together toward the
center, as opposed to widening it in vertical expansion; as with expansion,
it can be displaced laterally by swinging the lower jaw right or left.
whether or not one introduces the tongue in the lower or upper cavity (this
tongue intervention being a m o n g the lingual settings discussed later on),
and whether in a closed-lip position the cavities are inflated or sucked in
along with the cheeks themselves.
Symmetrical Labio dental-Labiofacial Expansion. F r o m the neutral
closed-lip mouth position air can be pressed inside the upper and lower
cavities (with the same or different volume), inflating them in different
degrees, as a kinesic behavior that stops at that point (e.g., while hesitating,
memory-searching, showing impatience, etc.): slightly inflated — inflated
— maximally inflated;
the same inflated posture as the first phase previous to an explosive air
release of that air through thinly closed or inwardly retracted lips in a thin
whistling or trumpet-like sound; also followed by a vibratory bilabial sound;
the whole labiodental-labiofacial cavity, that is, lips and cheeks, can
become inflated with pursed lips as a kinesic behavior (e.g., expressing
fatigue) with a similar setting, etc.
Unilateral Labio dental-Labiofacial Expansion. Although the first set-
ting can be slightly leaning on the right or left side, it is actually the whole
labiofacial one that can show total unilaterality, the whistling or trumpet-
like release of air being produced in the inflated right or left side, and, as
with other unilateral settings, without any mandibular m o v e m e n t .
Symmetrical Labio dental-Labiofacial Constriction. F r o m the neutral
closed-lip m o u t h position the lips can be retracted symmetrically against
and around the teeth edge as a kinesic gesture; the same posture followed
by an ingressive whistling sound; with resulting lip pursing the cheeks can
be sucked in symmetrically until a suction sound is produced;
- closed-lip slight symmetrical cheek constriction + mandible downward
expansion, sometimes ending in an alveolar or palatal lingual click or in a
double lateral click as the suction on the cheeks is released.
D. Labiodental-mandibular settings
These are a series of settings, not always in a scale, in which the upper teeth
c o m e in contact with either the inside upper or outer surface of the lower
lip at the center (or, by means of mandibular displacement, with its right or
left side), or in which the lower teeth c o m e in contact with the lower or
outer surface of the upper lip or also with its right or left side. T h e teeth
are, therefore, the main active element, although the muscular physiology
of the mandible plays an important part, and they could also be discussed
A N A T O M Y A N D PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 85
when dealing with the mandible, as they could be included as dental set-
tings. Labiodental-mandibular postures are, among others, the following.
Symmetrical-Vertical Settings. Upper teeth pressing against the inner
surface of the lower lip, protruding it: deep contact — mid contact — upper
contact;
- same setting with outward expansion of upper lip (protrusion) ; upper
lip pressing against rear or front of upper surface of lower lip; also with
upper lip vertically expanded, maximally as an inverted number-three fig-
ure;
- upper lip biting outer surface of lower lip: high — mid — low (raised
chin); the basic biting setting with upper lip stretched d o w n (forming
creases on lower lip); turned outwardly; shaped awning-like;
Unilateral-Horizontal Settings. Unilaterality in labiodental-mandibular
settings means only that the teeth must m o v e to either the right or the left
side of either lip by shifting the lower jaw to either side, while the lips main-
tain their elasticity for the various scalar settings and stretch on the side
opposite the one bit by the teeth. W h e n doing so the lips are subject to
postures similar to those seen before, as, for instance, with the small oblong
openings at the mouth corners w h e n expanding horizontally.
- index finger reaches the inner surface of either cheek, stretches it out-
ward and then slides out of the mouth tensely (as w h e n producing the
'champagne-bottle' popping sound);
- both index fingers forcing a symmetrical horizontal expansion of the
lips as in mockery uttering a sound, or trying to scare someone; or with ton-
gue protrusion up to maximal position;
- thumb and index pressing against the mouth corners, the tongue pro-
truding minimally between the lips (as in producing a typical potent whis-
tle);
- thumb and fingers of one hand squeeze the cheeks and lips into a pro-
truded horizontal constriction and vertical expansion (as w h e n uttering a
prolonged glottalic sound meaning ' O h , no!');
- the backs of the joints of the fingers tap the open lips rapidly (as w h e n
imitating the North-American Indian cry);
- snapping the cheek with the fingers while shaping the pitch and reso-
nance-modifying cavities can produce, by percussion, controllable musical
notes, as has been described within assisted dental articulations;
- medial side of fist pressed against the lips and then blowing into fist, as
from cold.
T h e readers will think of quite a few other culturally differentiated
forms besides these few examples. T o which, of course, one would still add
those formed in contact with musical wind instruments, from harmonica to
trumpet-like or clarinet-like type of labial postures.
O n e could devote a whole monograph to the topic, analyzing, of
course, not only the linguistic, paralinguistic and kinesic aspects of the lips
in all their articulatory possibilities, but their correlation with the rest of the
facial gestures of the eyes, brows, nose and forehead (as dynamic c o m p o -
nents of speech) as well as with the static signs of the face (i.e. location, size
and shape of its various parts); and not just as elements that accompany the
production of sound and m o v e m e n t , but from the point of view of the lis-
tener-viewer. T h e listener is not always sighted, thus he can be subject to
one of the most important situations of reduced interaction, in which those
visual components of speech which share the semiotic-communicative con-
tents of the interaction are simply lacking for the blind person.
A s for certain purely labial sounds produced by some of the m o v e -
ments described, they will be discussed as paralinguistic alternants (vibrat-
ory labial trills, bilabial percussions, etc.).
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 87
plex than just the articulation of a word, which warrants a rather holistic
treatment beyond the sort of anatomical, physiological and phonetic discus-
sions found in very competent books. A s with the lips, but in m u c h lesser
degree and with fewer possibilities for subtleties of visual expression, the
kinesic behaviors of the tongue while engaged in the production of sound
can be also part of a paralinguistic- kinesic emblem (e.g., 'Did you see
her boyfriend? ;Eeugh!', symbolizing the person's quality with a velarized
postdorsal articulation while sticking the tongue out and downward, thus
emphasizing further what can be expressed without showing the tongue), an
echoic (e.g., imitating certain animal calls), an identifier (e.g., similar to the
e m b l e m above, 'Her n e w boyfriend is a little yeeuh'), an externalizer (e.g.,
biting a protruded tongue between the teeth while inhaling air bilaterally as
a reaction to one's o w n or someone else's physical pain), as a conversa-
tional regulator (e.g., putting it out and then in while displaying the a turn-
claiming click) and, of course, as an emotional display (e.g., the forward
m o v e m e n t over the lower lip + maximal horizontal labial expansion expres-
sing disgust).
Thus, what was said about the visual symbolic aspects of the lips during
speech (including, of course, its grammatical and attitudinal silences) can
be applied to some instances of lingual behavior, as was mentioned above.
T h e tongue, like the lips, can become in some persons a m u c h more con-
spicuous component of their repertoire than in others and even define some
deviant attitudes, such as effeminate tendency to articulate some front
sounds with excessive tongue-showing, as in 'that', 'today', 'yeah', 'dear',
and in paralinguistic alternants like lingual clicks, which, of course, must be
seen together with certain cobehaviors, such as rolling the eyes and/or head
tilting. Finally, although the tongue is not subject to the sort of shape-mod-
ifying and color-modifying practices the lips are, one could mention, just to
be exhaustive, the curious effect on the westerner w h e n our colleague in
India is conversing with us after having been chewing his betel, his tongue
and g u m s colored a scandalously conspicuous vermillion.
areas), bordered on each side by the margin or margo; the underside, where
one should differentiate the underapex and the underblade or sublamina to
later refer to possible 'subapico-' and 'sublamino-' paralinguistic articula-
tions; and the root or radex (hence the 'radico-' articulations).
- the tip against the upper alveolar ridge, but producing typical apicoal-
veolar lateral [1] (i.e. l-sounds), for which the air escapes over the sides of
the tongue while its center remains blocked (e.g., 'call', 'lad');
- the tip making forceful contact on the alveolar ridge is an apicoalveolar
percussive [t], the brief percussive sound produced upon release of the con-
tact (Pike: 1943:103) with possible paralinguistic meaning;
- the tip producing a forceful continuous apicoalveolar trill ["r"] (e.g.,
imitating an engine, in 'Rrrrr!';
- the tip producing an apicoalveolar flap [R"], that is, slower than the
trill, byflickingmomentarily against the upper teeth ridge, as in the [r] of
British 'merry', American 'city', also with possible paralinguistic meaning;
- the tip producing the apicoalveolar click [>tz'], formed by the alveolar
closure plus the dorsovelar one, the former releasing while ingressive air is
sucked in, as in the typical prespeech click;
- the same click accompanied by voiced lung-air nasalization as a
nasalized apicoalveolar click [>tz'], as w h e n expressing commiseration with
this double ingressive-egressive mechanism;
- both apicoalveolar clicks can be reversed apicoalveolar clicks [>tz'],
[<tz'] if w e use an egressive plosive release;
- the tip against the lower alveolar ridge, a possible apicosubalveolar
articulation and epiglottopharyngeal fricative [Ç] for paralinguistic purposes
(e.g., glottalized fricatives signalling scorn or in s o m e hissing sounds);
- the tip against the curved rear end of the upper alveolar ridge, an
apicopostalveolar articulation, as in British [t, d] in 'try' and 'dry', m e n -
tioned above, or in s o m e paralinguistic clicks or clucking sounds;
the tip hardly making contact for the [r] sound, an apicopostalveolar
approximant [J], as in English 'red' or the apicopostalveolar [t, d] before [r]
in 'try' and 'dry';
- the tip against the concave part of the hard palate, or even farther back
(retracting the tongue body), making an apicopalatal contact [V] (without
yet using the underblade as in retroflex articulations), as in s o m e clicks
(e.g., the palatal, postpalatal or lateral clicks used to encourage a horse).
tional term retroflex and the latter as 'sublaminal', used by Catford (1977)
for retroflex.
'Retroflex' (IPA [ ], or [·] for the writer's convenience), as emphasized
by Ladefoged (1975), denotes a place of articulation (included in the I P A
after dentals and alveolars and before palatals), not a manner of articula
tion (as do trilled, fricative, etc.), although it refers to a specific gesture of
the tongue, which in fact m a y determine the sound qualifier k n o w n as 're
troflexion', discussed below.
- the underside of the tip against the back of the upper incisors, slightly
curving the underblade outward in a silent subapicodental articulation [•tz]
while opening the mouth, thus presenting the tongue's lower surface to the
listener, which can be a feminine conscious or unconscious flirtatious
behavior, sometimes accompanied by a drawled nasal sound, as in hesita
tion;
the tongue tip is curled up and back so that its underside touches the
back of the alveolar ridge, forming subapico-postalveolar retroflex stops [•t,
•d],andfricatives [•s, •z], as used by m a n y Indian speakers of English;
- the underapex can form a voiceless retroflex click [•t'] similar to the lat
eral click (the 'Gee-up' click in m a n y cultures);
- the same movement of the tongue tip can form a subapico-prepalatal
[•r], so typical of several areas of American English (in fact, retroflexion is
one of its more salient features), another realization of [t, d] and a retroflex
[•n];
- the underside of the tongue tip can form also a forceful retroflex palatal
click [•»t'] with which, for instance, one can imitate the cry of the red par
tridge;
the tongue can form a retroflex lateral [•1] (e.g., in several Indian lan
guages) of possible paralinguistic use;
the underapex touching the inner surface of the upper teeth, a possible
retroflex subapicodental of mostly paralinguistic functions or for an abnor
mal realization of interdentals [·Θ, ·δ];
- the underapex contacting the inner surface of the upper lip as a possi
ble subapicolabial flap [/r"] with a forceful forward release of the flap
articulation, itself preceded or not by a lingual suction.
A s for the qualifier known as retroflexion (also referred to as 'r-color-
ing'), it is one of the secondary articulations that can be superimposed upon
vowels and consonants that are primary articulations (some others have
been mentioned already: palatalization, velarization, pharyngealization,
96 PARALANGUAGE
etc.). This additional tongue posture, while still articulating another seg
ment, consists of that raising and curling back of the tip while contracting
the whole tongue laterally. It is, as has been mentioned, one of the main
distinguishing features of English in m a n y areas of the United States, pro
nouncing, for instance, the r in 'bird', 'rain', ' R a y m o n d Burr', and t, d
a m o n g speakers of Indian languages w h e n speaking English (O'Connor
1973: 45).
E. D o r s u m (dorso-) articulations
The flat dorsum can protrude out of the mouth until the upper teeth lean on
the center of the tongue, a dorsodental posture used in paralanguage with
various pharyngeal or uvular sounds as their accompanying kinesic
behavior (often also with nasolabial fold, neither of them necessary for the
production of those sounds), as in an expression of repugnance;
- the same dorsodental contact, but with rounded tongue, and lips closed
around it, as w h e n emitting a paralinguistic nasal sound of mockery;
- almost exactly the same setting, but showing only the predorsal zone
and making the lower lip vibrate strongly as the air escapes forcefully
between it and the tongue, as in the so-called 'Bronx cheer' and similar
utterances;
- the same tongue protrusion (actually within a protrusion scale between
the blade and the dorsum), but within a scale of mouth opening with m o d
erate and maximal mandible lowering, also typical of various mocking ges
tures;
- the forward part of the dorsum touches the forward part of the hard
palate, a dorsoprepalatal articulation with which several language sounds
are formed (e.g., prepalatal fricatives [c, z] and some clicks);
the part of the dorsum near its center touching the highest part of the
hard palate, a dorsopalatal articulation that produces some of the typical
98 PARALANGUAGE
language palatals, such as stops [c, j], fricatives [ç, z], affricates [ts, dz]
nasal [n], lateral [λ], resonant [ε, æ, a], etc. and paralinguistic sounds, like
continuous resonants [e], [æ] or [a] expressing displeasure (with a con-
gruent facial expression), or the suction or clicking sound m a d e w h e n trying
to detach something stuck to the roof of the mouth;
- the dorso against the hard palate in a suctional contact and release, a
dorsopalatal click [>ts'], as the one used after tasting a good wine;
- the air m a y escape only along one side while the dorsum (or rather,
postdorsum) produces a paralinguistic dorsovelar unilateral click [>lx']
(often described as alveolar), used for clucking to horses (the 'Gee-up!'
type), in which it is the dorsovelar closure released plosively into a click,
and not the apicoalveolar one, which remains closed while repeatedly utter-
ing the clucking sound;
- the rear part of the dorsum against the soft palate, where dorsovelar
sounds of m a n y languages are formed (e.g., stops [k, g] fricatives [χ, γ],
affricate [kx] the nasal [n] in 'tongue'), as well as quite a few paralinguistic
ones (e.g., velar laughter, the fricative velar of repugnance 'Eeugh!', etc.;
- the dorsum (or even the tongue root) touching the very end of the soft
palate and the uvula, a dorso-uvular articulation responsible for a number
of sounds in various languages, such as stops [q, G ] , nasal [N], the uvular
trill [R], etc., as well as in paralinguistic utterances with different meanings.
face of the teeth (which may be caused to protrude also, thus affecting
speech). O n the other hand, if the tongue is too small (microglossia) it fails
to m a k e normal contact, while an excessively large tongue (macroglossia)
interferes with m a n y articulations (on these three disorders, see, e.g.,
Bloomer 1971:733-735, 749-750).
The preceding sections, then, have attempted to suggest a possible
classification of tongue articulations beyond the usual established ones,
including a number of kinesic postures that m a y accompany linguistic sound
production, but above all paralinguistic utterances. A s with other organs
discussed, one must acknowledge as m a n y paralinguistic activities as possi-
ble allowing for future refinements and the elaboration of cultural inven-
tories.
2.7 T h e mandible
The mandible, the only moveable facial bone that participates actively in
settings that produce or modify sounds, moves constantly during sound-
making in sympathy with the tongue and its hyod bone, although one
(though not always a mediocre ventriloquist) can still hold a pencil or a pipe
in the mouth and articulate intelligibly enough with a fixed-jaw position. A s
can be understood at this point, those settings are intimately related to
labial settings and, of course, affect also the raising and lowering of the ton-
gue. It has been seen through the various categories of labial settings and
w h e n discussing the changes in the pharynx (and then in the velopharyngeal
region) that those supralaryngeal structures are affected — kinesically and,
in greater or lesser degree, acoustically — by each of the four possible posi-
tions of the lower jaw: retracted, protracted, and swung to the right or to
the left.
Both labial and mandibular movements and postures can modify
speech and are very important in the acoustic-kinesic, or audible-visual,
repertoire of the speaker, w h o , for instance, during a conversation is
activating those and other facial features; which become, at the decoding
end of the exchange, fused and perceived and evaluated by the listener vie-
wer. Elsewhere (Poyatos 1985:117-118) I have elaborated on the fact that
perception is not only sensory, as it usually undergoes a process of 'intellec-
100 PARALANGUAGE
tualization' during which the listener is not only hearing what his cointerac-
tant is telling him but also evaluating positively or negatively those audible
and visual characteristics of his delivery. That is w h y the anatomical charac-
teristics of the mandible can be important in the visual-acoustic-intelligible
perception of the speaker. In fact, our first impressions of people can be
influenced by the personality and temperament characteristics w e attach to
certain morphological features of the mandible, such as 'a squarely-set jaw',
more appreciated in m e n (as it suggests the energetic, self-confident,
aggressive, forceful type) or, at the other extreme, of the positive-negative
scale, the 'lantern-jawed' person, w h o will typically add to his/her anatomi-
cal configuration a rather droopy mouth posture and w h o will m a k e
unpleasant remarks seem even more unpleasant because of that visual c o m -
ponent of his speech. But the more extreme instances of mandibular shapes
are caused by perverted, delayed or advanced patterns of growth and,
therefore, will be mentioned below as abnormalities. O n the other hand,
the chin can be the most conspicuous part of a mandible, and it can be
parted, have a dimple or just a smooth boss, in each case closely associated
with the lips and the whole 'talking face'. "There is strength and obstinacy
in her jaw" (O'Neill D U E , I iv), " a handsome fighting chin" (Shaw SJ, I).
If with the lips and muscles of the face in neutral position w e swing the
mandible freely from side to side w e see that those n e w sideways positions
of the lips do not require the action of any of the labial muscles. Thus it is
necessary to distinguish, in the first place, between the postures that appear
on one side of the mouth because of unilateral vertical, horizontal or
diagonal settings and movements of the lips, and then what are actually
horizontal laterally offset settings and movements determined by those
independent movements of the mandible, since the labial ones do not actu-
ally engage it, as was pointed out w h e n describing them earlier.
T h e mechanism of the mandible's muscular physiology consists of the
following movements: vertical (open-closed), horizontal (retracted prot-
racted), lateral (right-left) and rotational (in the coronal plane), the first
and last ones used also in mastication. Although certain paralinguistic qual-
ifiers will be seen later as caused by 'mandibular control', the anatomy and
physiology of the mandible, as well as some speech anomalies due to abnor-
malities, must be discussed at this time. T h e vertical dimension is the one
A N A T O M Y A N D PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 101
constantly used in speech, higher and lower vowel tongue positions nor-
mally, but not indispensably, corresponding to narrower and wider jaw sep-
aration respectively. Honikman (1964:80, cited also in Laver and Hanson
1981:63-64) describes the characteristic wider jaw opening of Indian Eng-
lish. But it is the other three types of movements that constitute typical
paralinguistic qualifiers, as will be seen later.
The four dimensions of mandibular movements, determining some sig-
nificant labial settings, depend on the following muscular physiology
(suggested in Fig. 2.1.F, based on Laver 1980:65): the mandible is raised by
three paired muscles: masseter, the most powerful one, temporal, a fan-
shaped one, and internal pterygoid; lowered by the same three muscles and
by four more, called external pterygoid, geniohoyd, digastric, and
mylohoyd, but gravity may also cause the slack-jawed position; protruded
by the masseter and the two pterygoid muscles; retracted by the temporal,
digastic, mylohoyd and geniohoyd; and laterally offset by the two pterygoid
muscles. T h e following succinct classification of mandible postures (for
which notation symbols are suggested in the appendix) indicates their
potential combinations with many of the labial settings, thus complement-
ing previous discussion of labial mandibular shifts and postures.
A . Vertical settings
Scalar degrees of maxillary opening between closed teeth and open mouth:
closed—slightly open — open — very open — maximally open. The two
extremes of this basic scale can be qualified by muscularly tense closure
(clenched teeth) and by laxly open mouth (slack-jawed expression), two
postures that therefore may qualify those two extremes in any of the other
identified groups. T h e basic scale (but excluding all mandibular settings
identified before among labial settings) can be further qualified, more or
less conspicuously (according to facial anatomy and expressive mobility),
by the labial scales, that is, those in symmetrical/unilateral vertical expan-
sion, in symmetrical/unilateral horizontal expansion, in symmetrical/unilat-
eral diagonal expansion, in symmetrical/unilateral horizontal constriction,
in symmetrical/unilateral vertical constriction, and in symmetrical/ unilat-
eral labiodental/labiofacial expansion/constriction.
B . Horizontal settings
During normal speech w e can adopt as short-term or very rapid settings any
position between protruded and retracted mandible: maximally protruded
102 PARALANGUAGE
C . Lateral setting
These are positions laterally offset on the right or left side from a central
sagital plane: central — moderately offset — maximally offset, which can
be combined with vertical settings (although interfering with each other at
the two maximal positions). A s with vertical settings, the lateral settings by
themselves can be further qualified by the same labial settings that can
qualify the vertical and horizontal settings.
D . Rotational settings
Rotational settings (asymmetrical o n the coronal plane), identified by
Laver (1980:64) as the stereotyped pirate's gesture in films (used also by
other stereotyped villains), goes actually through a protracted and a
retracted position and from right to left while speaking, truly one single
dynamic setting susceptible of different labial protrusions and retraction.
T h e other possible settings would occur within abnormal configurations.
ankilosis of the mandible joints, fused and immobile (often associated with
micrognathia), which affects not only mastication but the articulation of
consonants and vowels, making voice sound muffled and very nasal
(Bloomer 1971:742). Just to be exhaustive, mandibular trembling, as from
cold, fear or in a state of temporary nervous disorder, produces a kind of
quaver or rumbling in the voice from incorrect or incomplete articulation of
mainly consonants.
Basic anatomy
The last organ of speech, having started upward from the larynx, is the
nasal cavity or cavities (Fig. 2 . 1 . A ) . It begins at the upper end of the
nasopharynx, where the uvula acts as the velopharyngeal velic valve, the
first of the only two points at which articulations are possible in this cavity.
From there on it is divided into the right and left halves of the nose, ending
in two exits, the nares or nostrils, provided with muscular walls and con-
stituting the second articulatory zone, the narial one. Unlike other organs,
the central channels of the nasal cavity have no muscles to modify it, but its
important resonatory function in speech is enhanced by the sinuses, the
cavities of the hollow bones surrounding the nasal cavity and connected to
it which act as extensions and resonators for the voice too.
The central channels and the nostrils are the two parts of the nasal cavities
that form the external appendix w e call nose and they can play important
communicative functions within our repertoire of facial behaviors, typically
in association with the lips and cheeks because of their c o m m o n muscles,
but also with eyes, eyelids, brows and forehead.
A s will be seen when discussing paralinguistic velopharyngeal control
within qualifiers and then the independent word-like nasal alternants, m a n y
nasal sound productions (and some oral ones) are accompanied by kinesic
behaviors visible on the outer sides of the nose through widening and com-
pressing of the nostril wings, deepening of the nasolabial furrows (going
from the back of the nostrils wings to the corners of the lips) and, further
104 PARALANGUAGE
up, wrinkling of the bridge and sides of the nose near the infraorbital cor-
ners. These 'facial actions units', which of course can at times be only
kinesic (alternating syntactically with language and paralanguage as w e
form verbal-nonverbal sentences), can also be inherent parts of paralinguis-
tic/ linguistic-kinesic expression clusters that will, individually, culturally or
universally, signal emotions (e.g., narialflare+ unilateral nasolabial fold +
lip distension, while uttering a slight nasal chuckle of contempt), and others
which can be coupled to specific sounds, as in doubt, disgust, rage, fear,
frustration, skepticism, etc. O n e could, in fact, draw in three columns the
emotions, the corresponding kinesics of the nose and the corresponding lin-
guistic, linguistic-paralinguistic or paralinguistic utterances.
At the same time, as with the tongue or lips, the otherwise very limited
repertoire of nose actions can be most versatile as some of the nonverbal
categories, particularly emblems (e.g., a nose twitch + closed-mouth bila-
bial nasal ' M m ! ' of doubt), language markers (e.g., the nose wrinkling in a
rejecting ' O f course not!'), identifiers (e.g., tensely flared nostril wings
while describing a 'very energetic' person, nose-wrinkling while referring to
someone's 'shady life'), externalizers (e.g., a forceful narial fricative expres-
sing impatience). A s with other visible speech organs, those actions are
a m o n g the rapid, dynamic facial signs displayed as part of our conversa-
tional repertoires, thus activating what are actually static signs, exposing
them to the perception of others as 'lively', 'cute', 'nervous', 'stern', 'sour',
etc., labels that m a y very well correspond to the linguistic and paralinguistic
components of our delivery. In addition, although not so importantly as the
lips or the tongue, the nose can be m o r e or less conspicuous, 'ugly' or
'beautiful' according to our o w n esthetic values and 'large', 'small', 'beaky',
'flat', etc., a person can be 'snub-nosed' (with a turned-up nose) or 'hook-
nosed' (with an aquiline nose), have a nose of smooth complexion, scaly,
with a wart on it, etc., and in some m e n with nostril hair sticking out. All
those visible features do share the effect of nasality in speech, of paralin-
guistic nasal sounds, even of the verbal messages being delivered. T o m e n -
tion but two extremes, a delicate sniff produced by a delicately shaped
feminine nose is very different from a man's nose twitching and loud ingres-
sive nose-clearing.
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 105
T h e most important and most moveable articulatory part of the nasal cavity
is the zone where the posterior end of the soft palate, the velum, faces the
wall of the nasopharynx. T w o paired muscles, the levators and the tensors,
flatten and raise the velum closing the oropharynx from the nasopharynx
and the nasal cavities, while two other paired muscles, the palatoglossal and
the palatopharyngeal (Fig. 2 . 1 . D ) draw it downward and open the passage.
This is the only m o v e m e n t on which depend the changes discussed below as
well as the basic division of sounds into nasal and oral, although the two can
be combined in m a n y articulations. A t the front end of the nasal cavity in
the narial zone there is a perceptible external movement of the nostrils,
which can cause changes in narial sounds.
oral entry from the pharynx to the mouth, and the area of the nasal port at
the pharyngeal entry to the nasal cavity' (Laver and Hanson 1981:65).
Besides, "nasality is essentially a condition of resonance [...] and the nasal
cavity can resonate without the passage of air through it as w h e n the nostrils
are held tightly closed" (Laver 1980:80). Nasalization — which has also
been called 'secondary feature' added to an oral sound — is also what
results in the so-called 'nasal twang', typical, for instance, of the speech of
the stereotyped American hillbilly type, w h o seems to speak with "a vigor-
ous lowering of the velum, plus some constriction of the palato-pharyngeal
arch" (Pei 1966:176; cf. Laver 1980:86). T h e audible inhaling-exhaling
phases of breathing through the nostrils, or nostrils and mouth simulta-
neously, are also nasalized sounds that can have paralinguistic value, as was
mentioned w h e n discussing the lungs and respiration.
But if the velum is also lowered and the oral cavity is blocked at some
point, then the air can go out only through the nasal cavity and out the
nares, and that is a true nasal articulation, which is what happens w h e n the
sound is produced while (not before or after) articulating the stops [m] (la-
bial or labiodental) and [n] (alveolar and sometimes palatal), as in 'camp-
ing' and 'I can't', or in the 'Eeeungh!' just mentioned (with palatal closure),
and in ' M m m m m m m ! ' (with closure at the lips).
If w h e n w e are going to emit the paralinguistic expression 'Eeeungh!'
w e nip both nostrils with thumb and index finger w e will not be able to
m a k e this variety because it requires a stop nasal consonant and it is impos-
sible to articulate it without free narial exit; but by nipping the nose w e can
produce an assisted nasalized sound for which the air rushes into the nasal
cavity and vibrates in it without being able to go out.
Apart from these shorter- or longer-term types of nasality there is of
course the nasal resonance which, as opposed to oral resonance, can charac-
terize a person's voice as a permanent feature, as seen in Chapter 4.
Velic articulations
vibratory velic trill [V] that can rise and fall up and d o w n the inner side of
the uvula (raising and lowering pitch accordingly) and to which m o u t h reso
nance is added according to the degree of mouth opening and shaping; with
closed m o u t h the tongue-back pushes the soft palate upward, preventing
the velic from vibrating m o r e freely and forming a fricative sound again;
- the egressive phase, with m o u t h either open or closed, is generally of
the fricative type, but a very forceful muscular contraction can also produce
the egressive vibratory velic trill [ < V ] which goes out the nostrils with a
slight vibration of its walls;
- w h e n in either the ingressive or the egressive form (but m o r e easily in
the former) saliva concentrates in the oropharynx the vibration acquires a
slight gargling quality in either phase of the trill, resulting in what could be
conveniently termed wet trill [V o ] ;
- if between the two respiratory phases w e bring the tongue-back up
against the soft palate contracting the pharynx in a swallowing m o v e m e n t a
strong momentary dorso-uvular or dorso-velar articulation occurs, inter
rupting the air flow and thus releasing in a loud suctional dorso-velarI uvular
click [ > X ' ] , the one that typically awakes the sleeper — sometimes with
momentary gurgling as the passage is cleared of saliva — which then can be
followed by a violent glottalized radico-uvular plosive sound and a swallow
ing sound.
Narial articulations
Narial sounds, that is, produced at the nares or nostrils, are of the fricative
type, the only one possible at that end of the nasal cavity, and they can be
either ingressive or egressive, the latter always weaker. They all fall within
paralinguistic alternants, thus most of them will be discussed later. T h e fol
lowing are the various narial physiological possibilities.
- Air from the lungs can flow into the velic valve through the main nasal
cavity and out the nostrils [Θ] (the m o u t h open or closed but without neces
sarily going through it) during normal, audible or inaudible breathing;
- heavier breathing, without voice, out of fatigue or emotion (e.g.,
rage), usually with visibleflaringof the nostrils and a congruent facial and
bodily gesture, forms an egressive or ingressive continuous narial fricative
[Y-];
- the same articulation can be produced as a forceful ingressive narial
fricative [ > ¥ - ] , as in heavy sniffing, often followed by a velic trill, as w h e n
clearing the nose forcefully, with various unrefined nasofacial gestures;
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 109
of the upper arch, the nostrils becoming narrowed from disuse, facial
expression appears dull and drawn (from Bloomer 1971:751-752), and the
tongue m a y be postured forward and even resting between the teeth (Brac
ke« 1971:457).
2.9 The vowel sounds as degrees in tongue and lip position: sound and ges
ture
Having outlined the audible and visual aspects of the various speech organs
and areas it is also necessary to identify the articulations of vowels to iden
tify all the linguistic and paralinguistic utterances. The factors that deter
mine the differences a m o n g vowels determine also the facial visual c o m p o
nents of speech: shape of the lips, opening between the jaws, position of the
soft palate and, most of all, shape and position of the tongue in the mouth.
Fig. 2.4, 'Articulatory-Kinesic Positions of Vowels', shows, using the tradi-
(e.g., 'what', ' w h e n ' ) ; for [j] the tongue gets close to the palate, as for [i],
and then goes d o w n quickly (e.g., yes, young).
2.11 Conclusion
Notes
1. Using E k m a n ' s (1978) terms, w e can differentiate on the face: static signs, that is,
location, size and shape of eyes, nose, forehead, cheeks, lips, chin, jaws, etc.; and
rapid signs, the dynamic aspects of some of those static signs w h e n , in the context
of the present discussion, they become animated in speech, in other words, 'the
A N A T O M Y A N D PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 115
2. O n e can think also of the characterization effects attained by the cosmetic modifi
cations of the lips (or by their natural features) for, say, Charles Laughton's
Henry VIII, or Laurence Olivier's Richard II.
Appendix
Esophagus
esophageal voice [{0}]
belch [{}]
116 PARALANGUAGE
Larynx
ventricular voice [(=)]
double voice (diplophonia) [( | = | )]
quiet whispery voice [±]
loud whispery voice [¡ + !]
loudest whispery voice [¡¡ + Ü]
false whisper [++]
glottal stop [?]
glottal stop + release [?h]
voiceless sound [°] before symbols
breathy voice [(Φ)]
tense breathy voice [(Φ+)]
glottal trill [?r]
creaky voice (laryngealization) [(A)]
falsetto [(f)]
false creaky voice [ |A]
false trillization [ |r]
harsh voice [(Γ)]
hoarse voice (hoarseness) [(Ω)]
eunuchoid voice [(f+)]
Pharynx
audible swallowing [< | > ]
audible pharyngeal friction [-f], tense [Φ]
audible ingressive pharyngeal friction [>-f], tense [ > Φ ]
faucal approximants [ < > ]
faucalization [<>]
pharyngeal fricatives (unvoiced, voiced) [h,îl
epiglottopharyngeal stop [î>]
epiglottopharyngeal fricative [£]
epiglottopharyngeal trill [?r]
pharyngealization [-] crossing the basic symbols
overriding pharyngealization [?]
Alveolar-palatal area
palatalization f ]
velarization [~] crossing the basic symbols
alveolarization [ ]
Dental areas
bidental fricative [=1=]
dentiexolabial fricatives [-v] [-f]
dentiendolabial fricatives [v-] [f-]
dentalization ["]
dental scrapive [-U-]
dental percussive [Ύ]
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH
bidental chatter [ ]
bidental fricative chatter [ ]
assisted dental articulation ['=']
open-bite [=]
cross-bite [ ]
overbite [ ]
missing upper incisors [ ]
The tongue
reverse apico-bilabial, to right [ < w ' ] , left [ < ' w ]
apicoendolabial or exolabial stop [w'-], [-w']
apicoendolabial or exolabial fricative [ + w ' ] , [ w ' + ]
apicoendolabial trill [rw]
apicosublabial-dorsopalatal groove fricative [ w n + ]
apicodental stops [t'] [d']
apicodental nasal [n']
apicodental lateral [Γ]
interdental fricatives [Θ], [o]
unvoiced apicolabiodental + nasal resonance [wt']
apicosublabiodental + nasal resonance [wt,]
apicoendosublabial + nasal resonance [,w]
apicoalveolar stops [t] [d]
apicoalveolar nasal [n]
apicoalveolar trill [rr]
apicoalveolar lateral [1]
apicoalveolar percussive [t]
continuous apicoalveolar trill ["r"]
apicoalveolarflap[R"]
apicoalveolar click [>tz']
nasalized apicoalveolar click [>tz']
reversed apicoalveolar clicks [<tz'], [<tz']
apicosubalveolar 4- epiglottopharyngeal fricative [Ç]
apicopostalveolar stops [t, d]
apicopostalveolar approximant [J]
apicopalatal [t^]
retroflexion [•]
unvoiced subapicodental (+ drawled nasal resonance) [.tz:]
subapico-postalveolar retroflex stops [.t,.d]
subapico-postalveolar fricatives [-s] [·ζ]
retroflex click [·t']
ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF SPEECH 119
subapico-prepalatal [-r]
subapico-prepalatal nasal [·η]
forceful retroflex palatal click [·»t']
retroflex lateral [·l]
retroflex subapicodental [·Θ, ·δ]
subapicolabialflap[/r"]
laminosublamino-interlabial vibratory fricative trill [ W r ]
laminolabial [Sw]
laminosublamino-interdental [«Θ»]
laminodental [J (under symbol), [:S:] whistling, [S:] hissing
lamino alveolar [^ ] (over and under symbol), glottalized explosive [2]
laminopostalveolar fricatives [ƒ] [3], affricates [t∫] [dz]
sublaminodental-labial nasalized open-front vowel [ ]
glottalized sublaminodental/labial nasalized open-front vowel [?ae|
sublaminal percussive [ ] ; after predorsopalatal click [>tsT]
dorsoprepalatal fricatives [ç] [z]
dorsopalatal stops [c] [f]
dorsopalatal fricatives [ç] [j]
dorsopalatal affricates [ts] [dz]
dorsopalatal nasal [n]
dorsopalatal lateral [λ]
dorsopalatal résonants [ε] [æ] [a]
dorsopalatal click [>ts']
Odorsovelar unilateral click [>lx']
dorsovelar stops [k] [g]
dorsovelar fricatives [χ] [γ]
dorsovelar affricate [kx]
dorsovelar nasal [n]
dorso-uvular stops [q] [G]
dorso-uvular nasal [N]
dorso-uvular trill [R]
The mandible
vertically closed (almost clenched teeth) [A ]
vertically open (slack jaw) [ | | ]
horizontal protrusion [ r]
horizontal retraction [Ί ]
laterally offset (swung to right) [ \]
laterally offset (swung to left) [_| ]
rotational setting [-J-]
protraction [ L]
retraction [J ]
attraction [-i-]
abstraction [T]
120 PARALANGUAGE
Nasal cavities
nasalization [~], heavy nasalization [~]
velic stop [>g']
velic nasal plosive [K']
nasal approximant fricatives[m',n']
ingressive velic nasal plosive [ > K ' ] , with closed mouth [ α > K ' ]
velic fricative [=]
velic nasal affricate [kx], with closed mouth [akx]
ingressive velic nasal fricative [>hx], with closed mouth [a>hx]
ingressive vibratory velic trill [ > V ]
egressive vibratory trill [ < V ]
wet trill [V o ]
dorso-velar/uvular click [>X']
narial sound [Y], forceful narial sound [¥]
nasal (narial) breathing [φ"], with closed mouth [α ~]
narial fricative [Y-]
forceful ingressive narial fricative [ > ¥ - ]
explosive narial fricative [Y*]
ingressive explosive narial fricative [>Y*]
egressive voiced narial bilabial nasal [m]
egressive narial-alveolar nasal [ñ]
narial retroflex nasal [·ή]
narial palatal nasal[n]
narial velar nasal [r]
glottalization of the above five [ ? m] [?n^] [?η^] [?n^] [η^]
head-cold voice (damped nasality) [( | " | )]
nasality [(~)]
denasality [(-)]
adenoidal voice [ |°°| )]
cleft-palate speech [(ƒ)]
Vowels
highest front [i] unrounded high-central [υ]
retracted high-front [i] rounded high-crntral [y]
high-mid front [e] unrounded mid-central [ ]
low-mid front [ε] unrounded low mid-central [^]
lower-mid front [ae] rounded mid-central [œ]
lowest-front [a] low mid-central [3 3]
highest-back [u] low-mid back [ ]
unrounded high-back [w] lower-mid back [o]
high-mid back [o] lowest-back [a]
unrounded high mid-back [γ]
semivowels: closing palatal [j], opening labiovelar [w]
Chapter 3
Language-Paralanguage-Kinesics:
T h e Basic Triple Structure of Communication
in Face-to-Face Interaction
has been seen also in the first two chapters. It was seen what exactly w e can
do in interaction with sound and movement: with the sounds of language
and paralanguage w e can contact another person through the vocal/narial-
auditory channel; with the movements of speech production and others,
particularly gestures (and not necessarily touching), w e also establish con-
tacts, 'articulating' our bodies with those with w h o m w e interact, most of
the time, by making sounds and movements the two mutually inherent
parts of the same expression.
But, h o w could w e utter just one of those words and express all three e m o -
tions? Such an emotional blend could not be expressed either by means of
a morphologico-syntactical arrangement of words — since w e would not
include in that sentence the lexemes 'anguish', 'doubt' and 'fear', to begin
with, as it would entail an 'unnatural' complex periphrastic expression
which just would not happen in such a state. W h a t actually suffuses those
words with life, then, is a series of paralinguistic and kinesic elements subtly
interrelated in perfect mutual inherence, which support, emphasize or con-
tradict them.
Language
Paralanguage
Kinesics
Given all the discrepancies w e find in the literature, kinesics can be defined
as: the conscious or unconscious psychomuscularly-based body movements
and intervening or resulting still positions, either learned or somatogenic,
of visual, visual-acoustic and tactile or kinesthetic perception, that, whether
isolated or combined with the linguistic and paralinguistic structures and
with other somatic and objectual behavioral systems, possess intended or
unintended communicative value. Whatever external m o v e m e n t in some-
one's body can be detected visually or tactually-kinesthetically qualifies as
kinesics: eye movements, unconscious jerks and twitches. There is no dif-
ference, from a kinetic point of view, between a brow raise and a gaze
raise, or between an intended smile and a facial tic, since they all m a k e up
the visual image of the person as perceived by others. T h e intervening still
positions within the interactive linguistic-paralinguistic-kinesic stream qual-
ify also as kinesic behaviors, as they are costructured with m o v e m e n t as
m u c h as postures are. Thus, whether the m o v e m e n t is intentional (or c o m -
municative) or not, is irrelevant. W h e n applying to its analysis the
methodology of linguistic structuralism, Birdwhistell (1952, 1970) identified
in conversational kinesics a smallest discrete element, the kineme (analog-
ous to the p h o n e m e , or smallest speech sound unit), m a d e up of various
allokines (similar to allophones or p h o n e m e variants); kinemes combine
into morphological constructs called kinemorphs (analogous to morphs, or
pronounceable p h o n e m e groups that can function as morphemes), forming
kinemorphemes (comparable to morphemes, that is, words or meaningful
parts of words), and kinesyntactic constructions. W h a t is more, some sup-
rasegmental elements, namely, kinemes of stress and juncture, were
reported by Birdwhistell (1970) as appearing in the linguistic-kinesic stream
(while the relationship between linguistic pitch and body m o v e m e n t is
under study). In addition, parakinesic degrees of intensity, range and velo-
city (akin to stress and articulatory tension, syllabic duration and speech
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 133
tempo) have been identified which differentiate personal styles and all
kinds of normal or abnormal visual behaviors as m u c h as paralanguage dif-
ferentiates audibly ones, therefore being as important to kinesics within the
basic triple structure as paralanguage is to verbal language.
A foreign language, or a regional variety of the native one, can be spo-
ken fluently but usually with a certain accent which, under analysis, is
revealed as inexact placement of stresses, pitches and junctures and incor-
rect articulation of some vocalic and consonantal sounds (that is, inaccurate
internal movements). In like manner, a foreign kinesic repertoire, or a re-
gional variety, can be imitated, learned and performed with more or less
fluency, but perhaps with an inevitable alien 'accent' in m a n y instances,
consisting in inexact placement of kinesic stress and junctures and, m o r e
noticeably, in the incorrect use of the parakinesic qualities (intensity, range
and velocity) and the misplacement of certain kinemes within kinemor-
phemic constructs. Kinesics is always present, m o r e or less, in face-to-face
interaction and personal and cultural speech repertoires are characterized
by their visual peculiarities as they are by their different languages, or dif-
ferent varieties of the same language (e.g., in the United States, England
and India).
It is very important, w h e n relating verbal language and paralanguage
to m o v e m e n t to m a k e a clear distinction between: gestures, conscious or
unconscious movements m a d e mainly with the head, the face alone (includ-
ing the eyes) or the limbs, dependent or independent from verbal language,
simultaneous to or alternating with it and serving as a primary communica-
tive tool (e.g., smiles, gaze movements, a beckoning signal); manners,
more or less dynamic and mainly learned and socially ritualized according
to specific situations, either simultaneous to or alternating with verbal lan-
guage (e.g., the way w e eat, greet others, cough, cross legs to adopt a cross-
legged posture); and postures, equally conscious or unconscious, but more
static and also codified by social norms and used less as communicative
behaviors, although they m a y reveal sex, status, culture, etc. Another basic
distinction in kinesics is between free, performed by one or more parts of
the body by themselves in the air, and bound, for which w e touch ourselves,
others or the objectual environment. It also essential (though sorely ne-
glected) to recognize the three phases of any kinesic behavior: a beckoning
gesture, a leg-preening manner or a crossing of legs are not formed only by
their identifying central or peak m o v e m e n t or still position in a posture, but
by a formative or shaping m o v e m e n t which can begin in different positions
134 PARALANGUAGE
kinesics (the visual aspect, that is, the m o v e m e n t , although it could be hid-
den from view while still hearing the sound of it). T h e deserved status of
those sounds in the study of interaction cannot be argued. In fact, the
quasiparalinguistic effect becomes costructured with words, paralanguage
proper and kinesics at the receiver's end m u c h more noticeably than for the
emitter himself, w h o would hardly ever encode them with the intention to
communicate. This is, of course, one more instance of the communicative
quality of unintentional behaviors, against the definition of communication
favored by m a n y w h o do not seem to consider the deeper levels of interac-
tion. It is precisely at these deeper levels (Poyatos 1985) that those sounds
communicate and constitute an important part of the basic triple structure,
often with messages relevant enough to have interactional consequences,
while their parakinesic qualities determine the specific characteristics of
those messages.
3.4 T h e intervening silences and stills as elements of the basic triple struc-
ture
3.5 Segmental and nonsegmental elements within the basic triple structure
Figure 3.2 Segmental and nonsegmental elements in the basic triple structure
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 139
two of them (1 and 9) and the ten features of language added to the scheme
(8 and 18 to 26), as they both strengthen the communicative semiotic status
of paralanguage, and also of the basic triple structure as the most cohesive
body-based complex of h u m a n communication. 3 It will be noted that with
the features included this scheme suggests m a n y of the topics about dis-
course contained in this and other chapters, such as the temporal dimension
of sound and m o v e m e n t (3),the typically unconscious nature of m a n y non-
verbal behaviors (5), the semanticity and lexicality of paralanguage and
kinesics (7, 8) the arbitrariness and iconicity of sound and movement
encoding (9), their segmentality-nonsegmentality (10), the power of
paralanguage and kinesics for evoking other people's audible and visual
behaviors, besides just referring to them (11), phonemes and kinemes have
a similar structural value (14), paralanguage and kinesics are part of the
learning objective of a foreign speaker (17), their developmental aspects
(18), their encoding-decoding problems (19), their syntactical-interactive
functions 20), the problems of written representation (21), their expressive
capabilities of, for instance, 'identifiers' and other nonverbal categories
(22), their costructuration with preceding, simultaneous and succeeding
silences and stills (23), and with any other possible components of an
interactive encounter (24) (Poyatos 1985: Fig. 1), the paralinguistic and
kinesic repertoires used to communicate with other species, mainly domes-
tic animals (25), and the possibility of conveying m a n y messages through
one, two or the three components of the triple structure (26).
Figure 3.3 The basic triple structure within the language design-feature scheme
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 143
closures and eye movements, and their mutual coarticulation. T h e fact that
cultural advancement and technology have enriched the repertoires of ges-
tures, manners and postures through the evolution of the dwellings, of fur-
niture, utensils, clothes etc. (which also betrays the progress of social and
intellectual life), can be attested today by systematically observing the
kinesic repertoires of the urban and/or more refined, educated groups with
those of the less educated peasants. T h e repertoire of the lowest classes is
clearly m u c h more limited in certain types of gestures, manners and post-
ures, as well as in paralinguistic expressive means (as it lacks the versatility
of subtly different types of laughter, of meaningful narial egressions, or
closed-lip vocalic sounds, etc.), and, of course, vocabulary. In fact, this
seems to emphasize the cohesiveness of the basic triple structure from a
functional, interactive and historical point of view, and the assumption that
not just verbal language, but the three cosystems, have evolved along with
the different cultures, since the more primitive the culture, the more
limited those repertoires seem to be.
Another c o m m e n t on the capabilities of sound and m o v e m e n t in
h u m a n interaction — which relates again to Hockett's design-feature
scheme — but without going into the nature of consciousness in humans as
compared to animals (cf. Thorpe 1974), is that w e must consider h o w in
humans visually perceived m o v e m e n t and auditorily perceived sound can
be said to travel through time, in spite of their also rapid fading. A derisive
smile, an intent static look or an anguished tone of voice can linger and
linger and truly regulate our subsequent behaviors and thoughts as the
stored visual and acoustic images are replayed over and over in our m e m -
ory. W e can also reconstruct the physical appearance of a person by gradu-
ally fitting together language, paralanguage and kinesics until that triple
structure brings the person to life in our minds and, with no mental effort
whatsoever, one m a y easily renew the physical presence of someone else by
carefully seeing and hearing with the eyes and ears of the m e m o r y , as has
been described in literature so m a n y times.
A s a brief closing c o m m e n t in this section (related to the formal and
semantic congruence discussed earlier), it should follow that if language,
paralanguage and kinesics under normal circumstances show such perfectly
costructured balance, abnormal circumstances should be betrayed by a
characteristic lack of equilibrium a m o n g the three cosystems, not only as
regards lack of congruence between the verbal and nonverbal behaviors
(which might respond to intentional or unintentional deceit), but as truly
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 147
The coherence of the three cosystems that constitute the activity of speech
in a normal face-to-face encounter (and even, inevitably, w h e n people do
not necessarily see each other's visual behaviors, as on the phone) has been
sufficiently discussed. However, although acknowledging that mutual inter-
penetration can immediately allow us to see the reality of that triple verbal-
paralinguistic-kinesic event, w e m a y still miss what, in other words, would
be the least thought of, least conspicuous, most subtle and most difficult to
isolate, define and describe (and, therefore the hardest thing to learn in
order to become ideally and totally verbally-nonverballyfluentin a foreign
language that is, foreign culture), namely, the speaker's language markers
and identifiers. O f all the nonverbal categories (many of which have been
identified in the first two chapters) which people use in the course of face-
to-face interaction, those two are the most crucial ones and paralanguage
and kinesics, but even more the latter, are the communicative modalities
wittingly or unwittingly used for their encoding.
Language markers
other bodily behaviors simultaneous with speech, truly mark language, par-
ticularly paralanguage. Kinesic language markers enhance the syntactical
functions of words, punctuate them m u c h as w e do in writing (thus giving
punctuation visual and audible form), and often coincide with paralinguistic
markers of identical function. Their function, then, is primarily grammati-
cal (i.e. syntactical and morphological), although the full semantic value of
a word or combination of words is given, of course, by their paralinguistic
and kinesic coactivities and any other cooccurrent behaviors — which only
proves the coherence of the verbal and nonverbal channels. Just to intro-
duce them briefly, the following forms of grammatical markers can be dif-
ferentiated:
Pronominal markers, typically by pointing with the hand(s), with a
multiple head movement involving gaze (pointing even toward an absent
h u m a n or n o n h u m a n grammatical subject or object) and a tilt of the head,
with a head tilt alone, a head nod, or a trunk-and-head orientation shift
toward the referent, all c o m m o n in North-American English (while in
Spain, for instance, chin-pointing for 'he', 'she', 'them', etc., is more com-
m o n , though not regarded as refined by m a n y ) . Head-pointing is accom-
panied by gaze-pointing w h e n indicating our single cointeractant, but w h e n
two or more are present eye-contact m a y be (not necessarily but typically)
maintained with the main addressee while the head points at a third party
(cf. Jespersen's [1933] "pronouns of pointing"). Pronomical markers, h o w -
ever subtle (from gaze shift to a head-and-orientation pointer), are practi-
cally always present as part of the verbal-paralinguistic-kinesic structure. A
typical instance of kinesic pronominal marker in North-American English
would be (John, T o m and Mary are conversing, and T o m addresses John):
' Y o u should take her /slight tilt toward M a r y while looking at John/ to the
movies because I think she'll /head and gaze turned toward her/ love that /
very light head nod/ movie'. This example serves to illustrate another func-
tion of the same markers, that of stress markers, since 'her' (Mary) and
'that' (movie) can carry also the two primary stresses which would be
marked by the same object pronoun and demonstrative adjective. Other
pronominal markers w e use in conversation are, for instance: personal
(e.g., ' W e can all /sweeping inclusive hand movement/ contribute'), of iden-
tity ('Two years later I went there and met the same m a n /short up-and-
d o w n hand movement, joining thumb and first finger/' in m a n y cultures,
with also corresponding paralinguistic stress markers), reciprocal (e.g.,
T h e y did it to each /double pointing sweep/ other'), etc.
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 149
Identifiers
vance of silences and still positions with relation to sounds and movements
and in themselves; and finally, having given some attention to the main
facts about the development of our personal verbal and nonverbal reper-
toires, what remains is to see just h o w the basic triple structure 'happens',
for w e k n o w that w e can communicate through words with a mere
m i n i m u m of either paralanguage or kinesics, and that w e can also use a ges-
ture without any sound, or a meaningful throat clearing and nothing more.
It is, therefore, necessary to k n o w in h o w m a n y different ways each of them
can appear by itself as well as associated to the other two. It must be stres-
sed, however, that while kinesics can occur alone (e.g., a beckoning ges-
ture), paralanguage cannot occur without conscious or unconscious kinesic
elements for some part of the face or the body will show some changes,
though perhaps almost imperceptible, or a marked meaningful stillness,
and verbal language cannot possibly occur without some conscious or
unconscious paralinguistic and kinesic features. In other words, a visual
behavior can be an independent activity, but an audible one — whether
verbal, paralinguistic or both — always shows a visual qualifying element
(which, of course, would be missed if not seen), supporting or emphasizing,
apart from its possible contradicting function. W h a t follows is only a very
brief review of the ten possible ways in which w e can produce language,
paralanguage and kinesics, namely, in free (from each other) or bound (to
each other) occurrences.
1. Verbal language, in a rather neutral way (i.e. without any conspicu-
ous, meaningful paralanguage or kinesics) that would qualify it in some
way: a straightforward 'What time is it?', Guten Morgen, etc.
2. Verbal language-paralanguage, when the specific meaning is con-
veyed precisely by the verbal part: an unambiguous 'I hate you', even if it
is qualified by not-so clear paralinguistic features.
3. Verbal language + kinesics, verbal expressions which are always
accompanied by the corresponding kinesic equivalent either because there
is a verbal reference to the gesture or because the speaker of that culture
typically accompanies specific verbal expressions with fixed kinesic
cobehaviors, that is, as emblematic constructs or as language markers or
identifiers (those 'most native' speech-accompanying behaviors): Spanish
El metro estaba así ('The subway was like this', así simultaneously accom-
panied by a chest-high upward movement of the bunched fingers of one
hand which then open and close once or twice, meaning 'crowded'); the
North-American's ' H o w m u c h is that fridge, please?' pointing head nod
accompanying the verbal demonstrative.
152 PARALANGUAGE
ment, that is, architecture itself, in terms of large or intimate spaces, aided
by color, lighting, music, etc., etc., elicits equal impersonal or intimate non-
verbal behaviors, while town layout and urban design allow pedestrians to
holler or hiss at each other in relatively narrow streets, but only yell or sig-
nal kinesically in wider ones; pleasant and unpleasant odors (a concept that
can also vary crossculturally) emanating from trades (e.g., a tannery, a bak-
ery, a winepress, the dyeing pits of Fez), animals, fertilizers, produce,
building materials, plants, etc., elicit typical paralinguistic utterances of ple-
asure or repugnance; even the natural environment triggers and conditions
paralanguage, as the expressions elicited by well-being, a w e , cold, heat,
fatigue, smell, etc.: finally, animals (as will be seen in Chapter 7), have gen-
erated whole culture-specific and pancultural paralinguistic calls.
B . Within intelligible systems (revealed, as was just said, by the sensi-
ble ones in different ways), religious attitudes and beliefs are reflected not
only in speech, but in its paralinguistic qualities, for instance, in c o m m u n a l
prayer and worship; most folklore festivals and celebrations around the
world, as well as games and sports, have their o w n typical yells, etc.:
etiquette m a y prescribe a light chuckle instead of open laughter, a polite
throat-clearing instead of a verbal statement; grief and bereavement are
expressed across cultures with m a n y forms of paralinguistic expressions;
child-rearing is also characterized by baby- and child-language and paralan-
guage, just as children's games include different cries and language qual-
ifiers; man-animal relationships are characterized by the h u m a n cruelty or
affection betrayed by the qualities of our language and paralinguistic calls,
etc.
TOTAL CONDITIONING B A C K G R O U N D
Biological Configuration
Sex
Age
Biophysico- Physiological State
Psychological Medical State
Nutritional Habits
Psychological Configuration
Emotiona States |
Natural Environment
Built/Modified Environment
Environmental Objectual Environment
Socioeconomic Environment
Performer-Spectator Borrowing
Couple
Sharing Nuclear Family/Extended Family
Social/Occupational Group
Geographic/Subcultural Variety
Religious and Moral Values
Cultural Patterns Relationships and Role Expectations
Etiquette N o r m s
Esthetic Values
Superrefined
Average Educated
Socioeducational Average Middle-Income Employee
Types Low-Income Worker
Pseudoeducated
Rustic/Illiterate
creaky voice); the physiological state of cold, heat, pain or any momentary
malfunction elicits also different paralinguistic qualifiers and independent
sounds (alternants); the individual's medical state m a y m a k e us drop voice
volume and pitch, cry, utter shout, m o a n s , grunts, or speak with hoarse
voice; nutritional habits m a y be betrayed, for instance, by frequent belch-
ing; our psychological configuration, in terms of personality m a k e u p as well
as pathological states, is reflected (as would our medical state) in the
absence or presence of certain paralinguistic and kinesic behaviors (e.g.,
the monotone delivery of depression, the rapid rhythm of the manic state,
the general louder volume and pitch and use of lively alternants of the
extrovert type) ; temporary or momentary emotional states are immediately
reflected in our paralinguistic behaviors (e.g., whispering breathily in a pas-
sionate dialogue, speaking brokenly and with gasps and audible breathing
in fear).
B . Environmental, some of which have just been mentioned, that is,
natural, built and artifactual environments, to which w e should add here the
socioeconomic environment (which includes the built and artifactual envi-
ronments), as conditioning at times m a n y class-identifying verbal, paralin-
guistic and kinesic behaviors (e.g., uncouth laughter, and yelling, poor
articulatory control, twangy speech, belching loudly in front of company, or
refined types of laughter, softer speech, precise articulation and more oral
speech, checked belching, etc.).
C . Under sharing it is interesting to acknowledge, for instance: the
paralinguistic and kinesic mutual borrowings within a nuclear family, in
specific social groups like those of teenagers, m e m b e r s of associations or
occupations, deaf people; the c o m m o n characteristic behaviors of regional
or subcultural groups', the performer-to spectator borrowings, adopted by
certain persons or groups from movie actors or singers.
D . B y cultural patterns should be understood, in this instance, the
paralinguistic behaviors identifying, for instance: religious and moral values
or their absence, as with the voice characteristics that m a y identify the
indifference of the lukewarm Christian in church, the ironic tone of some
nonbelievers speaking of G o d and religion, or the unconcern and lack of
sympathy of the person without principles speaking of other people's mis-
fortunes; relationships and role expectations as revealed, for instance, in the
culturally dictated conversational voice qualities between lovers, superior
and subordinate, master and servant, etc.; norms of etiquette and good
manners which dictate voice pitch during formal introductions, the manag-
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 159
ing of reflex sounds like coughs, yawns, sneezes and hiccoughs crosscultur-
ally, the voice loudness according to setting and social context, etc.; esthetic
values, which, just as they tend to prescribe gestures, manners and post-
ures, also inspire a sense of what is or is not becoming as to speech rhythm,
pitch characteristics, laughter, emotional paralinguistic expressions, etc.
E . T h e different socioeducational types, despite obvious overlappings,
can still be thought of in the m o r e advanced societies by their lexical,
paralinguistic and kinesic behaviors, which tend to identify: the super-
refined or highly sophisticated speaker, often of even affected word choice,
intonation patterns, forms of laughter, undue self-control of otherwise nor-
mal voice qualifiers, and word-like paralinguistic utterances (alternants);
the average educated speaker, of quite standard verbal and nonverbal reper-
toires; the average middle-income, moderate-schooling speaker, often iden-
tifiable in m a n y western cultures by less controlled verbal, paralinguistic
and kinesic repertoires of a 'louder tone'; the low-income and poor-school-
ing worker, of m u c h more inarticulate verbal and nonverbal repertoires,
freer with behaviors such as shouting, rough forms of voice, etc.: the rustic
and totally uneducated person in m a n y cultures, diametrically opposed to
the superrefined and unaware of m a n y social rules, of very limited verbal,
paralinguistic and kinesic standard repertoires, thus being characterized,
not only by the presence of certain speech rhythm and pitch characteristics,
certain qualifiers, the features of some differentiators (laughter, sneezing,
shouting, etc.), and the use of certain alternants, but by the absence of
others; the pseudoeducated, a truly interesting subject of research and
observation in m a n y cultures, for they are astride the educated groups and
the noneducated ones, typically tend to display verbal and nonverbal
behaviors that are standard to higher-status people but obviously extrastan-
dard to them, but still they persevere in their rather affected bond-and-
status-seeking attitude in social interaction.
Knowing that the three components of the triple structure can be displayed
in ten different ways by the emitter (and perceived auditorily, visually and
160 PARALANGUAGE
same exchange at times), also in a realistic way. Again, the topic would
require a detailed identification of the m a n y rules and counterrules of turn-
change behaviors (i.e., the speaker's turn and the listener's turn), the
simultaneous behaviors, the listener's behaviors addressed to the speaker,
the behaviors a m o n g the listeners as well as a number of acoustic and visual
pauses (i.e., absence of language and/or paralanguage and absence of
kinesics). A s it is not possible to even summarize the functions of language,
paralanguage, kinesics, silences and stills in each of the seventy or so
behaviors I have dealt with in the past, I can refer the reader to a recent
summary that contains a rather complete table of the structure of
mechanism of conversation (Poyatos 1988b) and also to an earlier but less
complete (for most behaviors) more elaborate discussion (Poyatos 1983:
Chapter 7).
There are m a n y applications w e can derive from seeing the triple struc-
ture in the context of the whole mechanism of ordinary conversation. First
of all, by looking at the table referred to, w e could concentrate on paralan-
guage and observe, from a developmental point of view, the gradual
appearance of, for instance, turn-claiming paralinguistic utterances (e.g.,
the typical prespeech apicoalveolar click + audible pharyngeal friction),
turn preopening and opening (e.g., throat clearing, 'Eeer'), feedback (e.g.,
' U h - h u ' , ' M m m ! ' , audible narial egression of amusement, 'Tz-tz' of disap-
proval, various types of subtly different laughter), various types of pauses,
etc. W e can also observe sex differences in the use of certain paralinguistic
(or kinesic) behaviors, as well as differences across socio-economic groups,
or ethnic groups (e.g., the Afro-American blacks' more frequent use of
high pitches up to falsetto voice). In a specific situation like the theatrical
performance (which depends on the actor-spectator proxemic relationship
that goes from the first row to the balcony) w e would see certain conversa-
tional paralinguistic behaviors as utterly impossible (e.g., the prespeech
click), perhaps replaced by their kinesic (visual) counterparts, others as
having to be stepped up perhaps (e.g., certain types of laughter as feedback
sounds), thus being able to systematically study the use of language,
paralanguage and kinesics on the stage and the balance or imbalance that
can result according to the skills of the actors or the lack of them. T o m e n -
tion but one more application, certain types of psychiatric patients, and
even ordinary surgical patients (or the person at h o m e with a bout of flu),
show a marked difference in that intersystem balance between admission
for treatment and discharge, and often a distortion of c o m m o n paralinguis-
tic and kinesic behaviors.
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 163
As emitter As Receiver
INTERACTOR
uses cannot use perceives misses
BLIND Lg-Pg-K L-Pg-Audible Visual
&Contactual
DEAF Lg-Pg-K Lg-Pg
MUTE Lg-Pg Lg-Pg-K
DEAFMUTE Lg-Pg Lg-Pg
ARMLESS 1/2 Lg-Pg-Facial Arm/Hand Lg-Pg-K Contactual
FOREARM Lg-Pg-Facial Forearm/ Lg-Pg-K Contactual
&arm K Hand on fore./hand
HANDLESS l/2Lg-Pg-Arm & Hand Lg-Pg-K Contactual
Forearm Hand
FINGERLESS 1/2 Lg-Pg-Arm Finger Lg-Pg-K Contactual
Finger
PARALYSIS reduced or absent reduced or absent
possibility possibility
Noninteraction
Environmental interaction
A
1 Orthographic Transcript
A. Speaker/Listener
B. Listener/Speaker
A
Primary Qualities
Qualifiers
A
2 Differentiators
A
Alternants
A
3 Phonetic Transcription
Mouth, Mandible
Head, Trunk A
4
Legs, Feet
Shoulders, A r m s , A
Forearms, Wrists,
Hands, Fingers
A
5 Audible Movements
A
6 Chemical and Dermal Reactions
A
7 Proxemic Notation
A
δ Other Speakers/Listeners
Contextual/Interfering A
9
Activities/Nonactivities
A
10 Chronemic Notation
A
11 Contextual Description
3.15 Conclusion
In this third chapter the true reality of discourse in interaction has been
established, I hope, beyond any doubt. It has been done, however, only
after acknowledging all the communicative possibilities of sound and m o v e -
ment (and of movements that generate sound, beyond paralanguage) and
the mutual inherence of both in the production of language and paralan-
guage (e.g., facial speech gestures) and kinesics. Besides that basic triple
nature of speech, it has been established also that w h e n two or more people
speak to each other the characteristics of those two or more basic triple
structures are, in greater or lesser degree, influenced, perhaps even deter-
mined, by any of the components of that particular encounter, whether per-
sonal or extrapersonal; and further, that the mechanism of ordinary conver-
sation in full, unhindered interaction reveals itself m u c h more complex
under certain circumstances than it m a y appear to a rather naive
researcher, for one is confronted with a veritable mesh of potentially effec-
172 PARALANGUAGE
tive components. Finally, it has been suggested — apart from the many
applications that become so obvious as one progresses through this realistic
approach to interaction (e.g., in developmental studies, intercultural c o m -
munication, foreign-language teaching) — that the lack of one or m o r e of
the three cosystems in situations of reduced interaction can greatly affect,
not only the perceptual capability of the partially-equipped person but his
expressive capability as well, in ways that truly mutilate the exteriorization
of feelings and attitudes directed to others. This and any situations in
unhindered interaction can be realistically accounted for (as m u c h as a
graphic record would allow) in a holistic transcription of all verbal and non-
verbal activities and nonactivities, whose degree of refinement will obvi-
ously depend our objective.
Perhaps the autobiographical words of Saint Augustine about h o w he
began to communicate would appropriately close this chapter:
I myself, with that mind which you, m y G o d , gave m e , wished by means of
various cries and sounds and movements of m y limbs express m y heart's
feelings, so that m y will would be obeyed [...] w h e n they named a certain
thing, and, at that n a m e , m a d e a gesture towards the object, I observed
that object and inferred that it was called by the n a m e they uttered [...]
That they meant this was apparent by their bodily gestures, as it were by
words natural to all m e n , which are m a d e by change of countenance, nods,
movements of the eyes and other bodily m e m b e r s , and sounds of the
voice, which indicate the affections of the mind in seeking, possessing,
rejecting, or avoiding things [...] to those among w h o m I was I c o m m u n i -
cated the signs of what I wished to express. I entered more deeply into the
stormy society of h u m a n life [...] (Saint Augustine, Confessions, B o o k 1,
8, pp. 50-51). 7
Notes
1. Lecturing recently for the Tourism and Hotel Program of Bogazici University (Is-
tanbul) I pointed out, after looking at this example, that, depending on paralin-
guistic features added to it (and, if visually perceived, also kinesic), 'well' could
m e a n , without pretending to be exhaustive: 'It's over now' (with sadness), hesita-
tion, 'Actually — ,' ' N o , never mind,' 'In that case, yes!,' 'If there's no other
choice, what can I do?,' 'I'm shocked,' reaction to the unexpected, 'Better not
talk about it,' 'Okay, let's go!' (snappy), 'What do you have to say for yourself?',
'Answer m e ! , ' ' W h o cares!,' ' W h o could have thought that?' 'Look at him', as a
speaker's turn-opening in conversation, etc.
LANGUAGE-PARALANGUAGE-KINESICS 173
I have suggested before that, apart from the interesting semiotic aspect of the
encoding and decoding by both the well person and the traumatized one in such
situations, there is a deep dimension in that relationship in which the person is
unable to cerebrate and yet "it is possible for the medical team to implant nega-
tives into the subconscious mind and conceivably into the spiritual being of the
patient at the time of anesthesia or unconsciousness [...] affected by those things
which occur while he is not conscious" (Reed 1979:99), 'things' which include, of
course, not just the inappropriate topics and at times foul language, but certainly
the meaningful paralanguage in the ongoing interaction.
I first discussed and practiced the transcription of the Basic Triple Structure in
1976 with a joint team from the Universities of Birmingham and Nancy working
on the interrelationships between the linguistic, paralinguistic and kinesic c o m p o -
nents of speech (under the auspices of the Centre National de la Recherche Scien-
tifique), which included the elaboration of a triple-structure transcription as I had
already discussed it at meetings. I was inspired in the late sixties by the classic in
the field, The First Five Minutes, the pioneering work of the psychiatrists Pittinger
and D a n e h y and the linguistic-anthropologist Hockett (1960) on a five-minute seg-
ment of a psychiatric interview, where, mainly by means of arbitrary graphic sym-
bols, they represented the linguistic and paralinguistic behaviors of the patient,
adding to it a minute analysis of what goes on during the interview. T o that I woul
add the third element of the triple structure, kinesics, for a realistic depiction of
the speech-and-movement occurrence.
PARALANGUAGE
4.2 Timbre
4.3 Resonance
4.4 Loudness
(for which the literature recommends louder volume for emphasis, author-
ity, etc., low for somber words, and warns against the monotony of continu-
ous high level), w h e n trying to speak with authority and dominate the situ-
ation, or w h e n performing on the stage and one must reach every location
in the house (as taught in training, 'projecting' but not 'shouting',).
Another aspect of loudness is its grammatical functions (hardly dif-
ferentiated from its attitudinal ones), namely: (a) it is higher with stressed
syllables (e.g., 'He's an excellent student, I'm telling you'), therefore also
with higher pitch (e.g., 'I1 know 3 !'), so it is an inherent part of intonation
patterns (see a clear basic discussion of grammatical and attitudinal intona-
tional features in O ' C o n n o r 1973:264-267) and usually of direct quotations
in speech (e.g., 'Well 2 , he 3 just said, "he 3 ne4ver knew about it", but1 of
course I2 don't believe it', where w e can roughly see the attitudinal varia-
tions, even on the most stressed syllable ne); (b) it drops with interpola-
tions, which are usually uttered in a quicker tempo (e.g., 'Tomorrow, if it
doesn't rain, we'll go'), and coincides with pitch differences at final
junctures (e.g., 'He's coming tomorrow', as a statement of fact; 'He's c o m -
ing tomorrow?', as one of the forms of questions; and ' W h y ' s he coming
tomorrow?', meaning ' W h y tomorrow?').
Attitudinally, however, softness and loudness of voice (apart from
whispering, discussed later on) need hardly any illustration, and it links
with the situational aspects just mentioned. It refers both to interactive sit-
uations (conversation and its topic, relationship with the other conversants,
m o o d , in oratory, in an occupational type of encounter and according to
status relationship, etc.) and to noninteractive situations (e.g., talking to
oneself in a volume improper w h e n in the presence of others). According to
Davitz's (1964) test of emotional sensitivity, softness + slow rate (tempo)
are used to express affection and sadness, loud voice 4- fast rate for anger
and joy, moderate-to-low + moderately slow for boredom, moderately
high 4- moderately fast for cheerfulness, normal + moderately fast for
impatience, and normal loudness and normal tempo for satisfaction; but, of
course, one must allow for affect-blends and for variables such as socioedu-
cational level, personality, or sensitivity toward others. Scherer (1979c)
links loud voice 4- fast tempo to happiness/joy and to confidence and anger,
low-slow to boredom and grief/sadness, and loud 4- slow to contempt; and,
like some others, he (Scherer 1978) correlates it with extraversion.
It is important to recognize the intimate relationship between loudness
and the other nonverbal behaviors (e.g., rasp, loud and high-pitched voice
182 PARALANGUAGE
4.5 Tempo
4.6 Pitch
Pitch level
Pitch range (termed 'pitch range' by Laver [1972], 'raised' and 'lowered' by
Pittinger and Smith [1957]), or dominant tone in which a portion of speech
of whatever length is conducted — as differentiated from the permanently
superimposed timbre that individuates each of us — is the most significant
P R I M A R Y QUALITIES 185
associated with strident, shrill, tense voices"; other pitches are below
optimum also from vocal abuse and they are referred to as 'husky', 'harsh',
'hoarse' and 'rough'. "Executives seem to be more inclined to this disorder
than, say, truck drivers, suggesting that the laryngeal mechanics for ulcera-
tion are more effective in those persons emotionally predisposed to gastric
ulcers" (Perkins 1971:509).
A workable five-point scale of pitch level is: Very low — low —
m e d i u m — high — very high.
Pitch range
dently of their individual ranges, can also choose the range of what they
want to express. Which links again with what was discussed in Chapter 3
with respect to the limitation of words. There is a great verbal economy in
delivering that same sentence with one intonation range or another, for
without them, the speaker would have to verbalize further his exact inten-
tion or feeling (the reader m a y try to do just that and will find it very dif-
ficult). T h e most typical pitch-range disorder is the so-called morning voice
(or 'postsleep voice'), due to the relaxation of the laryngeal muscles upon
awakening, which produces a pitch level which is only one segment of the
speaking voice and too narrowed, without "theflexibilityand melody, c o m -
fort and carrying power necessary for daily conversational activities"
(Cooper 1971:589), voice being heavy and throaty, with a hoarse quality to
it, although it is said to be the most physiologically relaxed and effortless
voice range and level.
T h e scale of pitch range includes: Overnarrow — narrow — m e d i u m
— wide— overwide (either in an abrupt manner or gradually).
Pitch registers
Each language and each speaker favors the use of lower or higher registers
within a given level and range. Their paralinguistic use is quite noticeable,
and, as discussed above, very high pitches (which again will correlate with
kinesic markers) tend to be used with expressions of surprise, terror, happi-
ness, while overlow ones punctuate incredulity, a somber warning, or a pas-
sionate intimate statement, covering either words or paralinguistic alter-
nants like a shout, a m o a n , or an expression of repugnance. But North-
Americans, for instance, depart from the usual range observed in Spanish,
French or Italian, in abrupt ways that characterize those expressions of sur-
prise or confirmation. It is quite typical to see an Anglo-American or
Anglophone Canadian apply to Spanish (which usually uses three linguistic
pitches) his four, even five registers as part of his lack of paralinguistic
fluency in the foreign language, in a sentence like ¡¿De verdad que viene?!
¡Qué bien! ('¡¿Is he really coming?! !Good!') giving verdad, viene and bien
an overhigh pitch that nears falsetto, so c o m m o n in such expressions in his
o w n speech. In fact, "falsetto is not u n c o m m o n in reaching higher than nor-
mal pitches for expressive purposes, so an extra wide fall on Wonderful·.
m a y drop from high falsetto to a very low creaky voice" (O'Connor
1973:267), to use also a quotation from a British speaker.
P R I M A R Y QUALITIES 189
Pitch intervals
A s w e speak from one syllable to another and the voice passes also from
one pitch to another there are intervals between them, which w e can spread
or squeeze d o w n with a monotone effect. Spread interval, or spread regis-
ter, is accompanied by drawling and used typically w h e n w e call someone
from a distance and in other vocative uses of people's names. It must be
noted that the interval that is spread the most is the one following the prim-
ary-stress (and louder) syllable, but that both the one before and the one
following (and the last one in longer utterances) pertain also of the drawl-
ing, for instance: '¡Mo—ther!' (or '¡Moootheer!'), '¡Mister-Wi—lliam-son!'
(or '¡Misteer Wiiilliaam-son!'). It also must be noted that monosyllablcs are
split and dealt with as longer words, as in '¡Pe—et!' (just as in '¡Pe—ter!'),
and that interrogatives are drawled only on the last syllable, as in
'¡¿Mother—?!', '¡¿Mister Williamson—?!' T h e above applies, of course, to
English, but the reader can observe the characteristics of pitch-interval
spreading in his o w n language (e.g., Sp. ¡Mamá—/). Spread interval occurs
also in expressions of boredom, approval, excitement, etc. (e.g., 'But that's
— wonn—derful!', 'Oh—no—t again—!'). Squeezed interval is used, for
instance, "with rasp, particularly with the vocative said with the intonation
pattern 2-2-2, signals lack of interest or weariness" (Pittinger and Smith
1957:73). "their customary morning farewell, she singing, 'Good-bye John,
don't stay long,' he singing back, 'I'll be back in a week or two'" (Agee DF,
II, 36).
T h e scale is: oversqueezed — squeezed — m e d i u m — overspread.
error. For those intonemes which, as has been discussed earlier, are gradu-
ally acquired as part of the verbal-nonverbal developmental process (e.g.,
for irony, contempt, sarcasm, innuendo, m o c k nervousness, sassiness, self-
assurance, and so m a n y more), are far from being universal, and constitute
a sort of 'unspoken vocabulary' that just defies systematic learning. O n e
example (in which pitch interval predominates) will suffice: while an
American daughter says in English to her mother: 'Mo—ther—!', meaning
exactly, ' W h y , mother, h o w can you say that in front of these people/this
person?!', her Spanish counterpart will say: '¡Pero, m a m á ! ' , and each of
them would try to apply her o w n intoneme to express the same feeling in
the other language.
Finally, there is a very interesting, albeit misunderstood, aspect of
intonation, and that is the seemingly isolated use of it. W e k n o w that into-
nation, even if viewed as m a d e up of stresses, pitches and junctures, cannot
be broken into discrete units because it is a continuum formed,, at any rate
by gradual elements (even if w e acknowledge 'alotones') whose meaning is
given by the whole contour and not by individual stresses or junctures, as it
is not given by single phonemes either. The fact that a number of non-
vocalic, nonconsonantal, closed-lip or open-lip utterances are regarded by
m a n y as intonation ('intonation without words') leads some to the equivo-
cation that intonation can be isolated, separated from a segmental stretch
of speech and uttered alone, w h e n in reality w e are again producing the two
levels referred to above, the segmental one (in this case a paralinguistic
construct) and the nonsegmental or intonational one. Such is the case of a
paralinguistic alternant like a glottalized gliding mid-to-higher-back vowel
(segmental), with open or closed lips, overridden by a pitch contour 4-2,
two stresses and a falling terminal juncture (nonsegmental), meaning,
according to context and pitch variations, '¡Oh, I see!', '¡Good!', '¡Deli-
cious!', etc.
The fact that intonation can be both grammatical and attitudinal (Crys-
tal 1971:200) does not m e a n that it can carry any more meaning than nas-
ality or whispering would by themselves, unless they occur with words or
with paralinguistic alternants (considered segmental) like '¡Eeugh!',
' ¡ H m m ! ' . O n e cannot speak with intonation alone. W e can modulate a long
stretch like ' M m m m m m m m m ' , attaching to it the intonation contour which
would correspond to ' ¿ M a y I go with you?', for instance, or 'I don't k n o w
where she went' — and in face to face it would be doubly expressed by
facial and other kinesic activities — but w h e n w e do that w e are evoking an
192 PARALANGUAGE
Besides the speech characteristics that depend mainly on pitch and volume
w e consciously or unconsciously control the speed or tempo of each of the
syllables that m a k e up our speech. Syllabic duration, or tempo of individual
syllables — as differentiated from the linguistic length of vowels and conso-
nants, and from speech tempo, seen below — is conspicuously paralinguis-
tic in drawling and clipping, which, as primary qualities, can also be perma-
nent characteristics of a person's voice norm, whether continuously present
— the person w h o 'speaks with a drawl' — or consistently appearing in
given situation with attitudinal functions, always expressing that feeling
with a drawl. They can modify not only words, but those word-like paralin-
guistic alternants which do not consist only of a quick contact-and-release
articulation (i.e., one can drawl or clip a m o a n , a hiss, but not a click).
M a n y semantic subtleties would never be expressed with words alone were
it not for these two qualities, prolongation and shortening of generally only
one syllable in longer words (e.g., 'Mooother!', 'Perf't!') or the only sylla-
ble (e.g., ' O o o o h ! ' , ' O h ! ' ) .
Drawling and clipping characterizes dialectal speech in some regions,
such as the typical drawl of southerners in the United States, or various
areas of Hispanic America (Argentina, Mexico), or Galicia (in Spain), all
as part of their intonation patterns, to which other attitudinal functions can
be added. Similarly, the speech of the less educated speakers of m a n y areas
in the United States and England is typically sprinkled with apocopated
('an' for 'and', ' m o s ' for 'most', 'foun' for 'found') and syncopated forms
( ' m a ' a m ' , 'bott'l', 'catt'l'), which actually can more legitimately be called
clipping than the quickening or shortening in a fast spoken 'Right!', or
'Yes!'. 2 N o w , ' Y e a h ' and ' Y e p ' , and ' N o p e ' are always given in the litera-
ture as examples of what w e do with 'Yes' and ' N o ' in English and it has
PRIMARY QUALITIES 193
4.9 Rhythm
4.10 Conclusion
T h e relevance of primary qualities, not only in interaction but for the iden-
tification and social perception of the speaker, justifies their being grouped
together as the basic paralinguistic category. But it would be rather
shortsighted if w e tried to isolate that cluster of voice features from the
inherent visual features of the face and body, particularly the former. For
instance, the image a m a n has of an attractive w o m a n , not only as he faces
her but w h e n he thinks of her, m a y be composed of the following dual vis-
ual-acoustic portrait: the timbre of her voice, its habitual pitch range, or the
pitch she uses to express specific ideas or reactions, as well as her generally
lively loudness, the characteristic slightly nasal resonance, her melodious
intonation contours, h o w she sometimes drawls certain syllables to give
them an especial emphasis, and the smooth rhythm of her delivery, all
become alive again in his imagination, that is, they travel most vividly
through time. But he would not be able to reconstruct that voice without
the dynamic part of her speech any more than he would think of her with-
out imagining her face, for those rather lively pitch and intonation features
are always translated into equally lively facial and manual language mar-
kers; likewise, as the drawling of her syllables coincides sometimes with her
long gazing, the smooth rhythm of her face, hands and body as she speaks
is precisely what evokes the rhythm of her voice. Then those acoustic and
visual aspects of hers are judged by him according to his o w n personal and
196 PARALANGUAGE
cultural esthetic values, which he applies to those basic qualities of both her
voice and her kinesic behaviors. A n d just as these audible and visual qual-
ities are so important in the imaginative reconstruction of the person — to
the point that w e m a y even act on them later on — so are they on a first
encounter for forming in us that first impression that will condition further
interactions.
Notes
1. "Anda despacio; habla con reposo; pero no de manera que parezca que te
escuchas a ti mismo; que toda afectación es mala."
2. This meaning of 'clipping' is not to be confused with 'clipping or back formation',
"a sort of instinctive search for short roots in long words" (Mencken 1963:203),
such as 'fridge', 'perm', for 'refrigerator', (hair) 'permanent', to which 'instinct'
nevertheless all forms of shortening are related.
3. I recall a radio interview with the late actor Gary Cooper in which he answered
"Yep" and "Nope" in a very relaxed manner to the comments, "They say you are
a m a n of few words" and "You don't talk too much", respectively.
TRANSCRIPTION S Y M B O L S F O R PARALINGUISTIC P R I M A R Y
QUALITIES
Timbre
very low (2|)] high[(|l)]
low[(l|)] very high[(|2)]
Resonance
thin voice [( | o)] very pharyngeal [( |++)]
oral[(|o)] nasal[|~
very oral [( 0)] very nasal [( | ~)]
pharyngeal [(|+)]
Loudness
very low/soft [(= | ] higMoud [( | +)]
low/soft [-| ] very high/loud [ | + + ) ]
The above can be placed before/above transcription, with crescendo [—>] or diminuendo
[<—] above the five basic loudness symbols
Tempo
very slow [(« | )] very fast [( | »)]
slow[<| )] fast [(|>)]
PRIMARY QUALITIES 197
Whispery voice
The physiology of whispering was described in Chapter 2.4 showing the var-
ious ways in which, with more muscular effort than for breathing but still
without the vibration of the vocal folds, there is a hissing sound. If to this
w e add articulated speech w e can produce, depending on the amount of
glottis friction and air pressure, three main degrees of whispered speech
(and even five, rather than the two traditionally mentioned) which can be
considered the conspicuous points in a scalar continuum. O n e is soft whis-
pered voice, which m a y be thought of as 'mouth-to-ear whispering', used
for utmost secrecy or w h e n speaking is utterly improper, and which can be
also 'oversoft'. Next would be normal whispered voice, which typically
m a n y speakers cannot produce continuously, intermittently applying exces-
204 PARALANGUAGE
sive pressure and producing normal voice, the sort of whispering others will
surely complain about during a performance, at the movies or in class.
Forced whispered voice (and even 'overforced'), is the so-called 'stage
whisper', which, depending like the others on a proxemic relationship, is
used to span nonconversational distances (as from an actual stage to the
farthest parts of the house), to repress anger, indignation, etc., in close-
range face-to-face interaction when normal voice is not allowed or the
speaker does not want to be overheard, or in some uncontrollable outbursts
of emotion.
Normal whispering, though, is the most widely used form. It would be
interesting, first of all, to investigate the functions of whispering crosscul-
turally. Phonologically, it is a feature of Oklahoman C o m a n c h e , and
Ladefoged (1971:12-14, cited in Laver 1980:139-140) refers to the
phonological opposition of whispered voice, which he calls 'murmur', in
Indo-Aryan languages (e.g., Hindi, Urdu, Sindhi, Marathi, Bengali,
Assamese, Gujarati, Bihari and Marwari), and to some murmured conso-
nants in Southern Bantu languages (e.g., Zulu). Paralinguistically, K e y
(1975: 47-48) mentions h o w in embarrassment "the voice m a y dwindle to a
whisper", something I have observed in m a n y cultures as a typical feminine
behavior of embarrassment and coyness; she also mentions that in one of
the Naga tribes of India "where the ceremonial marriage is very formal, all
the talking must be in a whisper when the bride and procession enter the
bridegroom's house", and that Sir James Frazer reported in 1919 instances
of a newly-widowed w o m a n in both British East Africa and among the
Californian Indians w h o "if she could speak at all, was permitted only to
whisper [...] for several months in some cases".
Typically, normal whispering is used to express intimacy, but also to
establish a secrecy or confidentiality which m a y be conveyed more by the
whispering itself than by the topic discussed, thus being used sometimes for
manipulative purposes, as it is to gossip and propagate slander and negative
information about others. Hence the negative connotation of 'murmuring',
which for some phoneticians is a synonym of whispering. It is used also to
m a k e short statements, or typically to end longer ones, w h e n one wishes to
express sincerity, concern or friendly advice, or for affiliative purposes,
since it seems to presuppose a closer bond between speaker and listener.
But whispered language can be used also in admiration: "All were silent for
a m o m e n t , and then Jane spoke./ ' A n d he [Tarzan] is out there,' she said in
an awe-hushed whisper" (Rice Burroughs TA, X X I V , 202). It must be
QUALIFIERS 205
added that the ingressive O h ! ' , 'What?!' or 'Yeah!' are usually uttered in a
whisper, and that breathy voice, m u c h more than whispering (but perhaps
added to it), conveys intimacy, particularly sexual.
In sum, whispering, since very often it implies concealment, can be
said to correspond to attitudes which in the final analysis are negative
rather than positive. Both in the Old and N e w Testament whispering
appears as a negative behavior, for instance: " A perverse m a n sows strife,/
A n d a whisperer separates the best of friends" (Proverbs 16:28), "whisper-
ers, backbiters, haters of G o d " (Romans 21:29-30). Even the instinctive
attraction w e m a y feel toward the whisperer out of curiosity m a y not neces-
sarily respond to positive motives. But it is true that, as a magazine adver-
tisement for perfume (always supposedly subtle) says, "If you want to cap-
ture someone's attention, whisper", for, it adds, "a whisper is almost
impossible to resist". O n the other hand, as will be seen, whispering, as
with other qualifiers, can be combined with various other voice qualities,
thus being a voice of, for instance, secrecy and passion.
A s for the kinesic correlates of whispering, one could generalize saying
that soft whispered speech shows very little kinesics because the 'speaking
face' is not visible to the listener and because the very low loudness would
not elicit any conspicuous facial muscular activity or bodily movements.
With normal whispering, however, w e typically see frowning, eye-squint-
ing, light smiling; sometimes one hand shielding speech from possible
others or looking back or sideways to enhance the secrecy before starting
and then at intervals (as stereotyped in acting); often stretching the mouth
toward the listener if not frontally oriented toward him, while looking 'out'
quite theatrically: "the hideous old m a n [...] pointing at him, and whisper-
ing to another m a n , with his face averted, w h o sat beside him" (Dickens
, X X X I V , 255). Children often whisper a confession or request looking
d o w n in shyness, and casting their eyes d o w n , and whispering is a well-
k n o w n feminine attitude of embarrassment or shyness. In contrast, the loud
or overloud whispered speech necessary to span a distance unsuitable for
intimate conversation, or the truly 'theatrical' stage whisper, elicit tense
facial expression.
Phonatory disorders that cause involuntary whispery voice are deter-
mined by anomalous vocal fold movements and are called aphonias, c o m -
monly referred to as aphonic voice. Apart, however, from complete
aphonia, or loss of the voice (during which whisper speechflowssmoothly),
or the partial loss of it, both caused typically by physical factors, such as
206 PARALANGUAGE
abuse of the vocal folds (e.g., after m u c h raucous shouting in different situ-
ations) or by hysterical conversion, there is an intermittent aphonia, in
which voice and whisper alternate during speech. F r o m a psychological and
a communicational point of view, there is a form of paralinguistic intermit-
tent aphonia called spastic aphonia or hysterical disphonia, during which
whispering and voicing alternate with each other spasmodically up to sev-
eral times within a single word, usually with some breathiness or hoarseness
(see M o o r e 1971:537). This is a manifestation of 'conversion hysteria', that
is, w h e n a mental conflict is converted into this physical symptom, which I
have observed sometimes, for instance, during or in the aftermath of an
emotional conflict.
A five-point scale would acknowledge all the meaningful forms of
whispered voice: oversoft whisper — soft whisper — normal whisper —
loud whisper — overloud whisper.
Murmured voice
For practical reasons, w e could try to identify the type of voice that in terms
of loudness is neither whisper nor full voice, but is uttered in an undertone
that makes it less than distinctive to the ear, perceived as 'a stream' (when
heard at a certain distance, often referred to as 'murmuring'), yet with
almost complete vocal fold vibration and without the sighing quality of
whisper (but with some breathiness) and with more tension, air pressure
and friction. W e would then find that murmuring (from the echoic Lat.
murmurare), also called sotto voce, is the most appropriate term for just
that voice quality. S o m e phoneticians use it as synonymous with whispering
and some dictionaries even refer to 'incomplete articulation' (equating m u r -
muring with mumbling). This seems to negate the status that 'murmuring'
— from the m u c h evoking murmurare — should have, and actually has,
both in literature and to one's ear, as differentiated from whispering (that
is, not having its peculiar hissing, nor its characteristic tension), since both
terms are very well differentiated for the sensitive speaker/listener. ' M u r -
muring', however, seems to be associated with lower registers, also with
complaint or dissatisfaction, but, in literature, m u c h more with satisfaction
and expressions of love: "'Yes, — m y love, yes — , m y love [...]'/ 'Yes', she
murmured, nestling very sweet and close to him" (Lawrence W L , XIII,
175).
QUALIFIERS 207
Breathy voice
Closer to full voice, but still letting too m u c h air through for lack of suffi-
cient muscular effort, the vocal folds produce "a sigh-like mixture of breath
and voice" (Catford 1977:101), that is, giving modal voice the hissing or
sighing quality of breathy voice ( c o m m o n also to whispery voice) which can
appear also in combinations with other laryngeal features, as defined later.
This "combination of vocal fold sound and whisper noise produced by tur-
bulent air" (Moore 1971:537) adds also a powerful paralinguistic element to
speech.
Breathiness itself is associated, first of all, with uncontrollable nonver-
bal expression of sexual arousal, thus obscene telephone callers ('telephone
breathers', as they are called sometimes), the stereotyped film sex symbols
and anyone trying to seduce someone else display breathy voice, as do male
and female models in television commercials advertising perfume, shaving
and body lotions, smooth fabrics or any other products that m a y suggest
sensual intrapersonal or interpersonal intimacy. It can be said, in fact, that
breathy voice is one of the main tools of advertising today, with manipula-
tive consequences far beyond the actual purchase a product. But it is in gen-
eral a quality of emotional reactions ('¡I love you!'), often preceded
immediately by the inhaling phase of a sigh, its egressive phase qualifying
the verbal expression as in ' A h , I just don't know!'. Breathiness is also the
sound of weariness, of facing difficult decisions, of answering difficult ques-
tions under tension or giving serious advice (often practiced in a m u c h
stereotyped manner by 'masculine-type' male actors, typically using the
prespeech inhalation), of shock ('Oh, m y G o d ! ' ) , confusion ('I just don't
k n o w ' ) , anxiety, and dismissal ('Oh, of course not!'). It must be noted that
whisperiness and breathiness can serve to give speech the same attitudinal
functions at times, as in weariness, during sexual advances, shock, etc. and,
of course, in an intimate or passionate conversation, in which both breathi-
ness and whisperiness m a y alternate.
A s a speech disorder, breathiness shows organic similarities and differ-
ences with whisperiness or aphonia (cf. M o o r e 1971:541-543) and it is
caused basically by lack of enough infraglottal air pressure either because
there is a very short vocal-fold closed phase in vibration or because they do
not close completely. But, apart from the organic problems, breathiness
can also be caused by fatigue and illness.
A two-point scale of breathiness is sufficient to identify this qualifier:
breathy — very breathy.
208 PARALANGUAGE
Laryngealized voice, or pulsated voice (also called creaky voice, glottal fry
because of its frying-like or bubbling-like quality, etc.) was described ear
lier (Chapter 2.4), thus, what remains to be discussed is its communica-
tional status, perception and functions. Laryngealization of certain
phonemes and short utterances is phonological (as acknowledged, for
instance, in Laver 1980:126) in Arabic, Chadic and Nilotic languages, as
well as in some instances in Danish. O n e of the characteristics of tone lan
guages like Chinese (to whose sounds w e are becoming accustomed in so
m a n y areas of North America) is precisely their easily identifiable creaky
quality of syllables with low or falling tones (mentioned also by Laver).
QUALIFIERS 209
Falsetto voice
The voice m o d e at the high end of the pitch scale was identified already as
falsetto voice, also called 'light voice'. It does not seem to have phonologi-
cal value in any language, but it definitely performs important functions as
a paralinguistic qualifier of both verbal language and paralanguage itself.
Besides Pike's reference to 'yodelling', mentioned in the previous chapter
as an illustration of falsetto, Laver (1980:120) notes that in one of the
Mayan languages of Mexico they use falsetto as a sign of respect in greet-
ing, even throughout an entire formal exchange. Key (1975:111) refers to
the female speech in the Gbeya people of the Central African Republic,
often modified by falsetto, apparently in the expression of "emotions and
attitudes". Falsetto is definitely a feature of black American speech, both in
males and females, but with functions not dissimilar to those played among
white North-American speakers, only a little higher in pitch and typically
spreading over longer utterances, but in general in the same situations, that
is, surprise or indignation (e.g., '¡¿What?!'), emphatic affirmation
('¡Yeah!', and the typical '¡Yeah, m a n ! ' of the black young male), in several
forms of laughter (where blacks may differ from whites in their kinesic
cobehaviors, such as loosely clapping hands and twisting body), c o m m o n to
African black speakers, in enthusiastic approval (e.g., '¡Wonderful!',
'¡Ooooh!'), or the typical television host's or comedian's drawled and
falsetto '¡Ooh!' confirming the success of a joke or someone else's funny
intervention, and, of course, in various forms of screaming, singing and
laughing. Falsetto is also associated with a young girl's innocence, or
feigned innocence.
QUALIFIERS 211
Harsh voice
Metallic voice
Husky voice
Husky (since 19th denoting a dry throat and its resulting voice) is defined
by WINID as 'dry' or 'rough' and 'hoarse' (as with emotion), and by
FWNSD as 'rough', 'dry' and 'hoarse'. For m a n y years the American stage
and film actress Lauren Bacall has been identified by the sensual attractive-
ness of her husky voice. Thus, it seems — not only from dictionary defini-
tions but as referred to in real life and in literature — that huskiness can be
regarded as a rather positive quality w h e n judged as seductively sensual in
w o m e n because of the other meanings of the word (and some specialists
have equated it even to breathiness, certainly a quality in Bacall's voice), or
reflecting a husky body. But it can be regarded also as a negative quality if,
for instance, it is judged masculine in a w o m a n , or w h e n w e associate it
with a rather harsh attitude. Thus, for practical purposes and responding to
social perception, it could be associated with the more 'normal' "deep, soft,
whispery voice" (Laver 1972:195), while hoarse voice, seen below, could be
applied to the pathological forms of rough voice. A n d yet, huskiness can be
referred to also as a deterioration of normal voice: ' " O h — I'm so sick. I
feel so awful. M y voice is husky and muffled, a retching of words'" (Laur-
ence SA, VIII, 246).
Three degrees of huskiness can be differentiated: slightly husky —
husky — extremely husky.
216 PARALANGUAGE
Hoarse, on the other hand, seems to imply a quality acquired through some
negative activities and even give a poor image of the speaker's personality.
Yet few would be able to define its physiology, nor distinguish it from hus-
kiness or any other type of rough voice. In fact, it has been reported (Per-
kins 1971:497) that six speech pathologists could not agree, w h e n asked to
judge the voices of cheerleaders suffering from vocal strain, on the distinc-
tion a m o n g hoarseness, breathiness and harshness because of a " c o m m o n
process basic to the production of these different qualities". A n d while a
speech specialist defines hoarseness as the combination of a low-pitched
phonatory sound from the vocal folds and a noise that is similar to the rela-
tively constant static noise from a radio (Moore 1971:538), Laver
(1972:195) identifies it as "deep, (loud), harsh/ventricular whispery voice".
WYNID assigns to 'hoarse' the following characteristics: 'low', 'harsh',
'husky', 'often muffled', 'with little or no resonance (as w h e n being with a
cold, from too m u c h talking, or speaking with emotion)', while FWNSD
describes it as 'harsh', 'rough' and 'with grating effect (as w h e n having a
cold, or speaking with fatigue)'. S O E D links it to the voice of a raven or
frog, and offers quotations which apply it to the h u m a n voice (16th c.), the
raven and the storm. Hoarseness, considered a typical dysphonia (i.e.,
laryngeal dysfunction that interferes with optimum vocal fold adduction),
can vary greatly: "scarcely distinguishable from breathiness [...] some per-
sons will exhibit hoarseness at one m o m e n t and breathiness at another [...]
Hoarseness m a y contain so m u c h noise that there is little evidence of vocal
sound as such" (Moore 1971:543). For some 'hoarseness' is different from
'huskiness' in that "the vocal folds vibrate in an aperiodic, irregular or
haphazard manner" (Brackett 1971:452). It shows definitely low pitch
which is also restricted in range, sometimes falling and rising suddenly, and
sometimes with moments of aphonia. It can be caused, not just by cancer of
the vocal folds, but by a cold, by laryngitis, or simply by m u c h strain, as
after shouting or singing (the typical voice of 'the morning after'), because
a ruptured blood vessel produces swelling (polyps). The hoarse effect can
also be produced by interference of one of the ventricular folds, by removal
of part or all of a vocal fold, and by interfering mucus (sometimes one has
to cough or clear one's throat), which vibrates.
Three types of hoarse voice are usually differentiated: dry hoarseness,
of increased intensity and breathiness, wet hoarseness, characterized by
QUALIFIERS 217
breathiness, low pitch and often creakiness, and rough hoarseness, with
additional low-pitched sounds because the vocal folds vibrate at two loca-
tions and voice is perceived as a two-tone one. Hoarseness, of course, can
be also momentary if it marks periods of m u c h strain or emotion, or while
choking — although literary references usually describe what is actually a
voice disorder — and, like m a n y other qualities, it can be coupled to other
voice types (e.g., whisperiness).
However, there are still other synonymous labels used both in litera-
ture and in conversation which, while describing the quality of hoarseness,
would be very difficult to identify as the dry, wet or rough type. O n e is
croaking (echoic origin, from M E . croken, of persons since 15th c , m e a n -
ing a voice which is harsh, throaty and raucous, similar to the cry of a frog
and a raven, both of which croak), associated also with qualities like 'tartly'
or sour.
Another label for hoarse voice is raucous voice (Lat. raucous, hoarse),
described by WYNID as "disagreeably harsh and strident", and by FWNSD
as "rough, hoarse, harsh", and as "the raucous voice of a frog".
Again, w e find that harshness, huskiness and hoarseness seem to be
simultaneously present in voice sometimes, in fact, in some throaty voices
(defined by dictionaries as 'guttural', 'hoarse') and in some gruffVoices (de-
fined as 'harsh', 'throaty', 'hoarse') (from Early M o d . D . grof, akin to G .
grob, coarse, of voice since 17th c.), identified by Laver (1972:195) as
"deep, harsh, whispery, creaky voice" that m a y voluntarily express anger
and other negative interpersonal attitudes: '"Start what?' M y voice is gruff
with suspicion" (Laurence S A , I, 30).
Another form of hoarse voice is growling (which describes also the
facial gesture of the growling beast) ( M E . groule, of the bowels' rumbling;
since 18th of a person's voice, m a y b e echoism).
Three-degree scales can conveniently serve to broadly measure volun-
tary or involuntary hoarseness: slightly hoarse — hoarse — extremely
hoarse. For the other four qualities (which are difficult to identify at times,
but should be acknowledged because they are used in conversation and in
literature and, therefore, differentiated) one degree of identification should
be sufficient.
218 PARALANGUAGE
Tremulous voice
If the functions of the larynx and the voice qualities it can lend speech are
systematically identified, esophageal voice must at least be included under
paralinguistic qualifiers. Its muscular physiology, auditory characteristics
and functions have been described in Chapter 2.3. Besides the esophageal
QUALIFIERS 219
speech caused by surgical removal of the larynx, esophageal air, not pul-
monic air, is used, as was said, to eructate (about one word can be uttered
in a long eructation), otherwise it can be said to occur (from a communica-
tional point of view) only paralinguistically as a belch, which should then be
treated as an alternant. A s for esophageal speech, with which laryngec-
tomees are obliged to speak, it is always somewhat hoarse. T o learn to pro-
duce it the patient m a y be asked to belch voluntarily and then gradually say
words like 'yes' and ' n o ' and later produce whole sentences, realizing "that
his larynx was only a sound producer, and that the tongue, soft palate, lips
and related structures formed the sound into speech" (Moore 1971:566).
A s discussed in Chapter 2.5, the pharynx acts, like the oral and nasal
cavities, as a resonating chamber for vocal band vibrations w h e n it changes
its shape during speech, becoming longer, shorter, wider or narrower,
which produces various pharyngeal voice qualifiers with important func-
tions.
The most obvious voice quality produced in the pharynx is, of course,
the secondary articulation discussed before as pharyngealization, produced
w h e n the root of the tongue approximates the back wall of the pharynx. A s
a paralinguistic qualifier this pharyngeal resonance m a y be used, for
instance, w h e n speaking with mocking contempt, scorn or aggressiveness,
and in some forms of ventriloquism, which, as with other paralinguistic or
kinesic features, cannot be taken as a pancultural behavior.
T w o degrees of pharyngealization are enough to differentiate occur-
rences of it: pharyngealized — extremely pharyngealized.
Pharyngeal huskiness
laryngeal huskiness by the tense narrowing and friction one feels in the
throat. In fact, passing from one type to another is easy and can be used for
especial voluntary voice effects. Again, the popular use of the terms
'husky', 'hoarse', 'throaty' and 'rasp' can often refer to either pharyngeal or
laryngeal huskiness. The term 'throaty' (i.e., 'coming from the throat') is
actually the more colloquial one for 'guttural' (i.e., 'coming from the
throat', from Lat. guttur throat), identified by WTNID as "heavy, thick,
deep as if from low in the throat", and as "a rich voice", thus it is quite
ambiguous and the listener or reader can imagine different qualities.
T w o degrees of pharyngeal huskiness can be identified: pharyngeal
huskiness — extreme pharyngeal huskiness.
Muffled voice
If, unlike for pharyngealization, w e push the body of the tongue forward
and away from the relaxed pharynx walls and faucal arches (which damps
high frequency and produces mellow tone, lower pitch and relaxed tension
of the voice) the voice then sounds muffled. Other labels are used both in
everyday life and in literature, most of which are listed by Laver (1980:141)
as opposed to metallic voice: 'mellow' (thought of as the opposite to harsh-
ness, stridency, metallicness), 'soft', 'dull' and 'obscure' (with a possible
and unnecessary negative connotation), 'guttural', 'thick', 'rich', 'full', etc.
These terms, particularly 'mellow', 'rich', 'full' and 'thick', are used to refer
to maturity, full w o m a n h o o d and masculinity, etc., and other positive
traits. The label 'muffled', however, has but negative connotations, either
regarding the speaker's personality or attitude or the voice itself, but it is
used most commonly to refer to a sound, including voice, which is
deadened by something, particularly cloth (the word's original meaning):
"she sobbed, her voice muffled in the thick folds" (Fitzgerald G G , V , 70).
Hollow voice
the oral cavity, along with lower pitch and some breathy effect, thus sound-
ing resounding and orotund (as indicated earlier, from Lat. ore rotundo,
with round mouth, suggesting the accompanying facial gesture), terms
often used also for hollow voice. S o m e famous traditional-type orators have
had that kind of voice and it is a stereotyped quality for mysterious charac-
ters and somber situations.
T w o degrees of hollowness can be conveniently distinguished: hollow
— extremely hollow.
Faucalization
The last type of pharyngeal voice control that could be mentioned is the one
which, by drawing the faucal pillars toward each other (as w h e n beginning
to retch), produces faucalized speech (in contrast to the relaxed, mellow
voice characteristic of relaxed faucal arches), used just for fun or, for
instance, to imitate the twanginess of the American hillbilly's speech.
T w o degrees of faucalization are: faucalized (or twangy) — extremely
faucalized (or twangy).
Gulping
Gulping is another qualifier of not more than one or two sounds or just of
breathing which occurs mostly in the pharyngeal area, caused by emotional
tension, but also produced at will (e.g., in m o c k fear). The root of the ton-
gue touches the lower and upper pharynx in a sort of strangulated articula-
tion that lends speech a tense postalveolar velic quality, the posterior faucal
pillars, which normally help in swallowing, produce the effect of an Arabic
faucal approximant, and the velum is pulled up closing the velopharyngeal
passage, all causing also the typical sudden jerk of the neck.
Whining voice
Whimpering voice
Twangy voice
Twangy voice is "the type of voice that anyone can produce by pinching the
nostrils and 'talking into the nose'", and it can be caused by "the combina-
tion of an anterior blockage in the nose and an open velopharyngeal chan-
nel or by a small velopharyngeal orifice and normal nasal passage" (Moore
1971:538-539). It is the anterior blockage that makes the nose act as a
resonator and emphasize nasal sounds while the oral cavity and the pharynx
have normal resonance.
T w a n g ' is an echoic formation to imitate "a quick sharp, vibrating
sound, as of a taut string suddenly plucked or released" and to "a sharp,
vibrant, speech sound" and "nasal intonation" ( W N W D C E ) , recorded for
speech since the early 17th Twangy voice is "a piercing sound often used
intentionally by news vendors and others to hawk their wares" (Moore
1971:539). It is, therefore, a twanginess different from the tenser one pro-
duced with the faucalization of the American hillbilly, seen before, and
WYNID gives a quotation saying "his voice was a high, twangy, unmusical
N e w England drawl". W h e n uncontrollable, twangy voice is, of course,
considered a disorder of resonance, that is, one of nasality.
T w o degrees of twanginess can be identified: twangy — extremely
twangy.
Moaning voice
Groaning voice
Grunting voice
Head-cold voice
Adenoidal voice
Nasopharyngeal voice
Retroflex voice
Retroflex voice, seen in Chapter 2.6.4, although not continuous over longer
speech segments, by being added, or 'coloring' (i.e., 'r-coloring') t, d, n , 1,
s and ζ in general American English makes us perceive speech as retroflex
because its effect, as that of American nasality, seems to pervade it.
If w e raise the back of the tongue toward the soft palate our velarized voice
will sound as if w e colored it with a sort of tense, back 'gya-gya-gya-, easier,
of course, to actually superimpose on certain articulations than others. If
the tongue-front tends continually to approximate the hard palate in
palatalized voice, the overall effect would be more like the rather babyish
'dya-dya' one: "Martha (a snarl of disimissal and contempt)
N Y Y Y Y A A A A H H H H ! " (Albee W A V W , I, 28). A n d if the tongue blade
goes further front toward the upper teeth ridge, then the resulting
alveolarized voice will be a little lispy. W e can practice all three passing
from velarization to palatalization and then to alveolarization, any of which
would be used paralinguistically, only, probably for fun, to mock some
speakers of other languages, to adopt a tone of jocular innocence, etc.
ing'), the term hardly ever used in a positive sense. But muttering can
denote also the poorly articulated voice of, for instance, fatigue and sleepi-
ness: "an indistinct muttering, as of a m a n between sleep and awake" (Dic-
kens , XII, 158).
T h e costructuration of sound and kinesic behavior is then quite appar-
ent, not only as regards the mouth, but the general expression of the face
(e.g., rather squinted eyes and typically lowered or knitted brows).
Apart from those two normal voluntary positions, two others can also
appear as permanent abnormalities and be used paralinguistically as well.
T h e first one is protracted-jaw voice, thrusting the lower jaw forward and
causing the voice to resonate nasally m o r e than orally w h e n the
nasopharynx is pulled against the velum, done typically with very narrowly
opened mouth, as in m o c k threatening, or portraying the villain type,
gangsters, thugs, etc.
T h e opposite, retracted-jaw voice is caused by a recession of the lower
jaw in imitation of the abnormal retraction which again determines nasality
and improper articulation, used also to portray types such as the mentally
retarded, the somber or abnormally shy, etc.
T h e last paralinguistic mandibular type of voice qualifier can be refer-
red to as rotating-jaw voice — actually a combination of side-to-side gesture
with protraction and retraction in between, all in a half-closed posture —
already identified as the stereotyped growling or muttering villain's speech
gesture, sometimes also the mentally abnormal character, coupled typically
to the nasality just mentioned and to strained voice.
Besides the five basic postures of the mandible w e must acknowledge
the effect on voice quality of a trembling jaw, which, as has been pointed
out, modifies also labial articulations, as from cold, emotional tension, etc.
ment of the articulators, that is, tongue, velum, lips and mandible, and
proper timing, direction of movements, pressure and speed, then articulat-
ory disorders result in incorrect speech sound production due to "faulty
placement, timing, direction, pressure, speed, or integration of these m o v e -
ments" (Powers 1971:837). T h e qualifier defined here as articulatory con-
trol should refer mostly to functional articulatory disorders, with no
anatomical, physiological or neurological basis, although, as Powers adds,
"it can be accounted for by normal variations or by environmental or
psychological factors".
At one end of the articulatory control scale w e find the meticulously
articulated speech, an overly clear, overarticulated voice, generally per-
ceived as affected, since consonantal lingual contacts are m a d e with more
muscular force and longer than usual duration, while lingual and labial
postures for both consonants and vowels are formed with individual preci-
sion, — which, of course, can be visually perceived (also as affected speech
articulation) on the tongue-tip, labiofacial area and mandible. It can be a
very conscious voluntary paralinguistic voice qualifier w h e n , for instance,
w e speak to someone in a sort of irritated 'is-that-clear?' tone of voice or
wish to emphasize the formation of every p h o n e m e speaking to a child, a
foreigner, a patient, etc., or in a declamatory fashion.
Polly pronounced the words in a sonorous monotone, as though she were
reciting to an audience. She lingered lovingly over them, rolling the r's,
hissing on the s's, humming like a bee on the m's, drawing out the long
vowels and making them round and pure. "Ghost rattle of ghost rifles, in-
fin-it-es-imal ghost canonade." (Huxley PCP, X I , 150)
But, as was mentioned above, it can be a permanent or quasiperma-
nent primary-quality type of qualifier developed as a habit which is socially
perceived as affectation. O n e degree of overarticulation is sufficient for
acknowledging this feature in a person's voice.
At the other end of the articulatory control parameter stand various
articulatory disorders which typically speakers can also m o c k voluntarily to
imitate either affectation or immaturity and childishness. O n e is the sort of
general misarticulation in several degrees which in speech therapy is called
general oral inaccuracy, caused by any or all of the factors mentioned above
with respect to articulation. Sometimes articulations are correct, but are
slow, weak and with little energy, and w e perceive that speech as 'careless',
'confused', 'distorted', 'unintelligible'. Other times speech is rapid, slur-
ring, with a jerky tempo, phonemes are dropped, condensed or distorted as
232 PARALANGUAGE
a result of overly rapid, agitated utterance (WTNID), and the term clutter
ing is generally used. Although both m a y show different degrees, w e can
identify only their basic characteristics as two paralinguistic qualifiers
(which, of course, can be permanent or voluntarily produced) and refer just
to: cluttered speech articulation, as with the well-known slurry voice of the
late film actor H u m p h r e y Bogart, w h o seemed to glide from one syllable to
another obscuring sounds by running them together, and on which Austin
(1965:34) reported over twenty years ago: "It is an affectation a m o n g some
teen-agers and 'method actors'", and which is typical, of course, of intoxi
cation; and sluggish or slow articulation (see Powers 1971).
There are, besides, two other well-known articulatory disorders which
should be identified. O n e is lisping, that is, the defective articulation of one
or more of the sibilants [s], [z], [t∫], [dz] (typically [s] and [z]). In speech
pathology they distinguish: frontal (interdental) lisp, w h e n sibilants are
replaced by [Θ] or [o], with the tongue-tip against or between the teeth; lat
eral lisp, w h e n , by too m u c h air and saliva escaping over or around the sides
of the tongue, sibilants sound like sh, a very frequent type, which produces
not only a 'slushy' acoustic effect, but sometimes a visual impression as
well, w h e n the mouth corners are intermittently pushed forward by the
escaping air; and nasal lisp, during which, due to a relaxed velum, retracted
tongue and lax lips, air escapes through the nose and often a snorted
unvoiced [n] replaces sibilants. A s Powers (1971:844) says, "sibilant distor
tion [in all forms of lisping] can be produced or accompanied by atypical lip
movements [...] labial habits unattractive visually as well as acoustically",
thus w e find again what should be seen as a kinesic component of speech,
perceived as such by the listener.
T h e other articulatory disorder is tailing, a distortion consisting in
articulating with the tip of the tongue too low in the mouth (and its body
flat and lax) sounds for which it is supposed to be placed high, mainly [r]
and [1] or both, or other apical consonants, such as [t] and [d]. A s with gen
eral oral inaccuracy, the tongue's movements are weak and sluggish, the
result being a sort of [w] or a central vowel sound. 4 W h e n the affected
sound is [1], the disorder is k n o w n as lambdacism (from the G r . letter
lambda). It should be noted that general spasmodic articulation has been
identified already as part of breathing control, the first of the qualifiers.
QUALIFIERS 233
5.13 Conclusion
BREATHING
ingressive inhaling fea,, surprise, emotional.question
spasmodic jerky anxiety, sobbing, exertion distressed breathing
LARYNGEAL
soft whispered soft whispering secrecy, speaking improper
normal whispered whispering, murmuring intimacy, concealment, emotion intermittent aphonia
forced whispered stage whisper to span distance, emotional hysterical aphonia
murmured sotto voice complaint, disatisfaction
breathy breathy voice sexual, emotions, weariness breathi ness
laryngealized (creaky) creaky voice, glottalization age, pain, effort, vehemence gravel voice, glottal fry
whispery creaky purry, whispery woman-to-baby, boredom, negation
harsh creaky repressed anger
harsh whispery creaky rejection, reluctance
falsetto light voice, high-pitched voice surprise, laugh, innocence
whispery falsetto women and children crying
creaky falsetto repugnance
PARALANGUAGE
alveolarized
tongue-thrusting to produce interdental lisping tongue thrusting
LABIAL
close-lip-rounding baby talk talking to children, pets, lovers
horizontal lip-expanison in anger, irritation, while crying
horizontal lip-constriction open-lip rounding in irritation, mockery, proud talk
vertical lip-constriction contempt, repressed anger
diagonal-upward lip-expansion as in bashful country folk
diagonal-downward
lip-expansion as in stereotyped villains, thugs
trembling lips emotion, cold
Notes
1. The criterion for identification of voice types in these tables has been (in order to
m a k e it more useful as a reference for the reader) to use the terms by which
speakers usually refer to them, that is, listing the phonetic or more technical labels
when they are also the colloquial ones (e.g., harsh, creaky) and the more impre
ssionistic ones (e.g., squawking). It has been seen (cf. Laver 1972) that some
phonetic labels are also quite impressionistic in that they evoke the sounds in
question, thus the line between 'phonetic' and 'impressionistic', from the point of
view of usage, is not a clear-cut one at all. This is followed by one or more exam
ples of possible functions of the voice type, which m a y apply to any language but
are based on North-American and British English from a linguistic-cultural point
of view. Finally, when applicable, the voice type (with the same or different term)
is identified as a recognized voice disorder in speech pathology.
3. Curious for the student of paralanguage is the quote from 1684 in SOED: "In
Singing also the Italians Bleat, the Spaniards Whine, the Germans H o w l , and the
French Quaver"; also the one from Drayton about the lark: " T h e
Larke...Quaver'd her cleare Notes in the quiet Ayre" (1606).
4. Given the standard description of lalling offered by speech pathologists, the fol
lowing literary example could an instance of the sort of inaccuracy with which w e
m a y often refer to voice quality, since the lisping quality cannot be present in what
the writer describes: "She [Miss Darrington] spoke her r's like w ' s , lisping with a
slightly babyish pronunciation which was at once affected and true to her charac
ter. Her voice was dull and toneless" (Lawrence WL, V I , 70); unless, of course,
Lawrence meant to say that his character both lalled and lisped, an unlikely com
bination.
5. Symbols (again selected among computer symbols) representing the type of voice
used can be placed only at the start of the speech segment affected or also at the
end.
QUALIFIERS 243
TRANSCRIPTION S Y M B O L S
F O R PARALINGUISTIC VOICE QUALIFIERS 5
Breathing control
ingressive speech [(>Θ)] spasmodic speech [("Θ")] whizzing [(z)]
Laryngeal control
oversoft whispered [(±±)] harsh whispery creaky falsetto[(Γ+^f)]
soft whispered [(±)j deep harsh whispery [(,Γ+)]
normal whispered [(+)] strident [(I')]
loud whispered [(¡ + !)] shrill [(| |')]
overloud whispered [(¡ ¡ + ! !)] squeaking [(<)]
murmured [(<0>)] squealing [(<:)]
breathy [(Φ)] screeching [(/!)]
very breathy [(Φ+)] squawking [(*!)]
laryngealized [(^)] cackling [(*>)]
forcefully laryngealized [(^+)] metallic [(><)]
whispery creaky [(4-)] slightly husky [(·τ)]
harsh creaky [( ^)] husky [(τ)]
harsh whispery creaky [( +)] extremely husky [(ττ)]
falsetto [(f)] slightly hoarse [(.Ω)]
whispery falsetto [(+ f)] hoarse [(Ω)]
creaky falsetto[(^f)] extremely hoarse [(ΩΩ)]
whispery creaky falsetto [(+ f)] dry hoarsenes [(Ώ)]
ventricular falsetto [(= ¡)] wet hoarseness [(Ω')]
high falsetto [(f)] rough hoarseness [(Ω>)]
slightly harsh [(- )] croaking [('*)]
harsh [( )] gruff[(*')]
extremely harsh [( )] growling[(Γ*)]
ventricular [(=)] tremulous [( f J )]
harsh creaky [( ^)] very tremulous [( \ \\ )]
harsh whispery [( +)] extremely lax [( )]
harsh whispery creaky [( + )] slightly lax [( )]
harsh falsetto [( f)] slightly tense [( )]
harsh whispery falsetto [( + f)] extremely tense [( )]
harsh creaky falsetto [( f)]
Esophageal control
esophageal [({0})]
Pharyngeal control
pharyngealized [(+)] hollow [«»]
extremely pharyngealized [(++)] extremely hollow [(«·»)]
pharyngeal huskiness [(τ+)] faucalized [(<>)]
extreme pharyngeal huskiness [(+τ+)] extremely faucalized [<<
muffled [(<·>)] gulping [(< | >)]
244 PARALANGUAGE
Velopharyngeal control
slightly nasal [(~)][(~)] slightly moaning [(A )]
nasal [(~)] deep moaning [(\)]
extremely nasal [(~)] groaning [(F)]
whining [(/)] granting [("J)]
extremely whining [(/)] head-cold[(|I)]
bleating [(>)] adenoidal [( | | )]
whimpering [(7)] nasopharyngeal [( | )]
twangy[()] extremely nasopharyngeal [( | )]
extremely twangy [( f )]
Lingual control
retroflex [(>)] alveolarized [(>)]
velarized [(»)] tongue-thrusting [(<—)]
palatalized [(»)]
Labial control
close-lip-rounding [(W)] diagonal-upward lip-expansion [(\W/)]
horizontal lip-expansion [(-W-)] diagonal-downward lip-expansion [(AV\)]
horizontal lip-constriction [ ( > W < ) ] trembling lips [(:W:)]
vertical lip-constriction [('W')]
Mandibular control
wide-open jaw [(/=\)] retracted-jaw [(J)]
half-closed jaw (muttering) [(\ =/)] rotating-jaw [(+)]
protracted-jaw [(L)] trembling jaw [(:00:)]
Articulatory control
overarticulated [(++)] frontal lisp [(·|)]
general oral inaccuracy [(-)] lateral lisp [(·/)]
cluttered [(#)] nasal lisp [(·")]
sluggish [(§)] lalling [(<w>)]
Articulatory tension control
very lax [(::)] tense [(X)]
lax[(:)] very tense [(XX)]
Objectual Control
N a m e of object indicated within brackets [ ] at opening and closing of speech segment
Chapter 6
Differentiators:
The Eloquence of Emotional and Physiological Reactions
6.1 Laughter
Laughter, despite some important studies, has not yet been given
enough attention with respect to very significant aspects within the realm of
communication. Although only some of those aspects will be discussed
here, the following could be just pointed out merely to suggest the great
amount of potential research which scholars in various fields could pursue:
a. biological foundation, in terms of age (from childhood to adulthood and
old age) and sex, as well as its well-defined forms and functions in certain
sex deviances;
b . influence of the general psychological configuration and personality on
frequency of occurrence, duration and audible and visual characteristics;
forms and functions in temporary emotional states according to sex,
socioeconomic status and culture;
d. pathological varieties;
e. forms of laughter, that is, the m a n y phonetic (paralinguistic) and visual
(kinesic) configurations as an unquestionable part of speech, or put simply,
the m a n y different ways in which one can laugh, obviously the main aspect
of this behavior and the most difficult to research;
f. their distribution and display rules across cultures; and
g. their distribution according to sex, age and socioeducational status
within each culture (i.e., as social identifiers) in given situations;
h. the 'differentiated' forms which w e refer to by means of established
definitory labels (e.g., giggling, chuckling, tittering); and
i. social interactive functions of those differentiated forms; and
j. crosscultural comparison of the presence or absence of those forms and
of their verbal identification (possibly of a c o m m o n etymological and/or
echoic base), and the similarities and differences of the situational functions
ascribed to them;
DIFFERENTIATORS 249
Bergson 1900), cultural differences (e.g., Darwin 1872: Chapt. 8), social
aspects (e.g., Simmel 1924: 370-375), pathological manifestations (e.g.,
also in Darwin 1872; Ostwald 1964, Z u k 1966, Wolfenstein 1955, Izard
1979, Morreal 1983), as child behavior (e.g., Blurton Jones 1972a, 1972b),
its relations to smiling (e.g., Darwin 1872, Haas 1970, van H o o f 1972), or
its phylogenetic development (e.g., van Hoof 1972). Instead, I would like
to offer, within the framework established for this study of paralanguage, a
few thoughts as to its morphological and functional characteristics, which
m a y at the same time serve as a contribution to a model for m u c h needed
research in the various areas just mentioned and others (e.g., literature,
theater, semiotics, speech communication).
O n e can easily see beyond the narrow limits of m a n y of the comments
on laughter w e can glean from the research. For instance, Ostwald
(1964:19) refers to laughter as "repetitive, uncontrolled, spasmodic chains
of sounds that accompany the release of accumulated tension", but close
observation soon reveals a whole gamut of variations that defy any single
definition relying on assumptions such as 'repetitive' (for it m a y be just a
single sound release), 'uncontrolled' (since w e can feign it or control it).
Haas (1970, citing Eibl-Eibesfeldt) refers to mouth opening and rhythmic
emission of sounds, but laughter, as will be discussed below, shows m a n y
forms of closed-mouth narial emissions some of which happen to perform
the more subtle functions of sardonic laughter, sarcasm, contempt, or w h e n
laughter must be repressed or muffled by social rules of etiquette. O n the
other hand, w e see no scientific references — but the astute researcher can
certainly find it in literary narrative or dramatic texts — to the various
forms of silent laughter, which sometimes could be compared to the view-
ing of a film with the sound off. A s for the findings of animal ethology, the
phylogenetic homologies of laughter have been hypothesized upon by
studying the behavior of the lower primates, which has led some like van
H o o f (1972) to see the smile as a development of the nonaggressive pri-
mate's 'silent bared-teeth' attitude, and the laugh as derived from the voc-
alized 'relaxed open mouth' of m o c k , aggression and play (cf. van Lawick-
Goodall 1973). Then w e find that in modern culturally complex behavior
(not in primitive societies, which would merit a systematic study in this
respect) laughter adopts an incredibly high number of forms that can per-
form a great variety of social functions, as will be discussed.
DIFFERENTIATORS 251
& LABELS
resonance: oral/nasal/pharyngeal
tempo: slow/medium/fast & rhythm: regular/irreg.
ingressive
continuous/spasmodic
glottal stop
whizzy/whispery/creaky/falsetto
harsh/shrill/throaty/twangy/husky
tense/lax
other qualifiers/other differentiators
bidental fricative/dentiexolabial fricative
exo/endolabiodental fric/exobilabial fricative
PARALINGUISTIC
endobilabial trill
endobilabial approximant
labialization
tongue position
interlabial vibratory fricative trill
laminodental hissing
laminosublamino-interdental
palatalization/velarization/nasalization
ingressive velic stop/vibratory velic trill
velic nasal plosive/velic nasal affricate
spasmodic/explosive narial fricative
paralinguistic offset: long/short
paralinguistic aftermath
kinesic leader(s)
KINESIC & ANATOMICAL FEATURES
concomitant activities
cultural background & socioeducational status
CONTEXT
situational context
clinical configuration
cointeractants' behaviors
Paralinguistic features
Normally, a single-pulse laugh or a peal of laughter are characterized, even
before beginning, by their paralinguistic leader and onset, the first two
signs of a laugh in a chronological order. T h e leader is typically an altera
tion of the preceding words (e.g., a quaver in the voice, acceleration), or,
for instance, an audible inhalation, both of which announce, together with
the kinesic leader, the onset of a laugh. T h e onset itself, its actual audible
beginning, should be identified as: short and abrupt from a state of rest, as
some individuals start laughing suddenly (sometimes also with a sudden
offset, both of them typical of nervous laughter); prolonged, as others do it
in a crescendo of volume and acceleration; or explosive, against one whose
muscular tension, loudness and speed are but average.
A n y type of laughter is also characterized by the vowel type (i.e., in
speechless laughter) — either a single one or with changes occurring
throughout a peal of laughter — appearing in open-mouth laughter, while
the articulation of some basic vowels can be roughly heard in closed-mouth
laughter as well. Simple vowel differentiation is a characteristic feature of,
for instance, sex (e.g., front high [i] in feminine giggling), age (e.g., high-
front forms in a child), culture (e.g., the Japanese feminine [i], as well as a
number of personal differences, meanings and situations, such as the mid-
to-low back [o] in Ή ο - h o , very funny' (i.e., not funny at all), Santa Claus'
Christmassy Ή ο - h o - h o î ' , or an [i] of uncontrollable merry laughter. " ' H o -
ho-ho!' laughed dark Car./ 'Hee-hee-hee!' laughed the tippling bride [...]
'Heu-heu-heu' laughed dark Car's mother" (Hardy TD, X , 81),
T h e primary qualities affecting laughter are: loudness, within the scale
very high-to-whispered, attending to its attitudinal characteristics (i.e., the
'loud' individual, the confidential laughter whispered to someone's ear);
pitch level of the whole laugh (e.g., low w h e n intentionally masculine or
incredulous); pitch intervals used throughout the laugh (i.e., spread or
squeezed); resonance, whether very oral (i.e., 'resonant', 'strong'),
pharyngeal (i.e., 'throaty'), or nasal; rhythm (i.e., smooth or jerky); and
tempo (e.g., slow with sarcasm, rapid and staccato as a reaction to a joke).
Qualifiers. Although virtually all of them (see Fig. 5.1) can affect
laughter, it is m o r e practical to include only a few basic ones in the chart,
indicating as needed any of the possible combinations that m a y occur (e.g.,
harsh-creaky). Chronologically w e tend to perceive first whether the emis-
sion of a laugh is egressive or ingressive (the latter generally during each
breath intake, which does not interrupt laughter) and whether its flow is
254 PARALANGUAGE
T h e tongue position in laughter shows, in the first place, the eight basic
dimensions of m o v e m e n t (see Chapter 2, 6.4), that is, fronting, raising,
fronting-raising, retracting, retracting-raising, raising-retracting, lowering,
and lowering-retracting, each characterizing different sounds of laughter as
well as typical facial gestures and even postures, which shows again the
mutual inherence of sound and m o v e m e n t (e.g., lowering-retracting pro-
duces a sort of strangulated-like laughter usually accompanied by retraction
and sinking of the head and sometimes closed eyes and even a backward
posture, whether sounding or only silent). Although these eight positions
should be enough to identify the most typical types of laughter, a few others
can be distinguished, however, such as an interlabial vibratory fricative trill,
which was already described as a variety of the scornful 'Bronx cheer', also
a rather vulgar or perhaps only clownish laughter; a lamino dental form of
hissing; and a laminosublamino-interdental (actually a type of laughter
dentalization), the latter two quite typical of children, of the stereotyped
type of prudish orflatteredolder w o m a n , and also observed in some male
homosexuals of plump features. Naturally, tongue position is responsible
for palatalization and velarization (forceful), velarization being what gener-
ally is virtually the only acknowledged type of laughter and the only one
that, corresponding to velar, is orthographically transcribed as 'Ha-ha',
'He-he', etc. In the velic and narial areas w e recognize — besides the sec-
ondary articulation of nasalization — the most typical series of laughter
types, for instance: the Ingressiv e velic stop that causes embarrassment
w h e n it comes out involuntarily while laughing for its momentary snoring
sound; the open- or closed-mouth velic nasal plosive of a light chuckle; the
velic nasal affricate of contemptuous laughter; the snoring sound of the
open- or closed-mouth Ingressive vibratory velic trill which some people,
mainly males, display as the inspiration phase of a peal of laughter; the
ingressive and egressive (in succession) spasmodic narial fricative, the nos-
tril friction being the only sound produced, for which reason it could be
sobbing, or it could be mistaken for it if there is no eye contact or the
kinesic and postural behaviors are ambiguous; the explosive narial fricative
as an explosive onset of nasal laughter with open or closed mouth. " M r .
Power sent a long laugh d o w n his shaded nostrils" (Joyce U, 259).
Chronologically, the last audible signs of a laugh are its paralinguistic
offset and aftermath, the end-point equivalents to onset and leader. T h e
offset can be abrupt, as some people stop laughing suddenly and resume
their static countenance in a very peculiar w a y which is remembered by
256 PARALANGUAGE
Kinesic features
A s with the paralinguistic leader and onset, their visual counterparts,
kinesic leader and kinesic onset, are the first observable parts of a laugh,
slight as they m a y be sometimes and according to the individual's style. T h e
kinesic leader appears as an alteration of the existing kinesic activity or still-
ness; usually a quickening-up of m o v e m e n t followed by the jerky m o v e -
ment of laughter or the beginning of a postural shift, facial expression open-
ing-up with brow raising and smiling. But this leading smile is the clearest
kinesic leader, as it is later its kinesic aftermath or tail. Other times the
smile blends with the person's inflated (and even reddened) cheeks or tight-
ened mouth in an effort not to burst out laughing, which usually happens
right afterward. " D o n Quixote looked at Sancho too, and saw that his
cheeks were puffed up and his mouth was full of laughter, with evident
signs of wanting to burst with it..." (Cervantes Q, 1, X X , 188; translation
mine). 1 a T h e kinesic onset immediately after is the visible start of the actual
laugh and, as with paralanguage, can be short and abrupt (e.g., w h e n one
suddenly begins to shake uncontrollably) or slow and longer (e.g., with
slowl rising and lowering of the trunk, as w h e n sympathetically laughing
and gently looking d o w n and shaking the head).
Next, the main kinesic characteristic of a laugh is whether the mouth is
open or closed, thus closed mouth should be indicated, as should wide-open
mouth, followed by the laughter posture of the lips, either puckered or dis-
tended up or d o w n ; the cheeks can be inflated; conspicuously bared teeth,
horizontally or vertically, are also very characteristic in a laugh, as are the
DIFFERENTIATORS 257
Smiling speech
But the truly effective aftermath, the one behavior that can act as a prolon-
gation of a laugh superimposed to any subsequent behaviors, such as
resumed speech or kinesics, is the smile which very often remains after
laughter, or rather, which laughter turns into. It can be also a silent smile of
feedback, perhaps coupled to direct eye contact. T h e male interactant, for
instance, w h o just m a d e a w o m a n laugh knows that that smile of hers, fad-
258 PARALANGUAGE
ing away very slowly but reflected also in her eyes, are betraying very posi
tive thoughts about him. In other instances, of course, it can be just the
residual behavior of any of the laughter types identified in the following
sections, such as the laughter of contempt or embarrassment. Naturally,
smiling can precede as its kinesic leader, continue as a cooccurrent behavior
throughout laughter, and then remain, not as an aftermath proper, but as
the smile that might not have led to laughter at all, in that case not forming
part of the indivisible paralinguistic-kinesic construct of laughter proper.
Silent laughter
It will be seen that the absence of any vowel or consonantal sound does not
preclude the production of laughter, thus silent laughter should be acknow
ledged as the type which can be expressed only kinesically by as little as
nasolabial furrows and as m u c h as inflated cheeks (a sign of suppressed
laughter), manual gestures, doubling up as with audible laughter, etc., or
showing one's teeth in a silent, jerky smile. Sometimes silent laughter can
be like the kinesic leader for sound laughter in, for instance, the typical
slight jerk of the chest or chest and abdomen.
turn by its static signs (i.e., shape, location, size) are producing that laugh-
ter, and even to predict h o w a certain face (i.e., set of features) will laugh
before it does, as w e predict 'how a certain face would speak'.
Contextual elements
Having identified all the audible and visual components of a laugh, its total
configuration is completed, further confirmed perhaps by the person's
anatomical features; yet a laugh, as any other behavior, does not occur in a
vacuum, but in a specific set of contextual elements, beginning with the cul-
tural background, often persisting in the nonverbal behaviors of first-gen-
eration immigrants and other foreigners in a culture, such as Chinese
female students and female black Africans, both of which laugh with eyes
cast down and one hand vertically covering mouth and nose, as do Japanese
w o m e n ; then the socioeducational status, often betrayed by the way the per-
son laughs, as will be seen (e.g., the uncouth guffaw, the more refined sub-
tle chuckle); the situational context, which includes: motivation (e.g., con-
tempt), the interactive or noninteractive specific situation (e.g., a tense
one, telling a joke), the setting (e.g., a bar, a theater), the person's
socioeconomic or socioeducational status (e.g., the uneducated, the very
refined). Last, but not least at all, the cointeractanf s verball nonverbal
behaviors (perhaps laughter too), which perhaps triggered that laughter and
may show a perfect costructuration with the laugh's own verbal and nonver-
bal behaviors. Finally, the clinical configuration should identify the prob-
lem when appropriate (e.g., D o w n ' s Syndrome, schizophrenia, manic-
depressive psychosis) and, in turn, the specific forms of laughter that may
characterize it.
Even a cursory review of the paralinguistic and kinesic features just out-
lined and the suggested laughter configuration chart as a visual research
262 PARALANGUAGE
tool shows without doubt that this type of model m a y well prove indispens-
able for the systematic study of laughter as a component of discourse, of
conversation, in clinical work, in a crosscultural comparison of its display
rules according to different stimuli and situational contexts, for the appreci-
ation of novelists' and playwrights' use of laughter in their work and h o w
they describe it, etc. But simply to sensitize oneself to the m a n y forms of
laughter and its m a n y nuances of meaning, at times beyond the conscious-
ness of those w h o laugh, justifies our becoming aware of its audible (or
silent) and visual characteristics, so often inexpressible in words. In addi-
tion, w h e n w e establish all the potential components of a laugh the obvious
challenge emerges immediately to not just refer to this or that type of
laughter, whether orally or in writing, but to k n o w exactly what w e m e a n
w h e n w e liberally use labels such as 'snicker', 'titter', 'chortle', etc., and
even more w h e n w e say that so-and-so laughed 'cynically', 'bitterly',
'charmingly'; or what exactly is meant w h e n a novelist or playwright (more
the latter for the actor) says that the character laughs with 'a sardonic
chuckle', 'contemptuously', 'histrionically', etc. (some of which refer to cul-
ture-specific forms). W e can at best produce those types if given the label,
depending on our past experience of such utterances and on h o w w e would
express those feelings, but would most probably be unable to describe them
even in accurate impressionistic terms, let alone phonetic ones.
A s with m a n y of the qualifiers discussed in Chapter 5, one should be
familiar with both the etymological origins and the basic physiological-
phonetic characteristics of at least the established references to laughter,
whether for paralinguistic research, literary translation or simply for its cor-
rect evocation w h e n speaking or in writing. Chuckling, for instance (proba-
bly an imitation of the hen's 'chuck' or clucking noise), denotes a low-
pitched, usually closed mouth (and often single-pulse) nasalized creaky
realization of a glottal stop that m a y end in a narial fricative accompanied
at most by a brief jerk of the head (or head and trunk) and perhaps intent
stare through squinting eyes, associated with polite laughter, condescen-
dence, self satisfaction, etc. Giggling (related to D . giggelen, from M E .
gigge, whirligig, and probably an IE. base meaning yelp) denotes a high-
pitched falsetto, rapid intermittent velarized utterance, associated with gir-
lishness or silliness, femininity, and feminine anxiety or embarrassment.
Guffawing (apparently echoic) refers to a loud, coarse, explosive and short
or prolonged and tense utterance variously modified by orality, nasality or
labialization, accompanied by equally 'loud' kinesics, associated with a
DIFFERENTIATORS 263
Although Simmel (1924:370) said that "the world is composed of two kinds
of people: those w h o m a k e one laugh and those w h o are m a d e to laugh", I
cannot help adding: and those w h o are laughed at and those w h o laugh at
themselves. But even limiting these comments on laughter to the first three
they should serve as rather practical parameters for a classification. O f the
four fundamental situations identified above, what w e could term external
social laughter would be included within the first, external interaction. T h e
proposed practical classification — obviously susceptible of m a n y refine
ments — would consider only the motives that elicit in us our laughing with,
at, and for others while engaged in any sort of direct interaction with them.
There are six parameters that include the types of motives that elicit
interactive laughter: the two basic opposite attitudes of affiliation and
aggression, with nuances and feelings whose variety suggests their gradual
appearance throughout the ontogenetic development, or simply the lack of
s o m e due to insufficient socialization (i.e., the difference between a sensi
tive, highly social person and the least educated and sensitive one); social
DIFFERENTIATORS 267
anxiety, not always betrayed as such for its m a n y forms, but certainly typi-
cal in m a n y social situations, both a m o n g the inexperienced interactors as
well as a m o n g the seemingly sophisticated and self-controlled ones; fear,
which can be triggered by interactive or noninteractive situations, very
close to the laughter of anxiety; joy or mirth, another wide parameter which
includes any of the manifestations of high spirits or happiness through dif-
ferently motivated forms of laughter; comicality and ludicrousness can
develop in a situation of mirth and could be included in the preceding cate-
gory, yet possess specific characteristics like possible unexpectedness and
spontaneity of what is comical or ludicrous; amusement, then, constitutes a
separate category referred to a lighter stimulus and response; random
interactive laughter comprises an elusive series of conversational and non-
conversational displays (in fact, occurring in minimal interaction situations)
not very easy to define, but amazingly frequent a m o n g people; and, still
within social interaction, the self-directedness of various ways of laughing at
ourselves.
A. Affiliation
If by affiliation w e understand in a broad sense, any attitudes toward, or
attempts at, establishing certain bonds with selfish or unselfish aims and
through genuine or feigned displays of feelings, the following basic stimuli
could be mentioned:
- Agreement with what someone says or does, expressed usually by inter-
mittent laughter and other kinesic affirmative or negative (supporting a
negation) behaviors, or by different combinations of laughter, eye contact,
and touch. Such forms of agreement, which are but forms of conversational
feedback — and on which m u c h could be elaborated as regards their verbal-
nonverbal structure — range from mere conformity or consent to, for
instance, the one bordering on the bond-seeking attitude discussed below,
or the pact or agreement signified by firm handshaking, prolonged eye con-
tact and laughter. A s conversational feedback it can take various forms
according to the situation, the personality of the laugher and, of course, the
object of the laughter, for instance: an intermittent, 'discreet' or 'polite'
chuckle + head nodding + smile, perhaps closing the eyes and slight jerks
of the head.
- T h e laughter of deference and politeness can be included in this cate-
gory because, independently of the laugher's feelings toward the person, it
implies an affiliative intention, whether out of respect or courtesy.
268 PARALANGUAGE
which the servants in some societies still respond to their master's condes-
cendence, the subordinate to the corporation manager, some students to
their professors or some professors to their top administrators at an
academic gathering or party. It is a petty attitude to which one can yield
quite unawares and in which laughter plays an important role, matching the
also adulatory tone of one's verbal language and paralanguage, although
touching is in general controlled, though reluctantly.
- Flirtatious laughter m a y be adulatory at times .and, whether flirtation
m a y anticipate true love, conceal more selfish intentions or simply serve as
a pastime or self-gratifying vanity, always punctuates the flirting witty male
or female's remarks, flattering words and charming conversation, often
underlining a sincere tone and deep gaze. Being a borderline type of laugh-
ter — since it can be used in a rather natural way, but also with positive or
negative ulterior motives in mind — it constitutes however a clear-cut form
of bond-seeking behavior and a powerful tool in m a n - w o m a n interaction,
sometimes a calculated means of deception for concealing motives that can
be quite far from the other person's mind. A t any rate, fit is often mutually
directed, and m a y represent the attempt to escalate the other person's
affection. O n e always tries to have his or her laughter reciprocated, k n o w -
ing that shared laughter means progressing, but it can also fail if, for
instance, the m a n makes an error of appreciation and she does not consider
a certain remark or attitude in good taste; besides, joking can be part of the
strategy only for the less subtle flirt, the more effective one consisting
rather of affectionately witty play o n words, charming small talk
interspersed with deeply felt yet caressing and unusual compliments m a d e
even more disarming by occasional sensitive touch and by long gazing. In
western cultures while the m a n m a y be more given to reaching for the
w o m a n ' s body by touching her hand, arm or shoulder, the w o m a n m a y also
quickly touch his wrist, and often his knee, while laughingly talking and
giggling; but w h e n she takes a more passive role head-tilting and smiling are
quite c o m m o n , along with laughter, hair- or forearm-preening, fidgeting
with a necklace or taking it to her parted lips while listening or talking
through a smile and laughing without breaking eye contact, or covering her
face with both hands (the Japanese w o m a n with one while giggling, a well-
k n o w n culture specific behavior) and, as a seemingly passive attitude, clos-
ing her eyes while adopting suggestive postures.
The bond-confirming laughter of intimacy or very close relationship is
the one shared mainly by only two people, whether they are acquaintances
270 PARALANGUAGE
B. Aggression
Aggression is understood here, in a broad sense, as any negative attitudes
displayed verbally and nonverbally which explicitly or implicitly carry
harmful intentions and ill will and are in some way damaging to others.
They can be expressed by laughter of very specific parahnguistic and kinesic
characteristics. I would call attention, a m o n g other types, to seduction,
intrusion, mockery, contempt, scorn, challenge, threat, and cruelty.
272 PARALANGUAGE
truly lack ill will and only serves to m a k e fun without malice or hostility.
- The laughter of skepticism or incredulity can also be blended with that
of scorn or disdain, very often expressed with a sneer, at times with a tone
of sad or bitter disbelief, or in what is called sardonic laughter.
- A s for sardonic laughter, which can be of the guffawing, open-mouth
harsh type or the closed-mouth chuckle type, it is the offensive laughter of
derisive mockery blended with disdainful or skeptical humor.
- T h e laughter of challenge is another stereotyped behavior: low pitch,
not loud, of either prolonged emissions or repeated short ones, with typical
intent gazing and sometimes a sneer in more showing forms, as with the
tough-guy's come-on gesture m a d e n o w rather universal by American
movies: bending fingers with palm upward and not downward as in m a n y
other cultures.
- T h e laughter of threat, perhaps also challenging, is described in chil-
dren's books and shown in movies: the loud, raucous guffaw as the ogre,
witch, pirate or kidnapper advances toward the terrified victim.
- O n e should mention also the laughter of cruelty, a feeling that can be
already present in scornful or threatening laughter, depending on the
degree of perversity. Without trying to review the philosophical literature
on laughter, but only to point out its m a n y forms and motives, I would refer
again to the brief but pithy comments m a d e by Simmel (1924:372-372). I
would like to emphasize h o w the feelings represented in the aggressive
types of laughter identified so far follow an ontogenetic development rarely
altered by precocious manifestations, and yet the 'cruelty' of children
laughing while torturing a poor defenceless animal, or laughing meanly at a
schoolmate's deformity or social lowliness is a fact w e have all witnessed.
Simmel says that that laughter is "cruel in fact but not in intention" and that
it does not express "a perverse, satanic joy but a heartlessness" (because
"sympathy has not been born in the individual"); however, such a categori-
cal assertion cannot be m a d e so easily in all instances, for that kind of
laughter can certainly respond to an obvious evil motivation.
- Finally, although it is a function w e rarely think of, the invasion of pri-
vacy through laughter cannot be neglected, as it is certainly a form of
aggression w e have all experienced at one time or another, either as victims
or, less consciously so, as aggressors. It is not only the privacy of the h o m e
in an apartment building — whose walls and doors m a y provide visual and
olfactory protection, but are not perhaps 'expensive' enough to free us from
the evening-long guffaws and laughing fits of others — but also the
274 PARALANGUAGE
Fear
A s with anxiety, fear can elicit a sort of laughter which seems totally incon-
gruent with the situation being experienced, mostly as a reflex-like exter-
nalizer of that emotion and to which one can be forced by the presence of
others, laughing off the fearful object since w e recognize it as perhaps not
threatening enough to, for instance, just cry in unequivocal terror. H o w -
ever, there is no reason for laughter of any kind if w e are alone. It is, in
other words, a clear instance of "concealment of affect or the substitution
of an unfelt emotion for a felt emotion" ( E k m a n 1981: 273), and that is w h y
its configuration resembles m u c h more that of anxiety than the spontaneous
and sincere laughter of amusement. " ' N o ! she cried half laughing in terror
— 'no!'" (Lawrence SL, V , 153).
D. Social-Anxiety
Social-anxiety laughter is meant to include here any voluntary or involun-
tary display in social interaction situations in which it responds to a wel-
c o m e and seemingly appropriate stimulus, serving mostly as a convenient
supporting behavior willingly offered in response to our cointeractant (the
laugh itself not being necessarily anxious) or consciously or unconsciously
to our o w n anxiety (the laugh then being anxious). In fact, this kind of
laughter often qualifies as what I have studied as random behaviors
(Poyatos 1983:135-136, 173-174), admitting that any of those paralinguistic
or kinesic acts can be unconscious and random, conscious and random,
unconscious and habitual, or conscious and habitual. Just to establish this
category, which includes so m a n y and less thought-of interesting instances
of laughter, the following few can be mentioned, omitting however any
276 PARALANGUAGE
specific references to what some call 'nervous laughter' for the simple
reason that they all contain an element of 'nervousness', and no single type
could be correctly n a m e d 'nervous' without referring to its other defining
characteristics.
- The opening laughter is a mostly unconscious expression of the anxiety
caused w h e n a gathering of people whose mutual relationship is formal (at
least on that occasion) is being initiated, that is, w h e n its configuration is
taking shape (taking places, etc.), as in a critical business meeting, a hotel-
lobby encounter between two or more business relations, where short
laughs are easily elicited by any trivial stimulus to fill the initial m o m e n t s
and dispel an unavoidable degree of anxiety, or an employment interview,
at which a kind interviewer would purposely offer a humorous remark in
order to break the ice and m a k e the interviewee feel more at ease. T h e
other c o m m o n opening laughter is the one elicited in himself and his audi-
ence by the humorous remark of the public speaker, which acts as a rap-
port-seeking device, used by a comedian as an important part of his or her
repertoire, and typically in North-American oratory. This type is also easily
offered by m e m b e r s of an audience w h o feel the tension of the opening
m o m e n t s a m o n g themselves and in relation to the speaker. A n d at the
other end of the encounter w e are all familiar with a speaker's closing
humorous remark and then the laughter that acts as a dissolving device.
- T h e social event laughter is the one elicited at weddings, receptions,
banquets, etc., caused by different and often simultaneous reasons, such as
fighting off feelings of social isolation, awkwardness, etc. Gigglers giggle,
and other m a y burst out into short laughs at the slightest opportunity,
unless they manage to busy themselves with something (a drink, unfolding
a napkin, listening with pretended attention to someone else, etc.).
- The social performer's laughter is the one observed in those m e n and
w o m e n of the world (politicians, m e m b e r s of royal families, heads of state,
actors, etc.) w h o , despite the obvious easiness with which they negotiate
any social and public situation, also betray anxiety at times through certain
random behaviors (hair- or clothes-preening, smiling, etc.) and laughing at
trivial remarks, things or happenings, with a broad grin.
- T h e embarrassment laughter appears, depending on the situation,
w h e n one tries to conceal consciously or unconsciously the anxiety created
by one's or even someone else's awkwardness, social blunder, inappro-
priate language, etc. It can be accompanied by blushing in both sexes
(though more in w o m e n and youngsters), such as the little boy w h o also
DIFFERENTIATORS 277
shifts his weight from one foot to another, or the girl w h o laughs and
blushes at the man's compliment — exhibiting also other behaviors
observed by Eibl-Eibesfeldt (1980) as a universal attitude of coyness — and
it tends to be of the closed-mouth type and accompanied by gaze aversion.
But often the embarrassment is camouflaged by the deceitful manifestation
of another feeling which is not felt, and it m a y be only through kinesic clues
(gaze behavior, tenser muscle tonus, etc.) that w e can interpret it as embar-
rassment: "She laughed slightly with shame [when she can hardly m o v e the
swing herself]" (Lawrence SL, VII, 150).
- T h e expectancy laughter is one of the typical 'nervous' laughters caused
by worry, fear, hope, or happiness, as w h e n watching a perilous race or
waiting at an airport gate for a loved one to appear. It takes various forms,
for instance, the 'still laughter' during the highwire act, hardly blinking or
just waiting with eyes closed, hands clasped or wringing ( w o m e n typically
with hands clasped against the chest or pressing the sides of the nose as if
repressing tears with the fingertips).
- T h e crowded laughter is a form of tension-relieving laughter while
being crowded by strangers, as in the proverbial elevator or in a rush-hour
subway car, w h e n the unwanted intimate proxemic situation turns any
humorous remark (often out of anxiety too) into the most welcome cause
for shared laughter, or while waiting in a line too close to persons with
w h o m any form of interaction is better than mutual disregard.
- The foreigner's laughter is the one displayed by people of different lan-
guages w h o are trying to communicate verbally and nonverbally impaired
by lexical and grammatical deficiency and frequent incorrect decoding. T h e
more difficulty they encounter, the more they use hand gestures (mainly
grammatical markers and as m a n y emblems, identifiers and pictographs as
they can resort to) with frequent eyebrow flashes, smiles, nods (head-tilting
in India) and, in the more touching cultures, alter-adaptors.
- T h e relief laughter — of irregular rhythm and with rather static facial
expression — should be mentioned as the one provoked by the actual relief
of the anxiety, preceded and followed by smiling and, in w o m e n , often
accompanied by pressing the palms against the sides of the nose. There is,
of course, the laughter of the intense relief felt after a very critical situation,
such as the "spontaneous", "wild" laughter of the passengers of a crippled
airplane after a safe landing (Zuk 1966:100).
- Finally here — perhaps for lack of a better categorization — an other-
wise important and complex type, the laugh-off laughter, since it actually
278 PARALANGUAGE
E . Joy
First, the laughter of elation must be set apart as the manifestation of a state
that can be a blend of exultant joy and pride, often blended with surprise at
what seems unbelievable and yet is a reality. It is, in fact, the first ever
referred to in a text: " A b r a h a m fell on his face and laughed [when G o d tells
him that his elderly wife would give him a son]" (Genesis 17:17).
Given the elusive meaning of happiness and h o w it is often applied by
some to situations and feelings which others would hardly consider happi-
ness, it seems m o r e appropriate to group under 'joy' or 'mirth' certain
instances of laughter characterizing situations in which w e react verbally
and nonverbally with obvious gladness by clearly differentiated forms of
laughter and congruent facial expression or just by lending speech a typical
laughing quality (present in other types of laughter).
- Good-luck laughter, as someone learns of his good fortune, bursting
into a high-pitched spasmodic or continuous laugh, sometimes with an ini-
tial ingressive burst which m a y be totally voluntary and self-gratifying, with
brow raising and smiling face. It is, for instance, the culturally differen-
tiated laughter w e see on television g a m e shows, in which most of the
American w o m e n I have observed in videotaped sequences display the
palms-holding-nose gesture, gaping mouth, jumping with joy at their 'in-
credible' fortune or remaining static for a m o m e n t and speechless with dis-
belief, grasping their hair, clasping their hands, a frozen smile on their faces
or frowning with incredulity, and then bursting into laughter and sometimes
tears.
- T h e surprise laughter can be very similar, in fact, the result of it too,
often with an ingressive onset and a sudden postural shift with erect trunk,
grabbing the arms of the chair, removing reading glasses, etc.
- Next would be the greeting laughter, a controlled 'laughing greeting'
(unless caused by anxiety) as part of a w a r m salutation, preceding and dur-
ing energetic handshaking. In m o r e expressive cultures like Spain or France
two m e n often grab each other's forearm, in a Turkish campus male stu-
DIFFERENTIATORS 279
F. Sadness
A s opposed to joyful laughter w e must acknowledge the sometimes self-
imposed sort of bittersweet laughter which betrays sad feelings, mixed with
an element of joy or gladness, and which therefore is shown on one's
countenance through the emotional blend of facial signs of happiness and
sadness. Such is, for instance, the laughter elicited by some recollections of
times past, sometimes contrasting with a not very fortunate present.
But the laughter which, as a h u m a n reaction, is in its motivation
diametrically opposite to that of joy, is that of grief, the sorrowful, sad
laughter of those who grief for a dead person, remembering this or that
humorous attitude or amusing event in his life in an effort to comfort the
relatives — and the relatives themselves' at times — fighting the reality of
their loss and bringing back the moments shared with the deceased. It is a
laughter that those less close to the dead person may sometimes force, but
it can also respond to very sincere feelings, and it is always subdued, of
rather low pitch, m a d e sometimes nasal by the almost simultaneous weep-
ing, without a very animated facial expression and often alternating with
the single apicoalveolar click 'Tz' and with occasional sighing; in fact, sigh-
ing is used very loudly by mourning w o m e n in European Mediterranean
DIFFERENTIATORS 281
cultures as an open voluntary expression of grief, the lower the status, the
louder the sighs, as I have witnessed on m a n y occasions. There is, however,
the truly joyful laughter (yet relaxed, of m e d i u m pitch, never loud or exces-
sive, and accompanied by moderate kinesics) a m o n g those Christians w h o ,
rather than giving themselves to mournful recollections and disconsolate
grief, celebrate with 'peaceful' faces the parting of a beloved w h o , as I had
occasion to witness, has also carried a fearful illness with the same faith and
hope: "I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those w h o
have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others w h o have no hope" (1 Thes-
salonians. 4:13).
- Another type of sad laughter is the rueful or sorrowful chuckle or
open-mouth but rather soft laugh w h e n witnessing or remembering some-
thing (or someone) that inspires pity. This one, however, can also contain
an element of dejection at times, as in: "{She thinks, gives a muffled laugh
in rueful contemplation of the incident) It was awful! [telling others h o w 'in
jest' she had knocked d o w n her husband] (Albee W A O V W , I, 56-57).
O n e should remember that sometimes sadness m a y have to compete
with a sudden reaction to the comical or ludicrous to the point where the
less perceptive witness m a y misjudge the sincerity of expressed sadness.
- A n d there is also the bitter laughter of impotence, sometimes mixed
with resignation, in the face of an unhappy state of affairs. " ' D o you — 'I
hesitate. ' D o you ever get used to such a place [an institution for the
elderly]. She laughs then, a short bitter laugh" (Laurence SA, III, 104).
R a n d o m interactive laughter
This truly independent category could be called random interactive laugh
ter, for it is unpredictable — except in someone we know well — and does
not respond to the expected stimuli, yet we observe it in ourselves when we
would be unable to identify any of the motives discussed in the previous
sections: a coincidence (e.g., two persons who unexpectedly say the same
thing at the same time), an agreement (e.g., Ί don't like the cold', 'Neither
do I!'), a brief mini-conflict (e.g., sidestepping once or twice when two
people walk into each other's path), a slight inconvenience (e.g., the slip-
periness of afloorwhen in the presence of others), asking someone to come
into one's home, thanking someone who tells us w e dropped something,
and so many more instances in which laughter, as we understand it, seems
entirely absurd and uncalled for. It is true that many times it is simply a
DIFFERENTIATORS 283
I. Self-directed laughter
Although only interactive laughter was discussed here, the one which is not
triggered by a truly external stimulus but by our attitude or feelings toward
it, that is, laughing at oneself, m a y also occur in interaction, out of self-
directed annoyance, concealed embarrassment, self-pity, etc.
6.2 Crying
blubbering, etc. — in adults and children, males and females and normal or
pathological occurrences, virtually all the audible components of laughter
and certainly all of its visible ones can be present in crying, with the addi-
tion of tear-shedding. Fig. 6.3, 'Crying Configuration Chart', contains all
the possible components of a sob, a whimper, a blubber, etc., or the
habitual characteristic w a y in which an individual cries. It contains, there-
fore, a checklist for the identification of a specific crying syndrome. It
should be mentioned that literary descriptions are far less specific about the
crying of the characters than they are about their laughter, first of all
because there appear in literature m a n y more instances of laughter because
of its wider gamut of interactive functions. Besides the basic identifying
data, (i.e., n a m e , sex, age, ethnic group, country and zone) the chart con-
tains:
- T h e Verbal-nonverbal transcript of the portion of speech that contains
the crying alternating with verbal language or modifying it as 'crying
speech' (e.g., speaking 'brokenly' because of weeping) and even w h e n it is
silent crying, but always betrayed by at least facial and hand behaviors. T h e
written representations of crying have been m u c h more scarce than those of
laughter, almost limited only to a form like 'Eeeeeeee!', although w e could
easily identify at least basic types of crying, sobbing, weeping, etc., by using
the other vowels too. Failing this, literary writers resort to their personal
description (e.g., "silently sobbed in little jerks").
T h e phonetic transcription, however, should be able to offer, as for
laughter, the needed variety of representations by using I P A symbols and
above all those suggested in Chapter 2, or similar ones, say, for the ingres-
sive glottal catch (stop) 4- spasmodic, nasalized short ingressive-egressive
breath pulse which would represent a 'dry' sob or sobbing.
- T h e auditory and social labels complete the basic identification of a
crying type, referring to sobbing, weeping, sniveling, blubbering and so on,
or to qualifying attitudinal features, as in 'She cried in anguish', '-for joy',
'-hopelessly', '-in a childish way', etc.
Paralinguistic features
A s with laughter, crying is always announced by a paralinguistic leader and
initiated by a paralinguistic onset. T h e paralinguistic leaders — not neces-
sarily present in a sudden outburst — are m u c h m o r e varied than for laugh-
ter because there are m o r e instances in crying in which the stimulus is a
m u c h more gradual element that builds up the emotional reaction, while
288 PARALANGUAGE
|& LABELS
tense/lax
other qualifiers/other differentiators
bidental fricative/dentiexo labial fricative
exo/endolabiodental fric/exobilabial fricative
endobilabial trill
endobilabial approximant
labialization
tongue position
interlabial vibratory fricative trill
laminodental hissing
laminosublamino-interdental
palatalization/velarization/nasalization
ingressive velic stop/vibratory velic trill
velic nasal plosive/velic nasal affricate
spasmodic/explosive narial fricative
paralinguistic offset: long/short
paralinguistic aftermath
kinesic leaders)
kinesic onset: long/short/abrupt
KINESIC & ANATOMICAL FEATURES
m o u t h : closed/half-open/wide-open/jaw posture
lips: puckered/Distended - inflated cheeks
bared teeth
nasolabial furrows
eyelid opening/closing & brow raising/knitting
hands/arms
body
kinesic offset: long/short
kinesic aftermath
facial features & body anatomy
ACnV-
concomitant activities
cultural background & socioeducational status
CONTEXT
situational context
clinical configuration
cointeractants' behaviors
Qualifiers
A s with laughter, practically all the voice qualifiers identified in Fig. 5.1 can
modify crying (some of which are indicated in the suggested chart in Fig.
6.2). Crying can be whispered w h e n it is repressed, very laryngealized
{creaky) w h e n uttered in a complaining, whining attitude, falsetto in chil-
dren or in w o m e n 'screeching' violently, husky or hoarse in both m e n and
w o m e n w h e n crying n u m b with grief, in low tones and slow tempo, very
nasal and moaning or 'adenoidal' in w o m e n w h o weep disconsolately or
with a childish attitude, perhaps in a pathological way. Mostly w o m e n and
children, but also m e n sometimes, m a y cry in a whimpery or whiny tone.
All these qualifiers, and crying in general, can occur in a tense or lax way.
But crying can be also modified typically by labial control and mainly
through lip rounding and outward expansion (which causes the mouth to
produce a noticeable resonance), the bilateral downward distension of chil-
dish crying and, in young children, the pouting posture of the lower lip; and
DIFFERENTIATORS 291
Paralinguistic differentiators
The most interesting modification of crying by another differentiator is, of
course, by laughter, crying and laughing at the same time, simultaneously
combining the more characteristic components of both, that is, the tearful
spasmodic nasalized sobbing and the strongly laryngealized vocal pulses of
laughter, but maintaining the downward lip distension of sadness, which is
not obliterated by the secondary stimulus of laughter, as the one for crying
is most of the time the primary one. T h e next differentiator to be acknow-
ledged is shouting or screaming (and varieties like howling), understood
here as a usually uncontrollable emotional reaction that produces strongly
laryngealized (and eventually hoarse) voice, distorting language and laugh-
ter and crying. Other simultaneous differentiators are mainly: panting,
w h e n crying starts while the person is panting out of emotional violent
irregular breathing or because of cooccurrent physical exertion, making
crying even more broken and spasmodic; gulping, in the sense of choking
back as if swallowing, has a similar effect on speech w h e n w e try to talk
while repressing sobs; sighing, at different intervals and in two or three vis-
ible inbreath movements — momentarily interrupting the sound of weeping
— and then blending with crying in its exhaling phase, m u c h more c o m m o n
in w o m e n than in m e n and characteristic of bereavement; yawning, a reflex
whose emotional stimulus in the context of crying m a y be fatigue during,
for instance, hours of distress or an all-night wake; coughing w h e n the cry-
ing person chokes with his o w n saliva or the cough is triggered by ordinary
stimuli. All of them act, as for laughter, as qualifiers that add n e w meaning
to the crying act, such as the violence of the emotional reaction w h e n pant-
ing or coughing, producing additional facial expressions and even body
movements (e.g., the heaving of panting).
T w o intermitent alternants are c o m m o n while weeping: sniffing, draw-
ing in air forcibly, as w h e n tears begin to be shed; and sniffling, a sort of
'wet sniffing' whose function then is to check the mucus running in the
292 PARALANGUAGE
nose. "Sniffing up the tears that were hot in his eyes" (Dos Passos M T , 1,
II, 16).
Consonantal sounds
T h e configuration chart shows that, although most of the consonantal
articulations possible in laughter can appear also in crying, those in which
the tongue protrudes slightly between lips and teeth, and a few m o r e , gen-
erally do not. But w e can also cry 'through our teeth' w h e n w e form a
bidental fricative spasmodically or m o r e regularly drawing air out with a his-
sing sound; an exo/endolabiodental fricative (i.e. upper front teeth against
outer/inner side or lower lip), another form of hissing crying often accom-
panied by explosive outbursts of air through the mouth corners and/or
forceful narial emissions; an exobilabial fricative, an dentiexolabial fricative
(i.e. a lower-teeth version of the labiodental, typical of children with a
pouting gesture); the endobilabial approximant (i.e. both inner parts), a
form of labialization, and labialization proper frequent in soft and rather
calm weeping. Tongue position is m u c h m o r e limited than in laughter, vir-
tually restricted to a central or low position or a strongly retroflexed or
curled-up posture that yields a special resonance as the m o u t h cavity
increases. A s for actual lingual articulations, palatalization appears mostly
in children or in regressive states. Within velic and narial areas, besides
nasalization — the most prominent feature in crying, of long or short emis-
sions and always accompanying children's tearful complaining, begging and
coaxing — w e find the ingressive velic stop with the same snoring effect that
appears in laughter; the open- or closed-mouth velic nasal plosive with the
chuckle effect, as in laughter, but typically repeated m a n y times in succes-
sion, even m o r e with lips and eyelids tightly closed in intense sobbing; the
velic nasal affricate, as in contemptuous laughter but m o r e prolonged; the
ingressive vibratory velic trill in the inspiration phase of prolonged sobs; the
Ingressive-egressive spasmodic narial fricative in quiet weeping, in which the
nostril friction is the only audible feature and only tear-shedding and
kinesic behaviors can differentiate it from the similar laughing sound; and
the 'snorting' explosive narial fricative which, as in laughter, can be the
onset to bursting out crying.
ficult to control rapidly than laughter, but it happens, for instance, in young
children w h o are crying for attention and w h e n it is given to them m a y stop
suddenly, or due to a startling stimulus like a loud noise, etc. It is usually
gradual in the form of a long sighing but quieter sob, a coughing sob, etc.
A s for the aftermath, the voice m a y for a few sentences show still a slight
quavering quality, a sigh m a y c o m e out w h e n the person is already still and
quiet, perhaps wiping the last tears, until only the kinesic aftermath
remains in a slightly drawn-down mouth.
Kinesic features
A s with laughter, the crying paralinguistic features cannot be dissociated
from the kinesic ones that qualify the crying act from beginning to end. In
fact, while laughter can be perceived in almost all of its nuances without
seeing the person, but rather by the type of sounds, the precise meaning of
crying is ultimately related to its kinesic features. First, the kinesic leader
appears as an alteration of the previous kinesic activity or stillness,
announcing that one is on the verge of crying, mostly with the slight con-
traction of the frontalis muscle, which rises the inner corners of the eye-
brows, and an also slight contraction of the corrugator, depressor glabella
and/or depressor supercilli, which pull them d o w n and together (i.e.,
E k m a n ' s [1979] 'action units' 1 and 4). But w e would recognize also leaders
like: lip trembling; a gesture trying to check the crying, perhaps an example
of an aborted crying fit, thus not really leading to the onset; looking up
rapidly or tightening the lips and whole face in an effort to check tears;
quicker blinking; postural shift, etc. "She saw Miss Fulkes's lips trembling,
her eyes growing suddenly bright with tears" (Huxley PCP, X X X I I I , 390).
There can be at times a rather disconcerting kinesic leader: a leading smile
which is barely initiated, because it does not lead to laughter, but to crying.
It can even override and qualify the whole crying episode, and then w e
might need to be aware of the contextual circumstances, for the smile might
identify the crying and tear-shedding of, for instance, happiness for a loved
one w h o is marrying or departing, thus a true affect-blend of happiness-sad-
ness which crying alone or tears would not identify. T h e smile alone could
be more easily associated with that affect-blend because the sadness of that
behavior cluster would be indicated by lowered, and not raised, brows.
A s for the onset, those two facial action units can be it w h e n their m u s -
cular actions become m u c h more accentuated and reach the true crying
expressions; to which tear-shedding is generally added immediately after or
294 PARALANGUAGE
simultaneously to it. Then the onset can be reduced to the facial expression
and tears as the beginning of silent weeping, or be accompanied by gentle
or loud sobbing, either suddenly or slowly in a crescendo of sound and vis-
ual behaviors, sudden loud sobbing causing tense facial expression, shaking
of the shoulders and general shuddering movements. Naturally, bodily
behavior, even the face, m a y conceal whether it is crying or laughter
because of the 'facial units' displayed (hence the usefulness of E k m a n ' s
units, which one could define also in terms of Birdwhistell's [1970]
'kinemes' and 'kinemorphemes').
Within the rest of the kinesic activities during the crying proper, the
chart should identify, as for laughter: the mouth, either tightly closed (e.g.,
in bitter weeping), half-open (e.g., crying with an expression of exhaustion
or hopelessness) or wide-open (e.g., as small children do); the position of
the mandible or jaw (e.g., half-open mouth and receded mandible in a
regressive state of a manic-depressive patient); the lips, not with as m a n y
postures as for laughter, but certainly not only the bilateral or symmetrical
downward one referred to usually in research, but also the unilateral
diagonal setting, the protruding or pouting gesture, or the bilabial inward
retraction of someone trying to repress loud sobbing or tensing the facial
muscles in emotional pain; the nasolabial furrows (e.g., m u c h more pro-
nounced if one is crying in physical pain) ; the degree of eyelid closure and
the degree of eyebrow raising or knitting. Besides the behaviors of the face,
a number of cooccurrent bodily behaviors are costructured with the verbal-
paralinguistic-chemical-kinesic (facial) behaviors in their various possible
combinations which, more than the facial ones, differentiate personal, situ-
ational and, above all, cultural characteristics: hands, arms and body, as
with the w o m e n mourners in ancient Egyptian paintings or in modern
Greece and Middle-East cultures, rocking their bodies back and forth while
wailing loudly, some with a totally 'dry wailing', others shedding real tears
of true grief or triggered by the mounting emotional situation. Actually,
there should be a clear identification of the various forms of crying accord-
ing to their audible, visual and chemical components for wailing, sobbing,
blubbering, mewling, whimpering, crying, whining crying, etc. Besides,
even more than in laughter, crying elicits alter-adaptor behaviors, not only
on the part of the crier — embracing suddenly as he or she bursts into tears,
the embrace acting as leader or onset, or taking hold of someone else's
forearm or hand — but of another person, out of sincere or feigned sym-
pathy.
DIFFERENTIATORS 295
Contextual elements
T h e configuration of crying, m o r e so than laughter, is affected in general by
the contextual elements: cultural background, which shows, first of all, the
different ways of coping with bereavement; socioeducational status, which,
within the same culture, m a y differentiate the display or control of the
grieving behavior, or the attitude in situations of distress; situational con-
text, including the specific interactive or noninteractive situation (e.g., a
w a k e , a leave-taking, witnessing a disaster, embarrassment); setting (e.g., a
funeral parlor, a counsellor's office, a prayer meeting); and, as with laugh-
ter, the clinical configuration if the crying is by a patient of whatever type
(e.g., pre-operative stage, manic-depressive). A s Ostwald (1964:20) says:
" A s in the evaluation of laughter, the psychiatrist must consider not only a
patient's background and physical condition, but also social rules to the
extent that these selectively prohibit or encourage certain forms of e m o -
tional expression".
This, then, completes the essential features which should not be
ignored. Depending on the observer's or researcher's interest and strategy,
some m a y not be relevant at all, yet if w e k n o w what truly m a y constitute a
laugh or a crying fit, that they are not to be regarded simply as audible
p h e n o m e n a but at least as audible-visual behavioral clusters, our percep-
tion will be m u c h m o r e insightful and, having in mind the various paralin-
guistic and kinesic message-conveying signs, w e will become m u c h m o r e
sensitive to otherwise unperceived nuances of expression and will be able to
react m o r e appropriately to a person's crying, or just to the leading
behaviors.
Spanish gritar, of the same origin, but meaning only to speak very loudly),
and its use m a y be quite ambiguous w h e n 'wailing', for instance, would
evoke the exact form of the person's crying. 'Wailing', 'bewailing', 'sob-
bing' and 'keening' are differentiated, for one thing, by their high e m o -
tional intensity. Wailing and bewailing (from M E wailen and biwailen,
derived from O N vaela, to lament) evoke in their prolonged diphthong the
long, loud emissions, as if drawling the word 'wail' out loud (the high-front
vocalic sound rising in pitch and volume) could in itself express deep grief
or pain; although it can be also rather softly uttered; lamenting (from Fr.
lamenter, derived from L . lamentan, mourning, wailing; cf. A r m . lam, I
weep) should be classified here for its meaning similar to wailing and
bewailing: Keening is a typically Irish word denoting the wailing for the
dead. Sobbing (from M E . sobbern) denotes loud and typically spasmodic,
broken weeping with gasping and tear-shedding, which can be the 'hysteri-
cal crying' or 'crying one's eyes out' often referred to w h e n speaking of
someone, although it can be less loud and often tearless. Weeping (from
O E . wepan, outcry) refers above all to crying with tears, and has the most
applications of all terms, including the compound 'to weep for', to mourn in
bereavement. It can be soft and peaceful, as can, for instance, the crying of
spiritual repentance, or louder and tense, as in disconsolate grief, and its
accompanying kinesic behaviors can also be subdued or 'loud', thus being
sometimes a general and as ambiguous a term sometimes as 'crying'. There
is one very specific form of weeping, blubbering (from M E bloberen, to
bubble), whose probable echoic origin is easily evoked — when w e say the
word or hear a reference to it — as a bubbling through the lips (mostly the
mouth corners) while weeping and sobbing in a broken and rather higher-
than-moderate pitch and low or high volume, sometimes showing also a
face swollen with crying and tear-shedding.
Not far from the rather 'wet paralinguistic features' of blubbering is
sniveling (from M E . snivelen, referring to the flow of the nasal mucus), a
'sniffling' form of weeping sometimes seen in a not very sincere grieving or
disappointed kind of crying, or w h e n continuing weeping is producing tears
and nasal mucus, combined perhaps with the swelling of blubbering.
Moaning (seen before as qualifier) seems to betray a rather imitative
formation or later development, as is apparent in the drawled pronuncia-
tion of the word, thus suggesting a nasal rather low-pitched and low-volume
sound with possible pitch variations, as in 'the moaning of the wind', but
always weak, prolonged, mournful and lament-like. Whimpering (of doubt-
300 PARALANGUAGE
ful echoic origin), also a qualifier, has the nasality-and low-pitch quality of
moaning, but its emission is broken and intermittently creaky and whiny (of
echoic origin itself). Next to whimper are two less frequently used terms
referring mostly to childish or immature ways of crying: mewling (an echoic
frequentative of 'mewing'), that is, in a weakly, rather whining or whimper-
ing voice, and puling (of apparently echoic origin), also of a whimpering or
whining quality, "as a sick or fretful child" ( W N W D C E ) , but perhaps with
less nasality, although they are used indistinctively without quite knowing
the difference.
A. Affiliation
Laughter does not have the emotional depth of crying, of weeping with glis-
tening eyes and tears running d o w n one's cheeks, and although both laugh-
ter and crying can function as bond-forming behaviors, the affiliative elo-
quence of crying surpasses that of laughter, first of all because laughter w e
can control, start and stop at will most of the time, and it is m u c h easier to
lie with it than with tearful crying. Thus, the stimuli that m a y m o v e us to
shed tears will always affect m u c h more those with w h o m w e cry and our
reaction to those words, events or situations will have a m u c h deeper and
long-lasting effect in our relationship, our bond being strengthened in a
more secure w a y than it would ever be through shared laughter, for the
cries of laughter seem to vanish into thin air, while even a brief quiet weep-
ing remains gratefully in our hearts. Therefore, the affiliation that with
laughter might be consciously and calculatingly sought for, can be created
totally unexpectedly w h e n , for instance, someone feels free enough to dis-
304 PARALANGUAGE
that of happiness (i.e., high pitches of language and the laughter), while
tears c o m e only as an overflow of relief and love. However, the moments
that precede a departure, the goodbyes w e witness at transportation termi-
nals, while full of loud laughs and jokes and giving of going-away presents
and hugs and kisses, show also more intense and sad instances of truly sad
crying: speech-overriding weeping, long gazes, tight embraces, more re-
pressed emotions in the less demonstrative cultures and m u c h less repres-
sion in the lower classes of the more expressive ones.
Crying in courtship is limited in this classification to the weeping that
appears in either the m a n or the w o m a n exclusively out of the overflowing
and less selfish kind of love (not w h e n mixed with feelings of utter posses-
sion, seduction, etc.), in which case it is characterized by low tones, quav-
ery, whispery voice, relaxed breathing, accompanied by alternating pro-
longed eye contact and looking away, often the mutual holding of hands
acting as an added interpersonal 'articulation' of the kind discussed in
Chapter 1.
The crying of love and tenderness, between lovers, parents and children
or intimate friends, is always calm and virtually silent or silent — just as it
elicits gentle laughter and not a raucous one — betrayed by glistening eyes,
or a tear, as it is caused only by a deep feeling of psychological and/or
spiritual closeness to the loved one, usually with no words mediating, as the
tears express the ineffable already, an unselfish feeling that can be directed
also toward an animal w e truly humanize. Although m u c h quieter than the
crying of joy (seen below), it is however closely related to it as the joy of
loving someone. Nowadays the w o m a n is more prone to it than the m a n ,
but the romantic literature of the 19th century describes the crying of the
heroine's masculine admirer, and if w e review, for instance, Dickens' more
sensitive male characters w e find h o w in past periods masculine crying —
both in same-sex and different-sex encounters — had not yet suffered from
our modern restraints on expressed emotions and on emotions themselves.
However, this seemingly unselfish paralinguistic-kinesic-chemical construct
m a y develop (without the two persons involved being necessarily aware of
it) into an effective tool of seduction and, therefore, deception. T o this cat-
egory belong the tears than can c o m e to one's eyes just thinking of someone
w e love and of the love w e feel for that person. But, particularly in m e n ,
this is usually limited to a heart-warming feeling that surfaces through glis-
tening eyes.
306 PARALANGUAGE
. Empathy
While empathy toward others can lead to the establishment of certain
bonds and long-lasting relationships as a form of affiliation, it can be also
triggered by stimuli whose source can be totally removed from our present
reality, thus as a category in itself comprising several different situations.
The empathic crying in direct interaction or co-presence would be best rep-
resented by the compassionate weeping w h e n witnessing other people's
tragedies and misfortunes. It varies in its loudness, rhythm, and intensity of
lacrimation and facial expression, but it is usually subdued and in a m u c h
lower key than that of the person one empathizes with, w h o m a y or m a y
not cry. It is is usually supported by bodily contact, such as holding a hand
or the person's shoulders, embracing, kissing, or just shaking his hand
firmly and with an equally compassionate look. Crying during other
people's mourning, w h e n it is triggered by their grief, would not qualify as
mourning, as w e really do not grieve over the deceased ourselves.
A s for indirect empathy, which can be compassion too, on hearing
about someone's tragic death, watching a documentary on famine victims
or seeing a moving film, it shows the same paralinguistic and kinesic charac-
teristics, but it cannot result in any kind of response on our part, unless w e ,
act upon that emotional effect o n us (e.g., seeing a photograph of a
tombstone that read "Mary Elizabeth Peace. Born through abortion. Died
by abortion, Feb. 12, 1979" brought tears to m y eyes and m a d e m e take
some action.
Still another empathic attitude, melancholic empathy, caused by
relived feelings and a sense of alienation from one's loved ones and oneself.
Joy
The crying of joy is usually louder and more visually conspicuous because
w e are not trying to repress any feelings, but it can also be quiet, even silent
in certain situations. Besides the joy felt w h e n greeting someone after a
long absence, a few other situations could be identified, such as: good for-
tune, happy surprise, disbelief, and triumph. Their c o m m o n denominator is
so obvious that the manifestations of crying with tear-shedding can be very
similar to each other and only the contextual elements m a y sometimes
allow us to identify the actual stimulus. In fact, the feeling of good fortune
w h e n first learning about it is qualified by surprise, perhaps mixed with dis-
belief at one's luck, then by bursting into the recognition of one's triumph.
DIFFERENTIATORS 307
D. Social anxiety
A s with laughter, one can cry involuntarily as a result of social anxiety,
mainly caused by feelings of embarrassment, shame, tension, or w h e n that
tension is relieved. The paralinguistic and kinesic characteristics of embar-
rassment and shame vary mainly according to age (e.g., the teenage girl
w h o tearfully cries O h , mother!, h o w could you say that in front of him?!',
stomping her foot and wringing her hands) and sex (e.g., the young boy
whose voice just quavers slightly and clenches his teeth trying to repress his
tears). W h a t w e usually call tension (e.g., waiting anxiously outside an
operating room) is, as with embarrassment and shame, more typical of
w o m e n , but the culture-specific norms concerning the display of emotions
can vary greatly, and so a Southern European m a n will not try to check his
tears as m u c h as a Swede would, although it would be quite subdued in
both. O n the other hand, w e m a y need to identify the exact motive through
other behaviors as well, such as crossing and uncrossing of arms, rapid
blinking, etc.
308 PARALANGUAGE
E. Psychological pain
Crying is almost exclusively associated with painful feelings, whether physi-
cal or psychological. This category comprises the most intense occurrences
of interactive crying and its seemingly noninteractive instances m a y involve
actually a veritable interaction with, for instance, a deceased relative. It
includes grief, anger, etc., and others which w e can identify only — as they
m a y be emotional blends — by considering certain components and mainly
the contextual situation, as with humiliation, fear or frustration.
Foremost in this category are grief and bereavement, discussed together
not only for the intense emotional suffering involved but because the
paralinguistic-kinesic-chemical characteristics of its manifestation are the
same, the differences depending mostly on personality and, even m o r e , on
cultural display rules and the cultural concept of, and reaction to, personal
loss (i.e., by death), forced separation (as with exile), or material loss (e.g.,
seeing one's h o m e in flames), but always communicating most eloquently,
whether independently of words or blended with them. T h e crying of
mourning deserves special attention, particularly as regards sex differences
across cultures and its almost ritualized, or truly ritualized, display. In
m a n y different cultures of Black Africa, Asia and America m e n are told
since childhood that they are not supposed to cry, but the bereavement sit-
uation allows for specific rules concerning audible or silent male crying. In
all the instances of bereavement I have observed m a n y times, both in a
southern European culture like Spain and in North America, crying was
restrained in public, even a m o n g females, in the upper classes. Typically,
m e n wear dark glasses to conceal tears or reddened eyes, as did Prince
Rainier of M o n a c o at Princess Grace's funeral (but not inside the church,
where he let tears run naturally d o w n his face) while w o m e n wear an ele-
gant veil over the face, as did President Kennedy's widow at his funeral.
But only in the low-class w o m e n of North America have I seen crying still
restrained, though less, in situations it would never be in Spain, France,
Italy or Greece, where they wail loudly at intervals following the death and
during the w a k e ; and — as can be witnessed m u c h too often on television
(e.g., in the aftermath of the 1980 earthquake in Italy and the 1988 one in
Armenia) — w o m e n in Greece and in Latin and Arab cultures around the
DIFFERENTIATORS 309
Mediterranean (thus including the Middle East) throw themselves over the
coffin while wailing loudly, raising and lowering their arms and bodies in an
up-and-down motion (similar to the movements suggested in paintings of
ancient Egyptian mourners). Obviously an unrestrained attitude in mourn-
ing is considered by m a n y to be healthier and more open, whereas those
w h o try not to cry or to conceal it "foster emotional dishonesty and the
wearing of masks [...] w h e n they prevent the supportive 'bearing of one
another's burdens' (Galatians 6:2)" (van Heukelem 1979). M o r e conspicu-
ous among the lower and middle classes in Spain is, for instance, the fact
that expected loud crying on the part of the bereaved occurs at specific
moments (and when it does not, observers m a y wonder about their feelings
toward the deceased) namely: every time a close relative arrives at the
house (where the body is kept for one overnight wake), particularly w h e n
coming from out of town, while those in adjoining rooms will not only guess
w h o is arriving each time, but will gauge his or her closeness by the amount
and loudness of the females' (and even more significantly the males') cry-
ing; in some places, w h e n the priest arrives before the funeral mass in
church; and always w h e n the coffin is closed, and when the body is finally
taken away and the reality of the loss becomes even more painful and
inexorable. Lack of conspicuous loud crying by the closest female relatives,
particularly the widow, and at least tearful or congested eyes on the part of
the closest male relatives, can certainly be criticized as lack of affection. A s
Leach (1972:332) puts it, "it is the noise [thus the paralanguage] rather than
the tears which have symbolic value". B y contrast, the typical North-
American funeral h o m e , where the deceased is suddenly seen in an envi-
ronment which is not his o w n , nor that of the bereaved — and perhaps this
removes some of the associations and memories of him at h o m e — is
characterized (under normal circumstances, not after a tragic or unexpected
death at a young age, for instance) by m u c h restraint in comparison with
the cultures just mentioned. O n e sees tears, but m u c h less, and rarely
moments of loud crying. However, during church services — another time
of reawakened awareness — I have always heard in the United States and
Canada occasional outbursts by young w o m e n grieving for a child, a
classmate or a young wife, in addition to m u c h silent, repressed weeping
and visible heaving. First and even second-generation male and female
members of crying cultures are also more expressive in bereavement, such
as the Lebanese or the Italian, whose weeping amounts to expressing ver-
bally the degree of their attachment to the deceased and their suffering.
310 PARALANGUAGE
ments, actually very similar to the crying reaction of frustration, the latter
often accompanied also by occasional sobbing, clenched teeth and tense
facial expression, while disappointment (e.g., if someone very close to us
lets us d o w n ) can be manifested in m e n by silent tears, but louder weeping
in w o m e n .
- Shame is sometimes associated with humiliation or considered a conse
quence of it, as w h e n someone hurts our pride and also causes us to feel
shame because our o w n behavior or attitude has brought dishonor or dis
grace to us, to which both m e n and w o m e n can react with crying speech or
just weeping.
- Resentment or indignation will cause tearful crying w h e n feelings are
hurt in extreme, or w h e n they are blended with humiliation.
- Anguish is sometimes the only way w e can refer to certain outbursts of
crying, for different emotions can cause that deep pain. " M r . Casey [called
blasphemer and devil during a violent dispute] bowed his head in his hands
with a sob of pain [...] H e sobbed loudly and bitterly" (Joyce Ρ Λ Υ Μ , I,
39).
- T h e crying of impotence and helplessness can be very restless, with
intermittent louder outbursts of high-pitched weeping in w o m e n and low-
pitched groans and forceful exhalations in m e n .
- Depression, an important complex stimulus for crying, has different
manifestations. It can be, mostly in w o m e n , just silent tears and sighing
with occasional weeping or quavering voice and lower motor activity and
perhaps feelings of pessimism and inadequacy. But as a pathological state
crying becomes more conspicuous in both sexes, and feelings of hopeless
ness are betrayed also by a low-key kinesic repertoire. In the manic-depre
ssive psychosis, anxiety and deep sadness trigger tantrum-like episodes with
violent and loud weeping, long, high and low-pitched cries, regressive nas
ality and labialization, periods of open-mouth childish crying, or closed-
mouth and quiet weeping, gaze fixed in infinity as part of acute underactiv
ity.
F. Deception
It was seen h o w laughter can act as a powerful element of deceit in interac
tion in combination with gestures, proxemic behavior and touch, and even
clothes and perfume. O n e cannot trigger his o w n crying and tear-shedding
as easily, although some have the ability of producing those 'crocodile
tears'; and, naturally, if w e produce tears at will, most likely they will not
DIFFERENTIATORS 313
G. Self-directed crying
Whether in interaction or in noninteractive situations, one m a y cry in a very
specifically self-directed w a y , not caused by the anger, grief, etc., felt
toward an external object, or the humiliation one is being subjected to, but
as a reaction to the emotional impact caused on us by those external agents.
T h e most typical instance is self-pity, a self-indulging, negative attitude
toward one's situation, whether real, imagined or simply exaggerated, often
blended with a state of ordinary depression and, more in w o m e n than in
m e n , causing tears and even loud weeping, stirred by seeing or imagining
ourselves in 'pitiful' situations and experiencing 'pitiful' feelings.
T h e crying triggered by guilt is spurred by a devastatingly negative feel-
ing of self-reproach associated with the realization that one has (or believes
314 PARALANGUAGE
H. Esthetic enjoyment
Whether the viewing of an awesome landscape, listening to deeply felt
music or the reading of a nondescriptive p o e m m a y bring tears to the eyes
will depend greatly on our concept of beauty and to the extent to which w e
have been exposed to it. I have deliberately set apart representational
painting and descriptive literature because in those two instances it is not
pure enjoyment in the sense that the tears they m a y elicit are actually tears
of empathy, first (e.g., while viewing a 'beautifully painted' scene of
Christ's passion, or while reading 'a very moving' fictional or autobio-
graphical narrative), and then, perhaps, of visual and literary enjoyment.
Then one must consider the difference between being m o v e d to tears
experiencing that enjoyment by ourselves or accompanied and thus influ-
enced even by the mere presence of others, especially in a one-to-one
relationship with a loved one.
to G o d ' s personal love for him or her as an individual. Although this feeling
can overcome a person at any time, two main situations can be identified:
conversion and repentance, and pure spiritual joy, both of which I have wit-
nessed on numerous occasions. Conversion, defined in Christian terms as a
radical turning of a person's heart and mind to G o d through Jesus Christ by
the power of the Holy Spirit, implies repentance and a characteristic sign of
it is weeping (already a joyful and hopeful kind of pain): "a w o m a n in the
city w h o was a sinner [...] began to wash His (Jesus') feet with her tears"
{Luke 7:37-38), "Jo-Jo [a N e w York street gang member] was a changed
boy. It began with tears; Jo-Jo cried the bitterness out and he cried the
hatred out" (Wilkerson CS, I X , 74), " A n d the next thing you knew [after
Wilkerson had told them about Jesus Christ] the President of the Chaplains
[a N e w York street gang] flopped d o w n on his knees, right on Edward
Street, and started crying. T h e Vice-President and two W a r Lords got d o w n
beside him and they cried" (Wilkerson C S , X I , 89). A s for spiritual joy
manifested through quiet or loud crying, countless examples could be
gleaned from different sources.
'"Please, dear G o d , send someone to tell m e about you. Love. Rose' [a
note written by a prostitute and suicidal psychiatric patient and given to
D r . Wilson]. Tears welled up m y eyes [Dr. Wilson's] as I choked out m y
response [...]. I glanced at Pickett [a psychiatric aide], w h o — like Russ [a
young doctor] and myself — was doing her best not to cry [...]. I k n e w she
was in the process of being transformed" (Wilson GG, 121-122).
6.3 Shouting
Very loud voice within the loudness scale corresponds to the forte and for-
tissimo levels of intensity as an overriding primary quality of verbal utter-
ances or independently of words. But the fortissimo quality is in itself a
parameter for m u c h needed study, although the psychopathology literature
refers to occurrences of yelling and shouting. O n e should identify, in a
more limited way than for laughter and crying, certain acoustic and visible
characteristics of shouting, which, in the first place, would yield a better dif-
ferentiation in each language and each culture of the various nominal and
verbal labels, that is, shouting, yelling, howling, etc. Thus, it would provide
also a correct understanding of a foreign language's exact meanings w h e n
w e read them in their original forms, particularly w h e n w e must translate
them trying to produce in the foreign reader's mind precisely the acoustic
effect the original term evokes in the native speaker's recreation. Besides,
an analysis of this type would afford a useful comparison of h u m a n and ani-
mal cries, beginning with the high-volume utterances of primates, such as
the loud barks of chimpanzees upon finding good food, their "spine-chil-
ling" "wraaaa!" screams in dangerous situations, their panthoots w h e n
"about to enter a valley or charge toward a food-source (van Lawick
Goodall 1971: 241-242, 263-266), and other high-intensity calls by different
wild and domestic species. This morphologico-syntactical analysis would
lead to a functional classification similar to the one followed for laughter
and crying, suggesting a further phylogenetic adaptive development to
social life and the environment. It would first establish animal cries as
means of conveying information about basic needs and instinctive drives
(e.g., attention, hunger, aggression, etc.), and h u m a n cries as responding
also to basic situations of survival, to which m a n adds the expression of his
emotions. T h e literature on crying or yelling is not extensive, and Key's
(1975:49, 57-60) comments suggest several research avenues. S o m e studies
of nonverbal communication from a psychological point of view touch upon
loud voice, for instance, as a characteristic of the extrovert (cf. Scherer
1979), while, from a biological point of view, the loud voice of m a n y old
people, instead of the typical lower one, is recognized as a strategy to coun-
teract their o w n diminishing hearing (e.g., Helfrich 1979:86). Ostwald's
(1963:40) study of different cries analyzed the baby's cry and scream, which
DIFFERENTIATORS 317
& LABELS
paralinguistic leader
PARALINGUISTIC FEATURES
loudness: forte/fortissimo
pitch level
resonance: oral/nasal/pharyngeal
continuous/spasmodic
creaky/harsh/shrill/throaty /falsetto
1 abialization/palatal ization/vel arization/nasalization
paralinguistic offset
paralinguistic aftermath
ANATOMICAL FEATURES
kinesic leader
kinesic onset
mouth: half-closed/open/wide-open & jaw posture
hands/arms
ACTTV- KINESIC &
body
kinesic offset
kinesic aftermath
other contextual activities
ITIES
concomitant activities
cultural background & socioeducational status
CONTEXT
situational context
clinical configuration
cointeractants' behaviors
Laughter, crying and shouting are virtually the only differentiators for
which w e have at our disposal a series of terms all referring to the same
basic quality, but evoking quite distinct characteristics, albeit, not always
clearly differentiated in our minds. Shouting refers in general to crying out,
as w h e n someone is talking very loudly, such as 'shouting orders', or utter-
ing a sudden outburst with or without words. To holler is simply to shout or
yell calling someone's attention — used also figuratively w h e n w e say, for
instance, 'If you need m e , holler', or '— give m e a shout' (even by phone).
To hallo — also 'hollo', 'holler' (cf. Sp. iHola!) — ( M E . holoween, from
the interjection halou and probably also from O F r . halloer, to follow after
with m u c h noise [WNWD]) has the same meaning, used also as an exclama-
tion of surprise or greeting, and, with the shout 'Halloo!', to urge hounds in
hunting, but still without the specific paralinguistic features of the other
terms for shouting. "'Halloa!' w e said, stopping. 'Orlick there?' [calling out
in a dark and misty night]" (Dickens GE, X V , 113). Yelling (from M E . yel-
len and O E . giellen, probably from IE. ghel-, to cry out) is understood
already as closer to screaming and shrieking. Crying seems of a more imita-
tive or echoic origin (from M E . crien and earlier O F r . crien and L . quin-
tare, squeal like a pig) and is very often used as 'crying out', while just 'cry-
ing' is used more as weeping. Screaming (probably from IE. skerei, of
echoic origin, from which M E . screamen) evokes already, not only the
higher pitch of the former terms, but a more piercing and shrill quality of a
cry, as w h e n suddenly frightened or angered. Shriek (of a not clearly recog-
nized but probably echoic origin, from M E . scriken,similar to O N . skrikja,
cry of birds, and probably of the same IE. base as scream, skerei) evokes an
even more piercing and loud cry, "as certain animals, or a person in terror,
pain, or laughter "(WNWD), while screech has the same IE. base (through
M E . scrichen, from O N . skraekja) and should evoke a very similar sound,
but with a harsher quality to it, just as squeal ( M E . squelen, probably from
O N . swala, to cry out, yell), which refers to an also shrill and high-pitched,
but longer cry, similar to (perhaps harsher) squall (from the same O N .
verb), and to the echoic verb squawk (i.e., as a parrot or chicken), and also
squeak ( M E . squeken, not dissimilar to O N . skwakka, to gurgle), evoking
a thinner, higher-pitched cry (as the mouse does): " A baby's thin squalling
[...] 'That's his messcah"" (Dos Passos , 'Charley anderson', 65), "So he
reaches out to feel this red dress an' the girl lets out a squawk [...] this girl
DIFFERENTIATORS 321
startling noise), or by the environment (e.g., a child crying out loudly dur
ing a thunderstorm);
- internal-interaction situations w e m a y imagine, as w h e n yelling in anger
during an internal dialog with someone else;
- and internal noninteractive situations, as w h e n w e give a yell of excite
ment if w e win a prize, or cry out in an outburst of anguish (which can be
pathological in, for instance, a manic-depressive patient).
A. Overcoming obstacles
A s time and space are the two basic dimensions of social interactions, in
any excessive degree they elicit shouting, often even unconsciously, as dur
ing a long-distance phone call (more a m o n g lower-status callers), w h e n dis
tance is actually only imagined. Distance must be spanned by shouting — as
324 PARALANGUAGE
was said for the primary quality of loudness — and typically by stepped-up
kinesic behavior, due to the perfect internal of the linguistic-paralinguistic-
kinesic structure. Audible kinesics sometimes replaces or accompanies
shouting, such as the loud clapping for a distant performer, the (usually
double) clapping with which Spaniards m a y beckon a waiter in a popular
outside café or, until recent years, the night watchman s u m m o n e d at a dis-
tance to unlock one's main door in an apartment building, w h o would
respond with a loud double tap of his stick against the pavement (that is, an
artifactually-mediated sound) or a verbal ¡Voy!. Time must be overcome by
a shout when warning against an impending hazard or danger, uncon-
sciously accompanied by a forward movement (e.g., '¡Watch out!', '¡Don't
touch it!', that is, in an effort to catch up with the person's action.)
Other physical obstacles overcome by shouted speech or wordless
shouting are, mainly: noise (e.g., in a noisy drinking place), while its
absence in some of those places would m a k e shouting inappropriate and
even an invasion of privacy (e.g., in parks, public conveyances); darkness,
even when people are not far from each other, m a k e some shout to the
point of making someone say 'Don't shout, I ' m right here!; and poor hear-
ing on the part of the speaker.
tamer (who adds to his voice the also loud crack of the whip), the average
dog owner, during herding, calling to different species of animals for vari-
ous purposes (cf. K e y 1975:59; B y n o n 1976, on Berber calls), and similar
cries discussed in Chapter 7 as paralinguistic alternants: " ' H è , hè,' they
shout as they drive them [bulls] to the temple courtyard" (Rao K, XII,
110).
The taming of animals contains also a whole vocabulary of verbal and
nonverbal utterances, emitted either softly while coaxing, praising, etc., or
truly shouting to control, intimidate and dominate. The vast cultural variety
of such cries warrants a serious monographic study that would disclose very
interesting differences and similarities a m o n g the cries used with certain
species as well as the phonetic characteristics for each one. T h e linguist
would find m a n y of these cries in the more realistic novels . " A divided
drove of branded cattle passed the windows [...] — H u u u h ! the drover's
voice cried, his switch sounding on their flanks. H u u u h ! Out of that!"
(Joyce U, 97).
Finally, shouted warning (trying, as has been said, to overcome time),
a form of calling someone's attention to prevent him from doing something.
C. Aggression
Aggression has been understood as any form of verbal or paralinguistic
intentionally harmful or abusive behavior. Shouting, then, like laughter
(except that laughter can vary greatly in loudness or softness), whether act-
ing as a qualifier of speech — susceptible itself to voice qualifiers — or ex-
clusively as a paralinguistic utterance, can be equally modified by other
qualifiers. In a scale ranging from annoyance to actual physical attack, the
following forms of shouted or loud aggression should be differentiated.
- The expression of annoyance, not necessarily shouted as m u c h as other
forms of loud aggression, is qualified by other eloquent voice features:
"Her voice, shrill with annoyance, pierced his ears in a slender, piping
thread of a sound" (Crane G M , X I V , 151). Shouted anger (as suggested by
the qualifiers shown in Fig. 5.1), can be expressed through shouted speech
modified by a great variety of laryngeal and pharyngeal voice qualities
mainly (referred to with various sound verbs), costructured with congruent
kinesics, often blended with other emotions and attitudes: "screaming,
shaking her fist at the m a n in the car" (Dos Passos M T , I, II, 20).
- Indignation can elicit loud shouting and excited kinesic behaviors:
" O h , to hear him! cried m y sister, with a clap of her hands and a scream
326 PARALANGUAGE
together [...] T o hear the names he's giving m e ! ' " (Dickens G E , X V , 110).
- Anger, in fact, accounts for most of the shouted speech found in litera-
ture as a reflection of real life, although writers m a n y times need to clarify
whether it is only 'vehement speech' or actual 'shouted speech', because of
the ambiguity of the exclamation sign [!] or [¡—!].
- Hatred in loud speech is always mixed with anger mainly, but also with
contempt, reproach, etc.
- Derision, scorn, scoff, etc., can be expressed through shouted speech
or shouted laughter, and sometimes, in w o m e n , through crying: "She
screamed at Maggie with scoffing laughter" (Crane, M G S , X V , 91), "(The
two brothers continue to cry 'Whoop!' in derision)" (O'Neill D U E , I, iv).
- Threat and intimidation, challenge, and actual attack take very similar
forms of shouted speech, paralinguistic cries and accompanying gestures,
although the former three can be uttered softly, even whispered, but vehe-
mently, the louder the shouting, the more pronounced the facial gestures
and the more marked the other body behaviors.
Battle cries have been used all throughout history, ritualized today in
karate and other forms of fighting as two opponents charge against each
other. The Bible contains the oldest and most vivid descriptions of the orig-
inal teruwa (Hebrew for 'battle cry') an encouraging shout of praise and
trust in God's power but also a threatening clamoring for the enemy,
accompanied by very loud trumpets, which m a d e people shout: " A n d it
happened w h e n the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people
shouted with a great shout, that the wall [of Jericho] fell d o w n flat" (Joshua
6:20).
tion to which w e can refer only with periphrastic references like 'drawing in
one's breath', 'drawing a deep breath', etc. Its physiological and c o m m u n i -
cative nature and its closeness to sighing and gasping m a k e it a qualifier (al-
though w e cannot speak through that first audible and visual phase), for it
is actually another form of sighing (in which the first, not the second, part
is the communicative one), although its only function is that of being pre-
paratory to speech, hence the sugested term pre-speech inbreath.
T h e systematic study of sighing and gasping require that w e ascertain:
a. biological foundation and physiological and emotional distribution
according to sex and age;
b. morphology, in terms of both paralinguistic (audible) and kinesic (vis-
ual) components, independently of speech or along with it;
c. forms and functions in interaction or noninteraction;
d. the possible functional distribution across cultures;
e. the possible ambiguity w h e n using the terms 'sighing' and 'gasping';
f. their possible costructuration with other nonverbal behaviors (e.g.,
crying, laughter); and
g. their use in literature and their functional description.
6.4.2 The morphology of sighing and gasping and their similarities and dif-
ferences
resonance: oral/nasal/pharyngeal
continuous/spasmodic
creaky/pharyngealization/velarization/nasalization
kinesic leader
AND OTHER ACTIVITIES
kinesic onset
KINESIC FEATURES
mouth: half-closed
hands/arms
kinesic offset
kinesic aftermath
contextual/concomitant activities
cultural background & socioeducational status
CONTEXT
situational context
clinical configuration
cointeractants' behaviors
phonetic transcription, basically [ > φ < ] and [ > φ < < ] for a sigh and a gasp,
to which other symbols can be added (e.g., [ > φ - ] for a nasal sigh); indica
tion of whether both stages are present conspicuously or only one, noting
their duration here also, as they can be prolonged voluntarily or involuntar
ily; loudness or intensity, either soft or loud, the latter as 'stage sigh/gasp';
their pitch level, between mid- and higher-; resonance, either oral,
pharyngeal or nasal (or in combinination); continuous or spasmodic emis
sion, the first phase (i.e., ingression) being sometimes the only broken one;
qualifiers like creakiness, velarization, pharyngealization and nasalization,
depending, for instance, on their emotional intensity. Within kinesic fea
tures, the kinesic leader detectable in a heaving chest, closed eyes, etc., par
ticularly in a voluntary sigh or gasp; the kinesic onset, which can still be the
heaving, or a shoulder shrug or closed eyes; the mouth, closed, even tightly
shut, half-closed or open as in need of breathing; the hands, sometimes
being wrung, clasped together, or just hanging limply; the kinesic offset,
DIFFERENTIATORS 333
often opening the eyes after having closed them and raising the eyebrows,
or the downward phase of the shrug; the kinesic aftermath, revealed often
in a certain laxness of face, hands and body; any contextual and concomitant
activities, such as weeping, of which sighing and gasping can be precisely
paralinguistic leaders. W e w e m a y want to indicate the cultural background
and socioeducational status, as with the sighing during prayer heard a m o n g
older w o m e n in the churches of some cultures; the situational context could
be of relevance, as would any pathological occurrences of sighing (e.g., as
a symptom of persisting anxiety) as part of the clinical configuration. T h e
cointeractants' cobehaviors m a y reveal subtle, or not so subtle, interactive
behavioral costructurations, such as interpersonal triggering of sighing, or
reactions to it.
6.4.3 The nature of sighing and gasping and their direction, control and
eliciting situations
If a true sigh is a reflex reaction, so is a true gasp. T h e sigh has two phases,
while a gasp seems to be only an ingrèssion of air, certainly what w e hear as
and call a gasp. H o w e v e r , the inspiration of a gasp which ends in a 'catch'
of the respiratory air, must necessarily be followed by an expiration to
resume breathing, even if it is not so perceptible as the sigh's second phase.
D o e s that actual second phase m a k e it a sigh? O r , put differently, can the
first phase of a sigh be considered a gasp because there is also an interrup-
tion? Rather not, since a gasp is a quick intake of breath and the sigh starts
with a m u c h longer one. O n e could wonder whether the two clearly audible
phases put together could be considered 'a complete sigh' and the single
one an 'incomplete sigh' or gasp. Thus, from the point of view of their audi-
ble mechanism, a sigh and a gasp are clearly different. Besides, while both
first phases are also visible in the heaving m o v e m e n t , only the sigh's second
phase is visible. A s for the relation of the sigh and the gasp to verbal speech
and paralanguage, one interrupts speech to sigh, inhales, and then is able to
speak again through the expiration phase, that is, as 'sighed language', or
simply utters a speechless but voiced (e.g., with pharyngeal friction) sigh;
with a gasp it is just the opposite: only a few speech sounds can be uttered
with the gasping qualifier (e.g., ' O h , no!'), that is, the first phase of the
respiratory mechanism. Both the sigh and the gasp can be qualified by the
paralinguistic features outlined earlier; but a gasp cannot be said to show a
true kinesic onset, given its abruptness, although the mouth opens sud-
334 PARALANGUAGE
denly, and the hands can also show the startle (as in the feminine back of
hand-to-mouth gesture, typical of silent films, or the hand-to-chest ges
ture), the eyes opening wide or closing in an effort not to see, and the
whole gasp being often uttered with a jerk of the whole body.
A sigh always conveys a message and can modify the coinciding or
adjoining verbal message. In fact, the expressive ambiguity of a verbal
utterance like O k a y ' disappears w h e n it is overriden by a sigh signifying
O k a y , have it your way', and pitch is higher than normal in the first sylla
ble, indicating a yielding attitude.
Finally, the intensity of a sigh, revealed in its perceived loudness, is
particularly meaningful w h e n the second phase, the one w e can m a k e
longer, is prolonged and becomes the truly eloquent part of the sigh or, at
any rate, of that word-like, perhaps ineffable, breathing behavior, as in:
" H e emitted a labored breath, as if the scene were getting rather oppressive
to his heart, or to his conscience, or to his gentility" (Hardy T D , XII, 93).
If w e compare the direction, control and eliciting situations of sighing
and gasping, w e see that w e can sigh involuntarily about something in
response to an internal (mostly in sighing) or external stimulus, and that w e
gasp triggered mostly by an external stimulus, while voluntarily w e can sigh
or gasp for s o m e ulterior motive in interaction. A s for the basic eliciting sit
uations, the involuntary, uncontrollable instances of a sigh or a gasp are
mostly in noninteraction, but they can occur in direct interaction, though
unplanned, triggered indirectly by the emotions provoked within us; and w e
can use them at will as interactive and truly conversational devices, as seen
so often in literature, where very often sighs are not 'true' sighs.
A n interesting audible-visual behavior with different meanings, very
similar to a sigh's first phase, is referred to as 'drawing in one's breath',
'taking a sharp breath', 'drawing a deep breath', etc., through which it is
not possible to utter any speech sounds, thus m o r e a paralinguistic alter
nant.
B. Pleasurable feelings
A voluntary sigh that prolongs its second phase — often the only conspicu-
ous part, aside from a possible visible heaving — is used rather pancultur-
ally to express a conscious bodily delight after drinking or eating: "[Sancho]
336 PARALANGUAGE
remained looking toward the stars for a quarter of an hour and, having
finished drinking [from the wineskin], tilted his head to one side and, giving
a great sigh, said:\ — O h , sonofabitch, scoundrel, h o w good it is!'" (Cer
vantes D Q , 2, XIII, 628, translation mine) l b ; also anticipating good food:
"All blessed themselves [at Christmas dinner] and M r . Dedalus with a sigh
of pleasure lifted from the dish the heavy cover" (Joyce U, I, 29).
A man's voluntary heavy sigh of sexual pleasure at the sight of an
attractive w o m a n is also an expression of ineffectual desire. "To catch up
and walk behind her [...] behind her moving hams. Pleasant to see first
thing in the morning [...] H e sighed d o w n his nose" (Joyce U, 59).
Both physical relaxation and physical relief can be expressed by natural
or involuntary sighing. " H e gave a long sigh, snuggled d o w n into his blan
ket, and in a m o m e n t was asleep" (Crane RBC, XIII, 134), "[giving birth]
The girl heaved a great sigh and relaxed" (Steinbeck G W , X X X , 14).
O h [...] About music, and the woods, and about G o d " (Cather M A , X I V ,
236).
Coaxing, wheedling and even seduction are also tactics used for attain-
ing something or regaining what was lost: '"If I let you alone for half-a-day,
won't you come sighing and wheedling to m e again?'" (E. Brontë W H ,
X I V , 127).
E. H a p p y feelings
Just as crying can be elicited by either positive or negative feelings, the vol-
untary form of sighing can express, as an intentional paralinguistic
behavior, a number of positive, psychologically pleasurable states and reac-
tions, for which it is typically long in its two phases, emphasized often by
pharyngeal friction and accompanied by the visible heaving movement,
sometimes extended arms, eyebrow raising, and smiling.
Contentment is perhaps the mildest form in a scale of happiness; then
happy satisfaction at one's condition, expressed usually with glowing or
smiling face, or statically thinking of the source of happiness. "She drew
deep breaths of pleasure [while watching a show]" (Crane MGS, VII, 63).
Satisfaction can be aroused at one's accomplishment and out of pride of
oneself or about something: " T h e truck b u m p e d to a stop. T o m sighed.
'Well, there she is' [California]" (Steinbeck G W , X X V I , 323).
Another happy feeling is pleasurable anticipation, paralinguistically
and kinesically m u c h like other happy feelings: "[anticipating better times,
their feet on the table] P E T E R . Ay-eh ([...] Unconsciously they both sigh)
[...] (They drink — puff resolutely [at their pipes] — sigh)" (O'Neill DUE,
I,iv).
'What is it you wish for?'/'what is it I wish for?' she repeated and sighed. 'I
a m very tired, I a m old'" (Turgenev FS, X V I I , 252); confusion: " O h , dear!
I thought I was at h o m e , ' she sighed [...] Because I'm weak, m y brain got
confused" (E. Brontë WH, XII, 106).
ter when the stimulus appears abruptly. " O h , to think what might have
happened!'/ H e drew his breath short" (C. Brontë JE, X X V , 332).
The sighs and gasps of anguish, as the strongest negative emotion, are
mostly natural, the person being too overwhelmed to consciously express
his state through a feigned sigh, nor by counterfeit kinesic behaviors. In the
Old Testament w e find a number of references to sighing — for the present
situation or in anticipation — caused by anguish (translated from the
Hebrew root ânach, meaning actually to sigh, mourn, or groan): "For m y
sighing comes before I eat,/ A n d m y groanings pour out like water" {Job
3:24).
A s with crying, sighing — mostly spontaneously — is elicited by differ-
ent feelings of unhappiness, anguish and tension, but also when those situa-
tions come to an end and the ensuing relief is felt. In fact, laughter has also
been seen as a manifestation of social and psychological tension. "With a
sigh of relief, Myatt found himself alone" (Greene ST, I, 13).
From a crosscultural point of view w e cannot take for granted that
sighing in those adverse circumstances is acceptable, for it is not, for
instance, in Saudi Arabia, where it is interpreted as not accepting God's
will for the person w h o sighs, and so one is obliged to add ' G o d , forgive
me'.
that'll be marvelous, don't you? [...]/' [...] I don't give a good g o d d a m . ' / A
gasp, a gloved hand to a rounded mouth, a titter" (Laurence SA, II, 70);
fear: "Then a sharp gasp [...] ' W h o ' s there?'" (Laurence SA, VIII, 220.
6.5 Panting
PANTTNG CONFIGURATION
KINESIC& PARALING. TRANSC. &
phonetic transcription
auditory and social labels
loudness/intensity
laryngealization/pharyngealization
velarization/nasalization
nasal expiration/bronchial whizzing
dilated nostril wings
heaving chest
contextual/concomitant activities
TEXT
CON-
situational context
clinical configuration
Figure 6.6 Panting configuration
A. Medical state
S o m e occurrences of panting can be considered pathological, but they can
convey other messages. In fact, w h e n they recurr in the individual they con-
tribute powerfully to generate a particular image of that person, above all a
visual one, associated at its worst with the heaving chest, a parted-lip
expression and the difficult breathing that becomes superimposed to speech
and with which w e interact face to face. This is h o w w e perceive, for
instance, the very obese person, whose irregular, 'puffing' respiration
DIFFERENTIATORS 343
blends with his heaviness of body as he talks and moves. " A fat m a n gets on
too [on the train] [...] takes off his hat and wipes his head with his handker-
chief [...] puffing while he gets settled" (Cela VA, II, 43, translation
mine), l e
B. Physical strain
The most c o m m o n instance of panting from physical strain is, of course,
exertion (e.g., after running or struggling with someone), w h e n the more or
less dynamic visual signs can be even more telling than the panting itself,
betraying the cause (e.g., tense facial muscle tonus). T h e relevance of the
contextual and concomitant signs must again be emphasized, as they some-
times provide a more eloquent information than words, difficult at that
time, as in: "([...] E B E N runs in, panting exhaustedly, wild-eyed and mad-
looking [...])" (O'Neill D U E , III, iv), in which "wild-eyed", "mad-looking"
and "panting" are inherent in each other as an expressive behavioral clus-
ter.
C. Psychological strain
Altered breathing can also be caused by agitation and emotional strain,
such as in excitement, anticipation, anger. " T h e [angry] master's breathing
grew almost stertorous" ( M a u g h a m O H B , X V I , 74).
6.6 Yawning
Yawning — of which sighing has been called "a lesser form" — is the other
differentiator involving respiratory audible and motor acts and, m u c h less
communicative, but justified within paralanguage. Like sighing, it has the
important function of intermittently cycling the lung volume over a large
range stimulating the ventilation of some alveoli which are not used during
normal, quiet breathing, causing some blood to pass through the lungs
without being properly oxygenated, which is believed to trigger this reflex
act of deep breathing. It also has two phases: the first is the useful one
physiologically, while both are visually conspicuous enough to possess c o m -
municative value and be voluntarily used as another audible visual nonver-
344 PARALANGUAGE
YAWNING CONFIGURATION
TRANSC.
loudness
FEATURES 1
FEATURES
pitch
resonance: oral/nasal
continuous/spasmodic
laryngealization/pharyngealization
CONTEXT & OTHER ACnVITIES
hands
arms/trunk
concomitant activities
cultural background & socioeducational status
situational context
clinical configuration
Figure 6.7 Yawning configuration
sighing. W e may yawn about something (e.g., the tiresome lecture, our
drowsiness), but that intentional 'about' quality could be present only in the
nonessential accompanying behaviors with which w e m a y want to c o m -
municate our feelings; and only a 'counterfeit yawn' would qualify as
'yawning for' an ulterior motive, (e.g., terminating a boring account).
Thus, the eliciting situations for yawning are mostly physiological, fatigue
and sleepiness — and the yawning that m a y signal the passing of an attack
in the asthma sufferer, as breathing begins to function better — but also
psychological (e.g., anxiety and boredom) and even organic (e.g., the
excessive yawning caused by intracranial disease).
A s with other differentiators, coughing and its milder form, throat- clear-
ing, have been virtually ignored. Aside from the pathological aspects of
coughing found in the medical literature and a few scattered observations of
a cultural nature (cf. those cited by K e y [1975]), no systematic research
seems to have been attempted to identify the potential interactive and c o m -
DIFFERENTIATORS 347
phonetic transcription
auditory and social labels
paralinguistic leader and onset
PARALINGUISTIC
duration
FEATURES
pitch level
resonance: oral/pharyngeal
hoarse/shri11/whizzy
paralinguistic aftermath
kinesic leader and onset
& OTHER ACTIVITIES
KINESIC FEATURES
situational context
clinical configuration
cointeractants' cobehaviors
being its onset; duration will almost always refer to the second (more impor-
tant) phase of a cough, during which expiration words are perhaps brokenly
articulated; as for loudness, soft-forte-fortissimo would be differentiated;
pitch can be low, mid and high; resonance, markedly pharyngeal or oral,
mainly; a cough can be qualified mainly by hoarseness and whizziness; and,
if it alters respiration repeatedly it shows an audible (and visible in a heav-
ing chest) intake of breath as its paralinguistic aftermath. A s for a cough's
kinesic leader, which blends with its onset, and the behaviors of the face,
hands and whole body, they depend very m u c h on whether coughing is
abruptly triggered, voluntarily elicited (though still natural) or calculated
and feigned. In the former two instances, particularly in unexpected reflex
coughing, the face {mouth closed or open, possible tongue protrusion),
arms and whole body m a y convulse violently, while voluntary communica-
tive coughing can be very eloquent through subtle variations in kinesic
behavior. Certain contextual and concomitant activities are typical of spon-
taneous coughing, such as reddening of the face, gorged veins, and chok-
ing. T h e cultural background and the socioeducational status of the person
350 PARALANGUAGE
w h o coughs are of particular interest in the case of reflex acts like coughing,
sneezing, belching and yawning, for they are always subject to cultural dis-
play rules, rules that, within the same culture, exist in certain classes and
not in others; and, ultimately, to individual norms according to one's up-
bringing and sensitiveness. Birdwhistell (Sebeok, Hayes, and Bateson
1964:42) observed h o w for the Kutenai Indians of North America coughing
"up their nose" is part of being a decent Kutenai, while not coughing that
w a y means being taken for a Shuswap. T h e situational context of coughing
can be of relevance, such as with the anxiety coughing and throat-clearing,
as would be their pathological occurrences, which, along with any relevant
details of the person's medical state, would be recorded as part of a clinical
configuration, as with a patient's attention-getting cough. Finally, as with
other differentiators, awareness of the cointeractants' behaviors (e.g., trig-
gering the cough, or acting upon it) can be relevant.
A s with the reflexes of sighing and gasping, the nonreflex forms of coughing
and throat-clearing play virtually all the possible interactive functions w e
are all familiar with. Here, besides the purely pathological reflex cough and
the random occurrences, the following general aspects of coughing and
throat-clearing will be identified: instances in which they act as oratorical
devices and as interaction regulators (both initiating the encounter and
eliciting its flow); some which express satisfaction; others which betray lack
of verbal expression due to uncertainty, typical reactions in various states of
anxiety', those which wittingly or not betray a negative disposition, particu-
larly boredom and rejection in various forms; and the ones which represent
aggressive attitudes, such as impatience or reproach.
. Interaction regulation
There are a series of versatile and eloquent instances of coughing, but
mainly throat-clearing, that can clearly serve to regulate the interaction
and, within the encounter, the flow of the cougher's o w n speech.
- Announcement of self is typically done through either a 'polite' throat-
clearing or a loud, intentionally disrupting cough or throat-clearing,
depending on whether w e just intend to m a k e our presence acknowledged
or must also allow others to change their present behavior. "She coughed
elaborately at the door so that Philip should have time to compose himself
[...], then she rattled the door handle" ( M a u g h a m O H B , I X , 37) (showing
also the communicative effect of an interactive artifactually-mediated
sound).
A similar behavior is the attention-getting cough or throat-clearing, to
attract someone's attention for various purposes, often preparatory to cal-
ling out or speaking to the person. "She tapped softly with the key at one of
the cell-doors, and listened [...] she coughed and listened again" (Dickens
T, XIII, 90) (again combined with an artifactually-mediated sound).
- T h e prespeech cough or throat-clearing, which can even be accom-
panied by the typical prespeech (apicoalveolar) click and/or the prespeech
breath intake (both included later under 'alternants'), can be an uncon-
scious anxiety-based behavior (therefore identified below within that cate-
gory), or a conscious preparatory and effect-seeking opener which is even
used consciously in informal as well as formal oratory. T h e prespeech
cough, or rather throat- clearing, has always been used in formal oratory
and references to this device are found in m a n y sources of different periods
(cf. Key's [1975:97] reference to instructions about ' h e m m i n g ' as an orna-
ment in religious oratory, and h o w it was even indicated in the margins of
the sermons). A t any rate, this coughing and h e m m i n g precedes a n e w sec-
tion in discourse and thus should be identified as the prespeech throat-
clearing. It m a y be a louder cough w h e n it must also request silence and/or
attention, but otherwise it is a throat- clearing, even though it m a y be refer-
red to as cough. "[Dorothea after preparing herself] by coughing and other
mannerisms, began to say very gracefully [...]" (Cervantes D Q , 1, X X X ,
302, translation mine). l f A similar type is, of course, a pre-singing one, as it
m a y respond, in addition to an actual need to clear the throat, as in the fol-
lowing example, an excellent illustration of h o w the prespeech cough can
be part of a whole behavioral cluster that m a y typify individuals as well as
specific settings and circumstances: "[after being asked to sing] he was
354 PARALANGUAGE
clearing his throat, pulling his clean handkerchief farther out of his breast
pocket, and thrusting his fingers between the buttons of his vest" (Lewis
MS, V I , 78).
- The prompting cough or throat-clearing is a familiar and important reg-
ulatory behavior, as it serves to induce someone to, or prevent him from,
saying or doing something (typically acknowledging someone else's pre-
sence), acquiesce with what someone says, avoid making a social blunder,
etc., usually accompanied by meaningful eye contact, perhaps even a post-
ural shift as a signal to the person w e are trying to cue. ' T h e old gentleman
was just going to say that Oliver should not go out [...] w h e n a most mali-
cious cough from M r . Grimwig determined him that he should" (Dickens
, X I V , 101). O n e can find interesting crosscultural occurrences of this
cough, such as the throat-clearing that means 'Let's stop eating and let's
go', traditionally given in Saudi Arabia by the guest of honor at a meal in a
house in order to leave enough food for those w h o have not eaten yet, a
practice less c o m m o n n o w as living standards rise and most families can
afford an abundance of food.
- A cough or throat-clearing can also act as a stalling tactic, or as a think-
ing pause, often combining both: "The audience cleared their throats and
tossed a few stalks into the fire, not because these deeds were urgent, but
to give themselves time to weigh the moral of the story" (Hardy RN, 1, III,
28).
- A n intentionally conspicuous cough is a typical cover-up behavior to
muffle an inopportune c o m m e n t or statement or distract from inapprop-
riate audible or visual conduct: " M r . Dedalus' cup had rattled noisily
against its saucer, and Stephen had tried to cover that shameful sign of his
father's drinking bout of the night before by moving his chair and cough-
ing" (Joyce PAYM, II, 93) (thus including an artifactually-mediated sound
as well).
- Naturally, as a conversational or nonconversational regulatory
behavior in interaction, a cough or throat-clearing can typically act as a
feedback behavior, but this function is implied in m a n y of the instances dis-
cussed in this section (e.g., showing anger, impatience, disinterest).
Satisfaction
A s with laughter and sighing, a little cough or a pensive throat-clearing can
be sometimes a subtle and eloquent proof of self-satisfaction, mostly moral
but sometimes physical too, as witnessed in someone w h o just donned an
DIFFERENTIATORS 355
elegant suit and walks out of his house on a fine morning as if the world
were a mirror, or w h o received a compliment, or performed a good deed.
" H e cleared his throat as he looked himself up and d o w n [in the mirror, at
the barbershop, after a manicure girl finishes her job]" (Dos Passos MT, 3 ,
I,214).
D. Uncertainty
This is the general feeling with which w e tend to associate nonreflex cough-
ing and throat-clearing and with which w e pretend to experience doubt,
hesitation, confusion, etc. Doubt and incredulity and dubious acquiescence
can be tacitly expressed by throat-clearing: "[the lawyer, told by M r .
Pickwick that he will not call any witnesses] coughed dubiously. These
tokens [...] were not lost on M r . Pickwick" (Dickens PP, X X X I , 465).
Puzzlement and confusion elicit often conscious or unconscious throat-
clearing: "[he] professed to be puzzled. ' H e m ! ' said he" (C. Brontë JE,
X X I V , 311).
E. Embarrassment
This category should be set apart, although it includes various nuances,
depending on the situation or personality characteristic that causes the feel-
ing, for instance, of sheer shyness: "'one of those little things that goes
around higher up./ ' Y o u m e a n the little silk pockets on a string?'/ 'Yes [...]'
[...]. H e coughed to clear his throat" (Steinbeck TF, IV, 18). Often the per-
son makes an effort to overcome shyness, but the nonverbal behavior of
embarrassment is present nevertheless. Realizing a silly error causes embar-
rassment: "[after mistaking a heap of dead rabbits for a dog] I h e m m e d
once more" (E. Brontë W H , II, 18). Embarrassment and a desire to pre-
vent someone from exposing our weaknesses elicits a word-like throat-clear-
ing. A shy person must sometimes m a k e an effort to participate in an
interaction.
F. Social anxiety
Although embarrassment is often caused by social tension in interaction,
the tension itself triggers in us coughing and throat-clearing, even as an a
priori reaction. Tension in the face of a difficult decision can also m a k e us
be at a loss for words: " H e stands there awkwardly [...] clears his throat,
swallows, but fails to speak" (Laurence SA, II, 72-73). Other times it is a
356 PARALANGUAGE
sense of propriety that triggers the behavior: " T o m [after kissing the shy
Laura] coughs decorously" (Williams G M , VII, 107). A most typical
instance of social tension arouses w h e n a subordinate is in front of a
superior in a difficult situation, as in fact the superior-subordinate or domi-
nance-submission situation relationship is often inferred precisely from this
behavior (e.g., police officer-law breaker): "O'Keefe [in front of his boss]
cleared his throat and shuffled his feet" (Dos Passos M T , 2, III, 24).
Not being on speaking terms typically causes throat-clearing between
silent interactants. Coughing and throat-clearing can act also as silence fil-
lers w h e n no other audible behavior is displayed, a compulsive attitude that
responds to the different ways in which different cultures cope with interac-
tive silences (e.g., longer and better accepted in general a m o n g Orientals
and North- American Native Indians), at the point in which the silence
creates anxiety. But the most intriguing and most elusive of all the anxious
coughs and throat-clearings — surprisingly unobserved by most of m y stu-
dents w h e n I ask them, and not surprisingly absent from the m a n y literary
sources used — is, in m y opinion, and after observing it for m a n y , m a n y
years (not just in others, but w h e n I catch myself doing it), the loud cough
or subdued throat-clearing which, perhaps for lack of a better term, I will
call the solitary dyadic cough or throat-clearing. A few examples m a y iden-
tify this behavior best: w h e n m a n y years ago I used to stay in m y campus
office until late at night and, as I was leaving I said good-night to the janitor
(not always the same one), w h o was just beginning his night shift in that
empty corridor, he would without exception clear his throat a few seconds
after saying good-night himself; two subway passengers passing each other
along a deserted tunnel or platform will with amazing frequency clear their
throats about five or ten steps before or after; two solitary pedestrians pass
each other on both sides of an ordinary empty street in the middle of the
night and their only mutual acknowledgement is their throat-clearing if they
walk on the same sidewalk or along a narrow street; I walk past a street
b u m in downtown Chicago late at night and I realize I have cleared m y
throat (while in Calcutta I have been too shocked for even that reaction); I
see a form walking toward m e in a solitary Istanbul street at night and I
hear his throat-clearing as he passes m e by; if the day janitor picks up m y
wastebasket, empties it and then puts it back and leaves, he almost always
clears his throat if I a m so busy that I have failed to develop a conversation,
which points at the effect of the emptiness of silence and not just the spatial
emptiness. O n e should ponder the unquestionable induciveness of the long
DIFFERENTIATORS 357
6.8 Spitting
SPITTING CONFIGURATION
PARAUNGUISTTCfi [KANS. 1
phonetic transcription
articulation
paralinguistic leader
loudness
FEATURES
kinesic leader
KINESIC
kinesic onset
body behaviors
kinesic aftermath
CONTEXT
So far spitting has been identified as an audible and visual activity, as seems
to befit a book on paralanguage, yet it is the only paralinguistic (or paralin-
guistic-kinesic) behavior with a second visual element, the spittle itself, issu-
ing, for instance, 'with' the aggressive, spiteful gesture (and audible coun-
terpart) of the spitter. In fact, spitting, in the worst offensive cases, is per-
ceived not only visibly and audibly by the victim, but tactually, or at least
visually on his clothes. Seen in this light, spitting acts as a self-adaptor
DIFFERENTIATORS 361
A. Physiological functions
Leaving aside the pathological motivated instances of spitting, which can be
easily gleaned from the medical literature, the term should still be applied
to those occasions w h e n it is elicited by the need to reject foreign matter
from the mouth, that is, dirtied saliva, for it m a y happen that the foreign
observer in a foreign culture or an unfamiliar environment or situation m a y
misjudge it as merely an unnecessary unrefined act, for instance: pedest-
rians and bycicle riders returning to N e w Delhi along a tributary dusty dirt
road late in the afternoon; people at a threshing-floor or while winnowing
grain avoiding to swallow its dust. W h a t would m a k e the difference is —
and that must be weighed very carefully — whether they do it in the pre-
sence of others, h o w close to them, and h o w necessarily or unnecessarily
they m a k e the 'paralinguistic' part of it conspicuously loud, that is, hawking
and the sound of spitting.
W h a t presumably would be physiological spitting is, however, con-
d e m n e d in m a n y different cultures w h e n done in public places visibly and
362 PARALANGUAGE
B. Social spitting
Social spitting is the second category and it certainly blends with the first,
for physiologically motivated spitting can be clearly subject to social norms
and personal sensitiveness, which obviously vary crossculturally just as they
have changed historically. Wildeblood (1965), tracing such developments
within European societies, mentions h o w spitting was accepted in medieval
times, although the well-bred "would perform the act in the least disagree-
able manner, children being taught to hold the hand in front of the mouth"
(125); and h o w in the 17th century the polite world k n e w that people should
"'forbear hawking or spitting as m u c h as you can'", turn and spit in their
handkerchief if the room was "'neat and kept cleanly'", and h o w Samuel
Pepys (from whose Diary she collects this information) did not object at all
w h e n a pretty lady in the darkness of a theater box spat "'backward upon
m e , by mistake'" (205). W e m a y wonder whether those norms presuppose
a physiological need, and whether some people (such as the pretty lady)
m a y develop an 'unnecessary habit'.
T o mention other social attitudes in connection with spitting, middle-
class male teenagers in the more Spitting cultures' are observed, w h e n out-
doors, to hawk-and-spit 'like m e n ' in front of other male peers to gain
approval as a form of affiliative behavior during a conversation or while
playing a g a m e (e.g., the soccer goalkeeper ready to stop the ball), or dur-
ing a spitting contest, seeing w h o gets the farthest. The outdoors spitting of
North-American or English males, or the tobacco chewer, or Indian or
Pakistani chewers of betel of kola (i.e., the caffeine-rich stimulant kola-
nut) chewer in G h a n a is also seen done quite commonly as a social activity
in the company of others and w e certainly appreciate the difference
between higher and lower class in various aspects of the behavior; for
instance, w h o would leave the red mark of betel on automobiles parked
along the street, as I have observed in India, or h o w the Ghanaian night
security officer, w h o chews his kola-nut to keep more alert, typically throws
DIFFERENTIATORS 363
his clay-red spittle describing a wide curve on walls, with an audible, skillful
spitting m o v e m e n t .
'Social spitting' does not always show a practical purpose, but it is an
unspoken expression of togetherness, as with the spitting of the Navajo
Indians (reported by Bailey [1942] and cited by K e y [1975]) around the fire:
the m e n spitting right into the fire, the w o m e n on the ground, a singer
doing it intermittently and continuing the song "on a h u m m i n g note" while
getting ready to do it. But in no instances does social spitting seem to be
silent in any culture, thus possessing that quasiparalinguistic quality that
can certainly fill a silence or blend significantly in the conversation, often
with what L a Barre (1964:217) perceptively calls "punctuational and edito-
rial-comment" characteristics. O n e particularly bizarre form of spitting is
practiced a m o n g the Turkana m e n of Northern Kenya, w h o pierce the
lower lip with a hollow metal tube or stick and spit through it at a distance.
D. Rejection
Without physically contacting the object of ill feelings, but certainly sym-
bolized in the action, spitting is observed in m a n y cultures as a sign of rejec-
tion, whether specifically addressed to a person or to an idea or attitude, as
364 PARALANGUAGE
E. Aggression
Along with contempt, the attitudes w e associate most with 'spitting at'
someone, directly on or directed at the person, are the various degrees and
forms of aggression.
Challenge is expressed in some cultures through ritualized spitting, as
w h e n a youth spits at another as an exploratory challenge). O n e of the most
picturesque forms is seen among young Ghanaians trying to pick a fight: the
challenger spits on the palm of his right hand and shows it to his opponent
w h o , if he accepts the challenge, slaps it with a slap-and-retract motion.
Bodily aggression, out of contemptuous and angry rejection, can be
done through spitting: "I spit upon him, whilst I say he lies" (Shakespeare
RH, I V , i). It can be a totally gratuitous aggression done even as a
ritualized practical joke played on the newly-arrived m e m b e r of a group, as
among the students in Quevedo's 17th-century Spanish novel El Buscón.
Isaiah documents an ancient form of aggressive humiliation in Jerusalem
w h e n he says "I did not hide M y face from shame and spitting" (Isaiah
50:6), which prefigures Jesus' subjection to that treatment about seven
DIFFERENTIATORS 365
hundred years later in the same place: "They spat in His face and beat
H i m " (Matthew 26:67). But this form of punitive aggression is also prac-
ticed by m a n y today: "and n o w the police [...] spit on them and bind them
with ropes [...] and beat them, and spat into their mouths" (Rao K, X , 84).
In mutual bodily aggression children, adolescents and low-class w o m e n spit
at each other during a fight in m a n y cultures, but in general it is not consid-
ered manly, and, for instance, in G h a n a or Nigeria a w o m a n would never
spit at a m a n , although it m a y happen, for instance, a m o n g Canada's
Maliseet Indians, as it happens in Lebanon. M y o w n recollections are of
'the older ones' in the school playgrounds spitting at each other, as well as
of bullies doing it as an intimidating behavior.
F. Ritual spitting
Although it would be easy to find ritualized spitting within each of the
categories just identified (except the physiological occurrences) — and
m a n y can be said to be already ritualized from a socio-anthropological
point of view — it should be seen as a separate category for its cultural and
historical significance and for the striking similarities found crossculturally
and in different periods. T o further spur systematic research on paralinguis-
tic-kinesic differentiators, the following modalities could be mentioned.
G. Rejection Ritual
Since spitting as interbodily physical contact is such a primitive behavior of
aggression and rejection, the Bible offers instances of ritual forms: "then
his brother's wife [if he refuses to marry his brother's widow] shall [...]
remove his sandal from his foot, spit in his face, and answer and say 'So
shall it be done to the m a n w h o will not build up his brother's house'"
(Deuteronomy 25:9). Today, K e y (1975:98) mentions the interesting pri-
vate ceremony at a Jewish h o m e , at which the father of the m a n w h o had
married a Christian disowned his son formally, not only verbally, but spit-
ting on his picture. In India, where social life is pervaded by ritual, spitting
is a form of rejection: "standing at the village gate, she spat once toward
the east and once toward the west, once toward the south and once toward
the north, and then spitting again thrice at the Pariah huts" (Rao K, I V ,
43).
366 PARALANGUAGE
H . Healing
Since ancient times saliva has been thought to have healing properties (easy
to verify by applying it to a small bleeding scratch), and the practice of spit-
ting on the sick person seems to be c o m m o n to m a n y cultures throughout
history and across continents. Jesus, using the practice of popular medicine,
just as he used a language familiar to his hearers, spat sometimes to per-
form a healing miracle, two of which must have involved the audible spit-
ting act: " H e spat on the ground and m a d e clay with the saliva" (John 9:6).
L a Barre (1964:217) reports that "the spitting of an American Indian
medicine m a n is one of the kindly offices of the healer".
I. Play
Most of us have witnessed during our elementary and secondary school
years the 'spitting prowess' of some schoolmates engaged sometimes in real
spitting contests. This kind of paralinguistic-kinesic folk behavior can be
found as what w e would call play in cultures very different and distant from
each other. Y o u n g girls in G h a n a , for instance, but not boys, 'distance-
spit', doing it between their teeth and producing only a slight interdental
hissing sound (and no hawking, which would not be feminine at all).
6.9 Belching
BELCHING CONFIGURATION
& LABELS
phonetic transcription/
auditory and social labels
resonance
FEATURES
loudness
duration
paralinguistic aftermath
kinesic leader
KINESIC FEATURES
kinesic onset
labiofacial expansion
facial expression
hands
trunk-and-head
kinesic aftermath
cultural background & socioeducational status
CONTEXT
situational context
cointeractants' behaviors
Figure 6.10 Belching configuration
368 PARALANGUAGE
shield the mouth with one hand (unless unable to control it), while its sound
is considered embarrassing and offensive if it is not repressed. However, w e
find double standards for m e n and w o m e n in m a n y cultures: an Australian
male informant assures m e that "it is all right for m e n to belch in bars, but
never in a restaurant", while the Chinese tell m e that w o m e n should refrain
from belching, but that "it is all right for m e n " .
Voluntary belching (made m u c h easier by accumulated gas due to the
type of food ingested) m a y respond to satisfaction and enjoyment while eat-
ing and drinking, not being repressed or minimized w h e n it could be, but
emphasized by conscious manipulation of the abdominal and throat m u s -
cles, m a d e loud by controlled mouth resonance and followed by the audible
exhalation that completes the paralinguistic expression of satisfaction. W e
see mostly a m o n g the less refined m e n , particularly while drinking
together, eloquently confirming their state of well-being, but also w h e n
they are enjoying food hungrily, or after drinking with enjoyment, typically
breaking eye contact while slurping their coffee and burping and/or exhal-
ing audibly afterward.
Belching at meals is, from a crosscultural point of view, the most
interesting occurrence, associated with both social and religious connota-
tions worth investigating, not only geographically and synchronically, but
also diachronically in order to observe evolving attitudes in different
societies. There is a c o m m o n error, however, in believing that belching
after eating is done as a compliment to the goodness of the food in all
Arab cultures, or a m o n g Muslims, w h e n the truth is that only in some is it
acceptable, but not in others. If Malaysian Muslims belch during a meal
(for which they thank G o d before) they must say Al-hamdilil-Lah!, or
T h a n k s to G o d ' , failing to do it being considered ungrateful. Sometimes a
Muslim m a y belch as a sign of satisfaction, even as a compliment, but it cer-
tainly does not apply to all Muslims: " N o w and then he belched, in compli-
ment to the richness of the food' [ M o h a m m e d Latif] [...] w h o occupied the
position neither of a servant nor of an equal" (Forster PI, II, 16). A well-
mannered and highly educated Christian friend from G h a n a belches moder-
ately at our family table as a compliment and a sign of satisfaction, and K e y
(1975:99) cites reports about complimentary belching a m o n g American
Indians, since "without it the hostess is not quite sure that the guests are
enjoying the food". But I find it hard to agree that it "is the acceptable
manner of expressing delight in and appreciation of good food in Arabic
cultures" (Key 1975:99), for I m a d e a point of asking Muslims from Egypt,
370 PARALANGUAGE
6.10 Hiccuping
6.11 Sneezing
form of a silent (if the velum is lifted) or audible (if lowered) inhalation; an
abundant and spasmodic blast of air forced through the glottis follows and
rapidly goes either through the nasal passages w h e n it depresses the uvula
and closes the opening between the pharynx and the oral cavity, or both
through the nasal passages and the mouth, through the latter often as a
third stage during which a strained voiced expulsion prolongs itself if the
mouth is kept shut. In other words, the first stage is the 'atchoo!' sound,
and the second, not always present, the vowel-like continuous one. But the
presence or absence of this second part, and the possible paralinguistic and
kinesic qualifiers of the whole act, give it enough audible-visual and socio-
semantic complexity to deserve a detailed description of its features. "With
gaping mouth and head far back he stood still and, after an instant, sneezed
loudly. / - C h o w ! he said. Blast you! [...] C h o w ! " (Joyce U , 231-232).
If sneezing, though a reflex, can be behaviorally and semantically m o d -
ified both personally and culturally, at least the two following aspects
should be researched:
a. its morphology, in terms of the paralinguistic (audible) and kinesic (visi-
ble) behaviors involved; and
b. the differences and similarities found crossculturally in h o w people cope
with the reflex w h e n in the presence of others according to settings and sit-
uations and whether or not the others react to it verbally or nonverbally.
SNEEZING CONFIGURATION
TRANS.
phonetic transcription/
paralinguistic leader
first stage
KINESIC FEATURES PARAUNGUBTIC
third stage
duration
paralinguistic aftermath
kinesic leader
face
hands
body
kinesic aftermath
concomitant activities
cultural background & socioeducational status
situational context
CONTEXT
clinical configuration
cointeractants' behaviors
tures include: the leader or first stage, shown on the face, typically eye-clos-
ing and the nasolabial furrowing of the first stage or leader, the hand that
m a y pinch the nose or press under the nostrils to minimize it or repress it,
the whole body w h e n someone staggers, twists, swirls around, and the after-
math, sometimes still pinching the nose, mouth open and looking d o w n -
ward. Concomitant activities, whether verbal or nonverbal, are mostly the
those prescribed by good manners, like using one's handkerchief instead of
the hand. T h e cultural background and socioeducational status are betrayed
precisely by those concomitant activities, which can vary also according to
the situational context (e.g., displaying the three-stage sneeze in a very con-
spicuous w a y a m o n g friends, but repressing it in a formal setting). If it has
a pathologic basis it would be indicated under clinical configuration. T h e
cointeractants' behaviors are m o r e important than for any other differen-
tiator, since they respond to prescribed cultural norms.
374 PARALANGUAGE
6.12 Conclusion
Note
1. a. "Miró también D o n Quijote a Sancho, y vióle que tenia los carrillos hinchados, y
la boca llena de risa, con evidentes señales de querer reventar con ella".
b. "[Sancho] estuvo mirando las estrellas un cuarto de hora, y en acabando de beber,
dejó caer la cabeza a un lado, y dando un gran sospiro, dijo:/ — ¡Oh hideputa,
bellaco, y cómo es católico [excellent]!".
DIFFERENTIATORS 377
d. Después de expresar con un gran suspiro la lástima que tenía de este pobre país
[...].
e. Se sube también un hombre gordo [...] se quita el sombrero y se pasa el pañuelo
por la cabeza [...] El hombre resopla mientras se acomoda.
f. Dorotea [...] con toser y hacer otros ademanes, con mucho donaire comenzó a
decir.
Chapter 7
Alternants:
The Vocabulary Beyond the Dictionary
Although what here are called (for lack of a better term) alternants were
already recognized by those w h o pioneered paralinguistic studies as 'vocal
identifiers' (e.g., Smith 1953; Trager 1955, 1956; Stockwell, B o w e n and
Silva-Fuenzalida [for Spanish] 1956; Pittinger and Smith 1957), mostly as
'vocal segregates' (Pittinger 1956; Smith 1969, Trager 1958, Austin 1965,
Hill 1958),and later 'segmental sounds' by K e y (1986, 1987), the truth is
that it was always a very limited approach o n various accounts. O r rather,
they were merely suggested by giving just a few (and almost invariably the
same) examples, for their general phonetic characteristics were not even
mentioned, nor was a functional classification attempted, or at least a tenta-
tive inventory offered until the article by Poyatos (1975). Based on a paper
read at the IXth International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnologi-
cal Sciences precisely to incite others to crosscultural explorations in this
area, it attempted to define the nature of alternants, their important but
neglected status in speech and in interaction, suggesting some of the aspects
to be studied and offering an inventory of some seventy typical examples.
380 PARALANGUAGE
At this writing, however, nothing similar has appeared in the literature, still
focused almost solely on some, not all, of the aspects of voice quality dis-
cussed in the previous chapters and still perpetuating the "unfortunate sep-
aration of the visible and the audible components" (Abercrombie 68:58), so
typical not only of 'linguistic' studies, but within psychology, where the
'total expression' should be of paramount importance. Occasional paren-
thetical references to the most obvious alternants ("e.g., ' H m ' , 'Er'-, ' U g h ' ,
'Pooh') continue to disregard that each language, that is, each culture, pos-
sesses a rich repertoire of these quasilexical segmental utterances which
betray our anthropophonetic possibilities far beyond the established norms
based on what has been studied (and, even worse, what has been consid-
ered 'speech' according to western languages). Rather than considering
them part and parcel of at least the established nonverbal-vocal repertoire
of people, they even ignore the phonological value of some of them in cer-
tain languages (see Stopa [1972], on clicks in B u s h m a n languages) and con-
sistently shun them as "marginal", "abnormal" or "nonspeech" sounds.
A n d yet they are perfectly integrated in the acoustic body-communication
system with language and other nonverbal systems, especially within the
speech basic triple structure language-paralanguage-kinesics, because of
their high degree of semantic lexicality. Theoretical as well as field linguists
simply cannot continue to disregard that each language — even before
deciding whether alternants belong centrally or marginally to it —, that is,
each culture or social community, possesses a great number of them as a
true lexicon perfectly encoded and decoded in daily interaction as systemat-
ically and in as conventional a way as dictionary items, which some are. A s
for phoneticians, over twenty years ago Catford (1968:332) advised that
they "must be prepared to deal analytically and descriptively with any
initiatory, phonatory or articulatory event which can possibly occur in the
h u m a n vocal tract [since investigation] m a y reveal the communicative, lin-
guistic use of some so far unrecorded type of sound".
I have always been surprised that even linguists and anthropologists
w h o devote their time to pondering the possible origins of language do not
consider as part of their phylogenetic theories the possibility of a protolin-
guistic double structure m a d e up of gestures (the domain of Gordon H e w e s
mainly [1973]) and sounds, travelling over the bodily ('external' and
'phonetic') kinetic-auditory channel,
" m a n y of which would fall within paralinguistic alternants [...] both vocal
language and kinesic language should have been felt as necessary to each
ALTERNANTS 381
Coding of alternants
Sign-meaning relationship
A s for their sign-meaning relationship, alternants can be, (a) arbitrary, that
is, w h e n their sound, like that of most words, bears no resemblance to the
signifier, as with 'Tz', ' H ' m ' , a snort of disgust, a hesitating ' U h — ', etc.;
(b) iconic or imitative, w h e n the signifier resembles its signified, as with
those which imitate or evoke alter-adaptor behaviors (e.g., ' W h a c k ! ' , for
slapping), object-adaptors (e.g., 'Bang!', for door-slamming), artifactual
sounds (e.g., ' R r r m m - r r r m m ! ' , for a motor), natural sounds (e.g.,
"Whissss!', for the whistling wind) or animal sounds (e.g., 'Eeeeeh!', for a
mouse). With regard to iconic alternants, some of them are part of
'kinephonographs' (Poyatos 1986:489), that is, the combination of ic nic
m o v e m e n t and iconic sound, often produced by combining kinesics and
paralanguage, as w h e n w e imitate the m o v e m e n t of drumsticks on a drum
and at the same time the sound of a drum with "¡Ttrrplan-plan-taplan!', or
the paralinguistic whirring of an airplane while imitating its flying with the
hand (the immensely rich and innovative repertoire of paralinguistic forms
used in comics shows a preponderance of iconic alternants, as will be seen
below); and (c) intrinsic, in which the sign does not resemble but actually is
its significant, that is, not only trying to reproduce, for instance, the blow-
ing sound of a fan, but blowing-humming, or roaring like a lion, with
closely resembling 'phonetic' qualities, thus not doing something 'like
something else', but being, so to speak, the 'model' and not its 'replica', in
semiotic terms, of which type w e find m a n y alternants.
A s for the capacity of the meaning itself to be agreed upon by a greater
or smaller number of speakers (encoding) and listeners (decoding), w e
ALTERNANTS 385
must recognize that, while the ideal situation is that of shared meaning
(i.e., between individuals, in a group, or a whole culture, and between dif-
ferent cultures), there can be quite a few instances of idiosyncratic meaning
in the use of alternants, for there are persons w h o produce in conversation
certain alternants which can be interpreted accurately only by those closer
to them.
What was said in Chapter 3.2 concerning the semantic blends possible in
single words according to how they are uttered, that is, to their paralinguis-
tic and kinesic qualifiers, should be applied also to alternants, further proof
of their quasilexical nature. For instance, the expression " H ' m ! ' (variously
written as ' H m ' , 'Hmff', ' H m p h ! ' , ' H u m ! ' , 'Urn', ' U m p h ! ' , 'Herumph!',
etc.) can not only denote — with other nonverbal qualifiers that will be dis
cussed later — approval, disapproval, hesitation, unbelief, admiration,
acknowledgement, interest, disinterest, curiosity, anger, contempt, sur
prise, pleasure, displeasure, concern, suspicion, pondering, superiority,
etc., but, as with words, it is capable of expressing at least two of those
emotions or attitudes simultaneously in the same utterance; for instance,
hesitation and displeasure, by drawling it and at the same time lowering the
pitch and laryngealizing (i.e., with creakiness) the sound somewhat, to
which (not necessarily) can be added frowning and lip tightening; or disap-
ALTERNANTS 387
proval, pity and pondering, by attaching, for instance, lower pitch, drawl-
ing, smiling and headshaking. This is also a gauge for measuring the degree
of lexicality, for, while ' H ' m ' uttered in a very neutral tone cannot be said
to be particularly 'lexical', in the sense that it does not possess one invari-
able single meaning, 'Eugh!' does (at least 'rejection'), as do 'Pooh!',
'Shush!', clucking to a horse, ' H u h ? ' , etc., or any lexemes from the estab-
lished vocabulary, thus justifying the distinction between the two types.
kers (see Poyatos 1983:104-10), but by kinesic constructs that are actually
emblems or identifiers (Poyatos 1983:98-103, 124-28), as in: " ' W h e w ! ' said
the housebreaker wiping the perspiration from his face [after exerting him-
self]" (Dickens , X L I V , 337), "She [Annie] sniffed in a little haughty
way, and put her head up" (Lawrence SL, V I , 122). The wiping of the pers-
piration from one's face and the haughty head gesture are emblematic
kinesic behaviors that just translate visually and unambiguously what their
corresponding alternants express audibly, and both could be dissociated
from each other without any detriment to their meaning.
Obviously, within the limits of a chapter one could only pretend to
approach those areas that would seem more appropriate in the context of
the other paralinguistic phenomena with a view to inciting others to further
work, thus suggesting as m a n y research avenues as possible and focussing
on the more practical aspects, namely: the nature of alternants (already
outlined) and the main problems with which they confront the researcher,
particularly their phonetic classification and therefore the lack of phonetic
notation; their identified as well as unidentified forms (in terms of labels
and written representation) and the exceptional role in this respect of c o m -
ics and cartoon literature; their socioeducational distribution; their use in
written literature; and, the most practical of all, some needed suggestions
for the elaboration of cultural and crosscultural paralinguistic inventories.
It must have been more than obvious from the start what the almost insur-
mountable problem that confronts alternants is: alternants, voiced or silent,
do exist as part of our speech (regardless of the lesser status w e m a y want
to assign them), yet for most of them w e lack a n a m e or a written form, or
both, and there are still m a n y about which w e just cannot talk, w e can only
utter them. W e cannot neglect this problem, since the official dictionary (at
least the most realistic type, truly concerned with actual usage, such as the
major Webster versions) strives to include n e w ones in each edition, and
both the letter-writing layman and the professional writer also m a k e an
effort to represent a few, proving eloquently that they are there, that their
'live' status is a reality, and that every effort to establish their rightful iden-
tity is more than justified.
390 PARALANGUAGE
to develop written forms, for which, in quite a few instances, the ones used
in comic books and cartoon strips are found to be surprisingly appropriate.
Without pretending to draw an exhaustive list, the following such alternants
are the ones that appear in the latest College Edition of the Webster New
World Dictionary of the American Language (1988).
Table 1
Table 1 continued
Table 2
Table 2 continued
Table 2 continued
Table 2 continued
Table 2 continued
forms. But, nevertheless, both he and the ordinary lay person would always
feel the need to be able to use — and just in writing, but m u c h more in con
versation — the same distinctive labels they can resort to to refer to other
alternants, that is, verbs and nouns with which to give audible or written
shape (which is almost simultaneously imagined as sound) to what they
wish to convey, and do so economically as they write or say 'he gasped', Ί
was puffing', 'he smacked his lips' or 'she hissed at m e ' . However, that is
the uncertain status of otherwise quasilexical expressions like ' H u m p h ! ' ,
' U m p h ! ' (exerting oneself), 'Psst!' (for which 'hissing' is m u c h too ambigu
ous), ' W h e w ! ' , 'Uh-uh!', 'Er — ', 'Tsch!', 'Phew!', ' H o ! ' , ' O h o ! ' , ' Y u m ! ' ,
' W h o e e ! " , etc. A n d that is the status of the majority of the paralinguistic
expressions for which comics have provided visual representation (i.e.,
those that are not as lexical as 'gasp!', 'bang!', 'sigh'), but lack a verbal way
to define them orally or in writing. ' " U g h , you coward!' replied Mrs. Rad
dle, with supreme contempt" (Dickens PP, X X X I I , 480), " W h o o e e " yelled
Dean. "Here w e go!' (Kerouak O R , V I , 111), "The Bedeyat [of the Sudan
desert] steal whole herds [of camels] [...] their w o m e n m a k e up poetry
about the bravery of their m e n . Tsch!" (Asher F D R , 78), '"Psst. Psst.
Don't go there!' (Brenan FS, X , 210),
This is the category that includes so m a n y oral and written imitations of
sounds — without there being accurate labels for them but only some rather
ambiguous ones — (e.g., 'clatter'), such as: "'If you start with the deep bell
and ring up to the high one—der—der—der—der—der—der—der—der!"
(Lawrence SL, VII, 173), " A train coming. A rapid Chuck-a-chuck, chuck-
a-chuck, chuck-a-chuck [...] the Pacific Flyer [...] whistling [...] U u u u u u ! —
faint, nervous, distrait horn [...] U u u u u ! U u u u u ! [...] U u u u u u u ! — fainter"
(Lewis MS, X I X , 230), "The train crossed a nullah. 'Pomper, pomper,
pomper,' was the sound that the wheels m a d e as they trundled over the
bridge moving very slowly" (Forster PI, X I V , 134), " A pair of lapwings
pierced the still night with startled cries: 'Teet-tittee-tittee-whoot, tee-tee-
whoot, tee-tee-whoot, tit-tit-tee-whoot'" (Singh, TP, 14). Imitative alter
nants are very abundant in comics to evocatively enhance the visual images
with audible associations.
Table 3 contains written unlabeled alternants found in the Webster dic
tionary and some possible lexical identifications, which again suggests the
greater expressiveness w e would have at our disposal were those labels
available. T h e m u c h limited quality of the suggested verbs will perhaps
strike the reader since, because of obvious difficulties, they would consist
400 PARALANGUAGE
Suggested Labels
Written Form Functions Verb Noun
Table 3 continued
Suggested Labels
Written Form Functions Verb Noun
express it, or ' b o u - o u m ' , or ' o u - b o u m ' — utterly dull" (Forster PI, X I V ,
145). A n d that is precisely what comic books strive to d o , a veritable chal-
lenge and an accomplishment whose consequences go far beyond entertain-
ment, which would preclude any further comments at this point. I could
offer a written example seen 'and heard' recently on the wall of a Paris sub-
way car: " V R O O O U M M . . T Û T . . T Û Û Û Û T . . T U U U U T . Voici en quel-
ques mots pourquoi nous luons des velos. R O U T LIBRE".
Whether they have labels or not, the names with which some alternants are
seemingly identified can be easily recognized as utterly ambiguous, while
others that are written show m u c h inconsistency in their representation.
This dual problem betrays, first, the inability of both speakers and
writers to describe the sounds that are heard, and the resulting tendency to
lump under a single term utterances that are in reality phonetically and
semantically quite different; and then, their difficulty in attaining a phone-
tic spelling that could faithfully evoke "such distinctive word-like paralin-
guistic expressions. Writers rely solely on their intuition most of the times,
but even w h e n they really recognize the articulations involved they cannot
possibly find the appropriate graphemes for the simple reason that they are
not provided by the spelling systems of their languages. A few examples
will illustrate these two problems. For the unvoiced apicoalveolar click —
here represented as T z ! ' , which seems to be the closest to what could be
perhaps its best phonetic transcription — a quick search through m y file of
alternants disclosed as m a n y as ten different written forms, including Ald-
ous Huxley's T z ! ' : T-t!', T u t , tut!', T u s h , tush!', Tst! Tst!', 'Dth, dth!',
T c k , tch!', ' C h k ! C h k ! ' , Tsch!', and T z , tz!'. 'T-t-t-t!' went her tongue
[Mrs. Morel's because there is m o n e y missing] (Lawrence SL, VIII, 197),
"Tut, it's nothing, Daisy! nothing!' he replied [laughing off an adverse situ-
ation]" (Dickens DC, XXIII, 338), "Tut, tut!' said Heathcliff [...] ' N o n e of
that nonsense' [...]' (E. Brontë W H , X X , 169), " T u t ! Don't be a fool!'
(Lewis MS, X I V , 170), " T u s h , tush, m y dear! [...] I only tried to frighten
you'" (Dickens , I X , 60), " T o r shame!' [...] T c h ! Tch!' [...] 'Stop!'"
(Fitzgerald TIN, I, 259), "Tst! Tst! Tst! [...] a sucking sound of the tongue
and palate" (Dreiser AT, III, 35), "His tongue clacked in compassion. Dth!
D t h ! / T m sorry to hear that" (Joyce, U, 159), " T c k , tck, tck,' she clicked
404 PARALANGUAGE
ss!', and referred to as 'to hiss' and 'a hiss'. Another one is the unvoiced
dorsopalatal fricative [ç] used to hush or to call someone's attention too,
which can be written 'Ssh!' and labeled 'to sish' and 'a sish'. A third one
with the same possible functions as the other two is the unvoiced
laminopostalveolar fricative +- apicodental stop [JY], which one could write
'Sst!' andrightfullydifferentiate as 'to sist' and 'a sist'. But there is still a
fourth c o m m o n form of wrongly called hissing which is formed by the
unvoiced combination of bilabial stop + laminoalveolar fricative [ps], with
the same functions, which can easily be represented as 'Pss!'; and even a
stop + laminoalveolar fricative blended into a laminoalveolar stop [pst],
with again the same functions, but which obviously deserves its o w n written
form as 'Pst!' as well as the verb 'to pist' and the noun 'a pist'.
It should be clear that the inconsistency in the representation of
paralinguistic expressions like the ones just discussed and so m a n y others
responds to no other reasons than the difficulty encountered by writers to
transcribe them o n paper. C o m p o u n d e d , of course, by a perpetuated
apathy in the face of the traditional restricting spelling and 'linguistic'
taboos — not dissimilar to the inertia shown in the last two centuries with
respect to the unexplored possibilities of punctuation (Poyatos 1983: Chap-
ter 8) — although it is being seen h o w the professional creative writer
makes sometimes that effort to evoke s o m e of those utterances that are in
their minds as part of the expressive repertoires of their characters. A s for
h o w to 'call' those quasiverbal expressions, the challenge is still greater
because it amounts to defying the academic rules of one's language and
inventing 'etyom-less' grammatical forms, that is, not only nouns but verbs
that one should be able to conjugate. A n d thus the question arises whether
it would be justified to seek n e w written forms for m a n y of the alternants
discussed, from a cynical tense nasopharyngeal egression or a closed-lip one
signalling contempt to the m a n y sound initations w e also intersperse with
words in conversation; whether only those more word-like speech utter-
ances should deserve that status; and finally, from the point of view of the
literary craftsman, whether such proliferation of written sounds would not
hamper his descriptive skills and therefore his style with true words. But
perhaps, in the final analysis, what one m a y advocate is mostly a n e w
awareness of the unexplored and untapped possibilities of both our word-
creating capabilities and our writing system.
ALTERNANTS 407
A. Lexical soundgraphs
These are the dictionary items which comics and cartoons show either
accompanying the drawings by themselves or along with the words uttered
by the characters. While the majority are, of course, onomatopoeic, imitat-
ing all sorts of organismic or nonorganismic sounds (e.g., ' C R A C K ' ,
' C H O M P , C H O M P ! ' , ' G U L P ' , ' G U R G L E ' , 'RIP!', 'SNIFF, SNIFF'), the rest are
nonimitative words, designating organismic or nonorganismic sounds also,
but which only describe without visually attempting to represent their m o d -
els, for instance: ' C L A P , C L A P ' , 'FLITTER', 'KICK', '*SIGH*', ' S K R A T C H ,
408 PARALANGUAGE
S K R A T C H ' , ' S L A M ! ' , ' S M A C K ' (kiss), 'TAP, T A P , TAP', 'SNIP', ' S L O B B E R ' ,
'FLITTER'. However, this latter type, although on a lower iconic level,
undergoes a further semiotic stage w h e n the reader-viewer sees the word
'scratch', for instance, and simultaneously 'hears' in his imagination the
sound of scratching, which, as with other visual alternants, is usually repeated
around the source of the sound in capitals, enhancing their audible appear-
ance. Lexical alternants, then, are those labeled but unwritten which can be
easily gleaned from all kinds of comic books and cartoons. W h e n read
aloud, as will be seen, these lexical representations do not evoke the imita-
tive sounds as vividly as the strictly paralinguistic imitative soundgraphs
included in the other groups.
A characteristic variety of lexical soundgraphs is the representation
that emphasizes the paralinguistic features of a word, for instance, the
drawling in ' B E E - O O - T I - F U L ! ' .
B. Paralinguistic soundgraphs
Apart from those lexical soundgraphs that denote paralinguistic utterances
(e.g., 'burp', 'gasp', 'gulp', 'pant', 'sigh', 'slurp', 'smack', 'snarl', 'sob'), this
category includes all the strictly paralinguistic alternants that are vocally
uttered by speakers as paralanguage. They are, therefore, nonimitative
phonetic constructs which include those registered in the dictionary — some
with identifying labels (e.g., 'achoo!', to sneeze; 'ahem!', to clear the
throat) and some without (e.g., 'owl', w h e n feeling pain) — but m a n y more
that were not written before and thus constitute an important part of the
true contribution of comics to visual written expression, for instance:
' A A K ! ' (fear, choking), ' A R G H - G A ! ' (pain), ' A R R R R G H ! ' (anger), ' B A A A ! '
(dismissal), ' B L A H Î / B L E A H ! ' (sticking tongue at someone), ' B O O O O O ! ' (dis-
approval), Έ Ε Κ ! ' (startle), 'KOFF' (cough), ' O U C H ! ' (pain), ' O W W W W ! '
(pain), 'PSST!' (calling someone's attention), 'THPPFT!' (sticking tongue at
someone), ' U M M P G ! ' (hit on face by fist), ' U N G H ! ' (receiving uppercut),
' W H A A ! ' (crying child), ' W H U U M M F F ' (making great effort), ' W H E E E E E '
('Here I come!'), ' W O O S H ! ' (forceful breath axhalation), ' Y A H O O ! ' (joy,
surprise), ' Y E E E O W ! ' (surprise), 'YIPE!' (stung by cactus), ' Z Z Z Z Z Z ! ' (snor
ing), (whistling).
C. Self-adaptor soundgraphs
A s thefirstcategory of adaptors, self-adaptors are found sometimes in comics
represented by their lexical references, thus belonging also in the first
ALTERNANTS 409
D. Body-adaptor soundgraphs
The sounds in comics that are produced by our contact with certain body-
adaptors are typically those associated with eating and drinking, very often
represented by their onomatopeoic lexical soundgraphs, for instance:
' C R U N C H , C R U N C H ' (crunching food in mouth), 'FFFT!' (spitting out ball),
' G L U G , G L U U G , G L U G ' (drinking intensely), 'POIT!' (letting go of pacifier
from mouth), 'PTUI!' (spitting out small object through straw).
E. Alter-adaptor soundgraphs
Almost all the alter-adaptor behaviors depicted in comics by lexical labels
or potential paralinguistic imitations (i.e., original forms) reflect the role of
comic books in spreading our exposure to violence. Not only do comic book
stories promote aggressiveness a m o n g youngsters (e.g., the m a n y kung fu
blows depicted), but they even add to their repertoires of utterances with
which they accompany the description or imitation of aggressive actions in
their games. T h e effort of writers to depict visually the 'quasiphonetic',
'quasilinguistic' sound characteristics of those contacts is obvious.
For their part, readers should read aloud the following examples of
imitative soundgraphs to verify the degree of accuracy of each orthographic
representation, and either accept it as valid or think of a possible better
alternative: ' B L U D ' (foot-to-mandible), ' B R A P ! (hand-to-hand), ' C L U D ! '
(hand edge-to wrist), ' C R M P ! ' (fist-to-face), 'FUP!' (foot-to-abdomen),
'FWAK!' (hand-to-face), 'FWOK!' (fist-to-chin), 'POW!' (fist-to-face, boxing
punch on face), 'PHLUMP!' (fist-to-jaw), 'SHUP' (feet-to-back), 'SOCK' (box-
ing punch on face), 'SPUNT' (fist-to-face), ' S W O K ! ' (fist-to-chin), ' T H W A K ! '
(foot-to-crotch), ' W A P ! ' (hitting face), ' W H O P ! ' (fist blow).
F. Object-adaptor soundgraphs
Sound-producing movements in which the body contacts objects are m a n y
in comic books and cartoons, almost all of a violent nature, whether humor-
ous (e.g., the "Charlie B r o w n " or " D a g w o o d and Blondie" series) or of the
more harmful type, which again, abound today in this kind of children's vis-
ual literature. A s with other categories, m a n y of these soundgraphs are lex-
ical evocations of sounds which are mentally uttered with its imitative qual-
410 PARALANGUAGE
G. Object-mediated soundgraphs
A s was discussed in Chapter 1, the sounds produced not directly by the
body, but by what constitutes extensions of it, that is, objects w e manipu-
late to contact other bodies or objects, possess a peculiar language-like
quality, which becomes particularly conspicuous if they are depicted visu-
ally in writing, as comic books attempt to do (although some, like 'bumpety
bumpety b u m ' , have become lexical). Soundgraphs for them are, for
instance: ' B O N G ! ' (boxing ring bell), 'CLICK! CLICK! C L A C K ! (typing),
'CLINK' (camera shutter, turning switch on), ' C L U M P ! ' (catching baseball in
glove), 'DING-A-LING' (small bells), 'KLOP!', 'PLUNK!' (catching baseball in
glove), ' S H R A K ' (sword cutting through table), 'SHRESH!' (sword in air),
'SNAP!' ('snappping' picture), 'SPLAT!' (hitting wall with jet of shaving
cream from dispenser), 'SSSSSSSSSSSLOOFF', 'SEEE', 'SWISSSS', 'SWSSSS',
'SSWHIIIIIISSSSHHHCCHHHTTT', ' S W O O F F F ' (brandishing sword), 'TAP TIK
TAP' (typing), ' T H U M P A , T H U M P A ' (pencil drumming on book), ' W A N G ! ' ,
' W H A P ! ' (tennis racket hitting ball), ' W H A P E T Y W H A P E T Y W H A P E T Y -
W H A P ' (racket with returning ball), ' Z U A C ! ' (hitting someone with stick).
ALTERNANTS 411
H. Animal soundgraphs
Animals appear in comic books and cartoons either incidentally or as their
main characters. In either case, the visual depiction of their utterances must
go well beyond the few established lexical echoics (e.g., 'yap', ' m e o w ' ,
'heehaw') to include more realistic representations of more than just those
basic actions. Most of them are quite accurate, as they are more similar to
h u m a n phonetic constructs than, for instance, sounds produced by objects:
'ARF', ' A A R G H ! ' , B O W - O W - O W - O W - O W F , 'RARF!', ' R O W F P , ' R O W W R P ,
'ROWRRRRGHGHRAWRR', ' W A R F ! W A R F W A R F ! (dog barking),
' G G R O O W F F ! GRF G R F O W F ! ' (dog barking and growling), G R O W F !
G R O W F ! ' , G R R R R R G R O W L L L L ' , 'GRR!', ' G R R R ! RUFF!' (dog growling)',
' O W O O O O O O O ' (dog howling), 'YAP Y A P ' , 'YIP' (small dog barking)
'BREEP' (frog croaking), 'BZZZ, B Z Z Z ' (bee, fly), Έ Ε - H A W - H A W H A W !
(donkey braying), , ' G A W W W W ! H E E - H A W W W H ! ' (horse neighing), 'KSSSS-
TSSSSS!' (snake hissing), ' M E O W ' (cat meowing), ' M R O W ! ' (cat purring),
' R O W R R R R G H G H R A W R R ' (tiger), ' S Q U A K S Q U A K ! (parrot).
I. Artifactual soundgraphs
The representation of sounds produced by objects constitute perhaps the
most interesting innovation of comics. Visual repetition of echoic lexical
references contribute definitely to their evocation (e.g., 'clink clank clink
412 PARALANGUAGE
clank'), but comic book authors have invented many more soundgraphs to
accompany their drawings of those artifacts, increasing or decreasing their
loudness by using capital letters of different sizes or changing size from
beginning to end and adding one or more exclamation marks. Stories thus
acquire a great vividness, as the reader perceives their activities through
three types of signs or channels: the drawings showing people's movements
and facial expressions, that is, kinesics; the paralinguistic representations
around them and around any objects producing sound; and, almost on a
secondary plane sometimes, the verbal language of the characters. Within
this category, however, w e should differentiate three subcategories: sounds
generated by mechanical artifacts, sounds of objects in contact, and the
sounds of objects travelling through the air.
a. Mechanical
This group can include broadly sound-producing mechanisms, musical
instruments and explosions originated by artifacts. Besides words from the
dictionary, it includes very clever orthographic representations:
'BAM!BAM!' (shooting), 'BHUD-UD-UD-AH!', ' K A W A M K A W A M ZAP!',
'RATATAT!', 'WUMP!POW! POW!BAM!', T O W CRACK K-POW', 'BLAM!' (gun
going off, tank gun, shotgun), 'BEEP! (signal), 'BLEEP TAP BLEEDEEP'
(punching electronic cashier), ' B O N G , B O N G , B O N G ' (church bell),
' B W H U M P ' , ' F W O O M ' ' K A W O O M ! ! ' (great explosion), ' B W O O M ! ' (bazooka
going off), ' C H A T T A - C H A K K A - C H A K ' , ' C H O P C H O P C H O P ' (chopper,
helicopter), ' C H O O ! C H O O ! C L A N G ! ' , ' C L A N G ! C L A N G ! ' (train), ' C L A T T E R
C L A T T E R ' (horse cart), 'CLICK' ( T V set on/off switch), 'CLINK C L A N K
CLINK C L A N K ' (watch), ' D U M D U M D U M ' (piano), 'FSSSS' (powder advanc
ing), Ή Ο Ν Κ H O N K ' (car horn), ' K A - P L O O S H ! ' (water rushing out of a fur
nace), ' K L A K ! ' (empty gun), 'PFUTTSPUT-BRP' (failing plane engine),
'PSSST' (spray can), ' P U T T A P U T T A P U T T A P U T T A ' (airplane machine gun),
'RINGG!' (phone), ' T A T T A - T A T - T A T ' (machine gun-like weapon), ' R R R T T
R R T R R P ' , ' T A K - A K - A K - A K ! ' (machine gun), ' S K R E E E E ' (car brakes),
'SSSSSSSÜ' (ball punctured), 'SNAP' (camera shutter triggered), 'SPROINGG',
(jumping on couch), 'SWISH' (sliding door), 'TINKLE TINKLE' (small dog
bell), ' T W A N G ! ' (slingshot; bow and arrow), ' V A R O O O O M ! ' (passing plush
car accelerating), ' V R O O M ! ' (car going fast), ' W W H H H R R R E E E E E E E E E '
(plummeting plane), ' W H I R R R R ' (automatic film advance in camera; elec-
tric can opener, hair dryer, vacuum cleaner, machine mechanism).
O n e could not speak of artifactual sounds in writing without referring
to the most realistic representation found in contemporary literature, that
ALTERNANTS 413
b. Objects in contact
These are the sounds that let us 'hear' the materials objects are m a d e of
when they hit each other. Comics use a number of echoic words and also
original soundgraphs, both acquiring their paralinguistic qualities when
they are seen by the reader. ' B E E O W ' , 'VIP VIP VIP' (bullets ricochetting
and hitting ground), ' B H O N K (gunfire hitting different objects),
' B L A N G ' (bullet hitting tank), ' B B L U T (car tire splashing in puddle),
' C L A N G ! ' (metal against metal), ' F W A T ! F W A T ! ' (bullets hitting grass and
ground), ' K A P W E N G ' (shots hitting rock), 'KEESH!' (window pane broken
by bullet), ' K L U N K ! B U M P ! B U M P ! K R A S H ! (cars colliding), TING!' (ping-
pong bat hitting ball), TLINK! (marble hitting marble or gound), 'PLOP!'
(dog dish falling to floor), ' S N A K K ! ' (whip snatching pistol from hand),
'SNAP! T E A R ! B O N K ! S M A S H ! (kite hits ground), 'SPLAT' (tomato hits wall),
' S Q U E E E E E ' (car tires on pavement), ' T H O P ' (gunfire hits sandbags),
'TZING' (bullet ricochetting and hitting ground), ' T Z U N K ! ' (bullet hitting
helmet).
J. Environmental soundgraphs
The dictionary gives us m a n y words to speak about the sounds of our natu-
ral environment in ways that w e deem quite accurate and, from a poetic
point of view, sensitive, 'romantic', etc. However, the expressive limita-
tions of written language have prevented 'lexical artists' from making an
effort to translate those sounds into visible written characters that would
evoke instantly the qualities of those sounds. This is, finally, another
attempt to be credited to comic book authors, not wanting to offer a visual
image of the source of a sound without representing the sound as well, even
by emphasizing the echoic nature of a word. Quite a few can be gleaned
from comic books and cartoons, among them: ' G U S H ! ' ('oil gushing in oil
ALTERNANTS 415
ficulty of having to use certain diacritics for lack of more letters w h e n try
ing, for instance, to write the different vowels (e.g., mid-central, mid-to-
higher back), and to indicate their glottalization, nasalization, labialization,
gliding quality, etc. W h e n one sees the alternants included in a dictionary
like the W N W D it is obvious that what stops its compilers from including
others just as important or more is nothing but the unavailability of sym
bols. This lack would perhaps warrant the addition of certain letters, such
as some symbols from the I P A and elsewhere (e.g., [(Φ)] for breathy voice,
[a] for closed mouth) as well as some diacritics (e.g., ["] for nasality, [w] for
labialization, [::] for drawling, ['] for clipping.) A s a matter of fact, it seems
to be the only possible alternative for representing m a n y very meaningful
paralinguistic utterances that must otherwise be unjustly ignored; thus,
introducing just a few symbols in our writing systems should not be
regarded as preposterous.
A dictionary-like inventory as an independent piece of research is also
something m u c h needed within the study of each language and each cul
ture, and it would serve also as a source of material for the dictionaries,
avoiding their present limitations in presenting the speakers' true reper
toires.
2. A thesaurus of alternants
Tz'); acknowledgement (e.g., ' A a h ! ' ) ; affirmation (e.g., ' U h - h u ' ) ; warning
(e.g., ' A h ! ' ) ; negation (e.g., ' U h - u h ' ) ; hesitation (e.g., ' U u u h ' ) ; thinking
pause (i.e., a silence, ' ' ) ; memory-searching pause (e.g., ' - - - - - ' ) ;
word-searching pause (e.g., '-—o-—).
B . Descriptive-Illustrative: space markers (e.g., 'Bff!, this big', 'Pgh!,
right here', 'Whisss!, far away'); time markers (e.g., 'Ooooof, a long time
ago!'); deictics (e.g., ' M m ! ' pointing with nod/chin); pictographs (e.g.,
'Wooiish!' indicating a spiral); ideographs (e.g., 'Aaaaaaay!', imagining a
pleasurable situation); event tracers (e.g., a nasalized 'the lecture went on
and on, ooooooh!'); identifiers (e.g., physical quality: 'It was sssszzz, very
smooth'; moral quality: 'He's a little eeuh, I don't k n o w ' ; abstract concept:
'It's . . . ) ; externalizers (e.g., generated by self: 'Aaaoooh!, in pain; by
others: ' > A a h ! , you scared m e ! ' ; by objects: ' U n g h ! ' , in pain; by environ-
ment: 'Aaaaaaah m m m m m h , what a view!'; by events: random throat-
clearings, sniffs, etc., w h e n anxious, esthetic enjoyment: ' U u u m h ! ' ) .
C . Imitative-Illustrative: self-adaptors (e.g., ' H e went clap, clap, clap');
body-adaptors (e.g., ' H e was glug, glug, drinking it all'); alter-adaptors
(e.g., P o w , whack!'); object-adaptors (e.g., ' H e went bang, bang, until
she opened'); artifactually-mediated (e.g., ' T h e two swordsmen were
sswissh, sswissh, swissh, without hitting each other'); animal (e.g., ' H e
came to m e , warf, warf, warf!'); artifactual (e.g., mechanical: 'The train
went up slowly, chuck-a-chuck-a-chuck-a'; objects in contact: 'It fell,
bonk!'; objects in air: ' W e could hear the bullets, swissssssss'; environmen-
tal: ' B b r r w o o u u h h m m ! ' , 'Kkrragsz!').
D . Attitudinal
a. Affiliation and Positive Attitudes: agreement (e.g., ' A h - h a ' ) ; greeting
(e.g., British [a32::]); approval (e.g., ' M m ! ' ) ; interest (e.g., ' M m m ! ' ) ;
curiosity (e.g., ' H m ! ' ) ; coaxing (e.g., ' O o o o h ! ' ) ; flirtation (e.g., 'Tz-tz');
encouragement (e.g., 'Eeeeh!'); praise (e.g., a yell); admiration (e.g., gasp-
ing); affection, love (e.g., low-pitched laryngealized m o a n ) ; relief (e.g.,
'Whew!').
b. Aggression and Negative Attitudes: disagreement (e.g., ' U h n ! ' ) ; disin-
terest (e.g., 'Bah!'); disbelief (e.g., ' H o ! ' ) ; disapproval (e.g.,'Uh-uh!'); sus-
picion (e.g., " M m m m m ' ) ; puzzlement (e.g., ' U u u u u h ' ) ; mockery (e.g.,
mocking laughter); contempt (e.g., superiority, haughtiness (e.g., high
narial egression + gesture); scorn (e.g., 'Pff!'); repugnance (e.g., 'Eeugh!');
challenge (e.g., laughter of challenge); threat (e.g., a growl); alarm (e.g.,
' E h ! ' ) ; fear (e.g., broken moaning); startle (e.g., ' A h ! ' ) ; boredom (e.g.,
ALTERNANTS 419
established kinesic behaviors and use of artifacts (whip, stick, branch, etc.)
should be added to really offer a fully documented inventory.
Regardless of the usefulness and need of the other two approaches, they
would not be possible without first establishing the morphology and visual
representation of alternants by means of a rigorous phonetic and linguistic
study and classification from which to draw for any other strategies. This I
suggested and initiated within a sociopsychological environment at an
anthropological congress (Poyatos 1975). Greatly elaborating on that then-
pioneering piece of work, I try to suggest here what should be improved
upon as an indispensable model for the identification and classification of
paralinguistic alternants strictly attending to their sound characteristics (but
including silent alternants, and their accompanying visible behaviors). For
this, it is necessary to go beyond the sounds traditionally studied in order to
acknowledege all the articulatory possibilities as well as m a n y nonarticu-
lated sounds, and naturally beyond the established phonetic symbols.
T h e model shown in Figs. 7.1, 2 and 3 is based, then, on the three
inherent constituents of alternants, that is, of speech: their phonetic config-
uration, in terms of manner and point of articulation, the paralinguistic ele-
ments that m a y modify them morphologically and semantically, and the
possible kinesic cobehaviors that m a y accompany them more or less con-
spicuously as their visual manifestation in face-to-face interaction.
(e.g., for the prespeech friction, or the faucal sound of retching) and the
lingual ones (e.g., stops, clicks, the trill in imitation of a phone ringing),
research should investigate crossculturally and exhaustively dental scrapives
(e.g., in tooth grinding), percussives (e.g., tooth-chattering) etc. It should
also study all the occurring stops, fricatives, approximants, clicks, percus-
sives, etc., formed by the lips (e.g., the sounds of kissing, blowing, 'Pooh!',
Ooff!', etc.), and the meaningful utterances originated in the nasal and
narial cavities (e.g., a meaningful nose-clearing sound, an expression of
delight). Finally, the occurrence of as m a n y vowel sounds as possible
should be identified beyond the constricting limits of what m a y constitute
the vowel system of any specific language, such as the 'official' five vowels
of Spanish, to which the Spanish speaker certainly adds quite a few m o r e
(rather within the English system, for instance) in his paralinguistic reper-
toire (e.g., the [ae] in the seemingly [a] of a drawled rejecting ¡Aaah).
them in that chapter. T h e phonetic tables in Figs. 7.1 and 7.2 conveniently
differentiate the six fundamental organs where w e can distinguish an active
articulator contacting a passive one in that area or elsewhere.
A. Laryngeal
T h e glottal stop of a tense ' U h n ! ' to encourage a player, the cattlemen's
'Eeuh-eeuh!' in different cultures; the G e r m a n high-pitched glottal stop +
drawled closed-mouth voiced narial friction signifying 'Delicious!'; the chil-
dren's multiple glottal trills in imitation of a car's starting or a machine gun;
the low-pitched ' U u u h ' of hesitation, m a d e scornful with added harshness;
a nasalized glottal trill + spasmodic labiodental fricative of rejection; the
glottalized high-back vowel + labiodental fricative to c o m m e n t on the heat
(e.g., in Spain and Israel, but [fw] in G e r m a n y ) .
B. Pharyngeal
The epiglottopharyngeal sound of gulping in m o c k fear; the prespeech or
hesitation ingressive pharyngeal friction, often preceded by the prespeech
apicoalveolar click (much prolonged while thinking of an answer or as a
studied behavior of self-assurance or authority in film actors, perhaps
before 'Let m e tell you something — '); also a postspeech pharyngeal
ingression, often followed by something like ' A n d that's the story' during
the expiration phase; and an overdrawled pharyngeal ingression of
imagined or anticipated physical or intellectual pleasure, each with their
peculiar culture-specific kinesics and the faucal approximant of some
twangy utterances.
Labial
T h e glottalized exolabial fricative or exolabio-endolabial fricative expressing
rejection or contempt; the unvoiced exolabial blowing friction of dismay,
fatigue, etc.: the glottalized (spasmodic) explosive exolabial stop of disbelief
or skepticism; the repeated exolabial voiceless stop + highest-front vowel to
call chickens in Spain, Turkey, Israel, G e r m a n y , etc.; the glottalized
exolabiodental affricate of indifference or contempt, or the G e r m a n Pfui! of
repugnance; an endolabial audible expiration (blowing) preceded by a deep
breath intake and finger-tapping, a c o m m o n Turkish expression of impati-
ence (as is a double throat-clearing), the gesture having been a cause of
complaint by Turkish Airlines employees; a high-back vowel- exolabioden-
ALTERNANTS 425
tal fricative, as in 'Oof, I ' m beat!', 'Oof, it's hot!' Croatian and Turkish Uf!
(the latter while shaking both hands as for French Oh-là-là!) w h e n it is hot;
drawled ingressive exolabiodental fricative of pain ('Ff, it hurts!); drawled
spasmodic glottalized exolabio dental fricative of disbelief or skepticism; the
endolabial trill for making a horse or donkey stop in G e r m a n y , Turkey,
Israel, etc., '¡Brrrr!'; the unilateral endolabial ingressive fricative used by
m a n y to express resignation; the reflex G e r m a n glottalized endobilabial
stop in Pau!, expressing pain; the unilateral endolabial click of regret ( ' O h ,
well!'); the ingressive (kissing) endobilabial click (as in kissing) used by
Moroccan Berbers to m a k e a donkey serve a mare (Bynon 1976), used also
by Spanish males as a vulgar attention-getter for a female; the prolonged
drawled nasalized endobilabial click, that is, the loud 'smack' of the
enthusiastic kiss heard in Southern European cultures; the m a n y uses of
bilabial whistles in m a n y cultures, from 'cat-calling' at w o m e n to calling a
dog to making horses and sheep drink [among Moroccan Berbers] (Bynon
1976); the endolabio-exolabial stop, fricative or nasal of impatience, exer-
tion or before making an effort (as a w o m a n blowing the hair falling over
the eyes); the various assisted labial articulations of m a n y cultures with dif-
ferent functions, such as the up-and-down flapping of neutral lips with
index finger by children, the 'champagne-bottle' popping sound, or for sev-
eral types of whistling (see Chapter 2 , 6.3); the Moroccan Berbers'
'raspberry'-like "labio-palmar trill" (exolabial) for calling goats at a dis-
tance (Bynon 1976).
D. Lingual
The reverse apicolabial stop (or apicoendolabial/apicoexolabial stop or
fricative) sometimes used attitudinally while dislodging something from the
teeth; any apicoendolabial trill (against the upper lip) in imitation of
mechanical sounds; the apicosublabial with dorsopalatal groove fricative
used to hiss or whistle; a nasalized apicoendosublabial sound and gesture of
mockery; continuous apicoalveolar trill, as w h e n imitating an engine; the
apicoalveolar fricative as a derisive hissing sound in North America, for cal-
ling a waiter's attention at a Spanish popular outdoors café or a w o m a n ' s ;
the voiceless bilabial stop + apicoalveolar fricative as an informal beckoning
signal in Spain; the Spanish apicoalveolar fricative + dental stop, also for
beckoning or calling someone's attention, or for hushing someone (e.g.,
Spain, G e r m a n y ) ; the Spanish single/double apicoalveolar affricate for bec-
koning (all these Spanish forms of hissing betraying status and upbringing);
426 PARALANGUAGE
tion used for some hissing and whistling sounds; the glottalized
laminosubalveolar fricative of contempt; a forceful laminopostalveolar (or
palatal) click can be an emphatic realization of the apicoalveolar one, par
ticularly w h e n addressed to animals, but it can also be the click of regret or
disappointment used in m a n y western and eastern cultures (e.g., Japan); a
prolonged nasalized sub lamino dental resonant, or sublaminolabial, as a
clownish gesture of expected punishment; a sublaminobuccal percussive
against the floor of the mouth as a single 'dripping-like' sound, or done
repeatedly to play a tune with that percussive sound; the dorsodental con
tact (i.e., with m u c h tongue protrusion) with various pharyngeal or uvular
sounds and usually nasalization, as for expressing repugnance; an emphatic
dorsoprepalatal click with various functions (e.g., to attract the attention of
animals); several dorsopalatal articulations (stops, fricatives, affricates, nas
als, laterals, resonants), as w h e n expressing displeasure with a continuous
resonant [ae] and a congruent facial expression, the prolonged fricative [ƒ]
for hushing in some cultures, the basic [ƒ] sound for shooing a cat (e.g.,
G e r m a n Sch! or Kach!), the Israeli [∫ia] to urge a horse, or the G e r m a n
reaction to heat, Sch!; the dorsopalatal click used to forcefully try to detach
something from the mouth roof, or after tasting a good wine; the dorsovelar
[g], the basic sound in Turkish Agu-agu! while chucking a baby under the
chin; a dorsovelar fricative or affricate, as in velar laughter, expressing
repugnance ('Eeegh!'), or w h e n imitating a cat's 'hissing and spitting': the
forceful dorsovelar trill of typical snorting, produced voluntarily to, for
instance, imitate a wild beast's roaring; the nasal fricative velar + mid-back
vowel of Spain's euphemistic ¡Jo! of surprise, disappointment, admiration,
etc.; the bilateral/unilateral dorsovelar click (often described as alveolar) of
so m a n y cultures to cluck a horse (often with an emphatic unilateral mouth-
and-cheek gesture and without releasing the front apicoalveolar contact; a
dorsouvular stop, nasal, trill, etc. (in various languages) appears in differ-
ent emphatic, often clownish, paralinguistic utterances; the Ingressiv e dor-
souvular expressing fearful surprise in Turkish, as does Ay!; finally, a
radicopharyngeal articulation (i.e., the tongue root retracted toward the
pharynx wall) produces several pharyngealized alternants (similar to the
Arabic fricative ), as w h e n expressing violent scorn.
E. Dental
The bidental fricative or approximant while audibly letting air out through
the teeth or sucking it in (both with a hissing sound that would warrant their
428 PARALANGUAGE
G. Vocalic
Since the main element of m a n y paralinguistic utterances is some type of
vowel sound — even if it is preceded and/or followed by a less conspicuous
friction or contact — it would seem convenient to group them together in a
phonetic classification of alternants. It would seem that most of them are
mainly glottalized front high and low vowels and some central and low back
ones, the highest front and back vowels appearing in the less frequent and
more emphatic expressions (e.g., 'Eeeeee'). W e can observe a variety of up
to five pitch levels and also varying nasalization, besides or in addition to
glottalization, as well as diverse paralinguistic qualifiers, m a n y with both an
open-lip and a closed-lip variant with identical or almost identical meaning,
sometimes in abruptly or smoothly linked pairs, the second element often
with pharyngeal friction, and sometimes joined in what is more like a con-
tinuous gliding vowel. Just as a convenient classification of these basic voc-
430 PARALANGUAGE
alic sounds (or the only ones) of m a n y alternants, I a m making three broad
groups: high, mid, and low vowels, as shown in Fig. 7.3.
Higher-Vowel Alternants. It would roughly include paralinguistic utter
ances such as: the overdrawled labialized high-mid back vowel of estimation
in North-American English (e.g., ' W e were, oooh/ooow, about twenty')
the glottalized gliding mid-to-higher back vowel of surprise (British more
with [ә] than [ ]; the overdrawled glottalized nasalized narial gliding mid-to-
higher back (pitches 4-2) of sensual moaning, the higher the pitch, the more
feminine, creakiness increasing with muscular tension, perhaps released to
open-glottis voicing; Israeli Ay! (also Auts!) and Spanish ¡Ay! as reflex
sounds when in sudden physical pain (cf. English ' O u c h ! ' ) ; Finnish ' H u h ,
huh!' when feeling hot or cold; G e r m a n round high-central [y] after an
emphatic dorsovelar affricate to urge a horse; Israeli Wai! with drawled
high-front vowel, for surprise; the drawled high-mid front + nasal alveolar
[e::] of Japanese children crying for attention; the predominantly high vow-
els of the thripthong in Japanese feminine expression of delight [a3o∫i::];
Israeli [ow] of regret; the Turkish male's Oöys when seeing an attractive
w o m a n ; G e r m a n continuous [i] of repugnance; Israeli Nu- ! of rejection
and disinterest.
Mid-Vowel Alternants. T h e Japanese former Prime Minister Ohira
used the Japanese prespeech 'Aaah and 'Uuuh so m u c h that he was k n o w n
as 'Prime Minister A a h - U u h ' ; the other very Japanese prespeech sound
(typical of children w h e n asked in school, but also of adult interviews) is
basically the high-mid front [e] in Eeetó; the Japanese male's semi vowel-
drawled high-mid back when seeing an attractive w o m a n , Wooo!; the
Japanese male's [ 3i::] of delight; Israeli glottalized Eh! of disgust; the very
Anglo-American overdrawled mid-central glottalized hesitation vowel, [ә] or
[ ] observed today as an intercultural borrowing in Europe; the interroga
tion glottalized gliding mid-to-higher-back vowel, written ' U h ? ' ; the affir
mation double mid- central vowel, the second with velar-nasal friction, writ
ten ' U h - h u ' and m u c h borrowed today from Anglo-Americans in m a n y cul
tures and social classes; as is the glottalized and negation nasalized double
vowel, 'Uh-uh!'; with clipping in the first and drawling in the second for
emphasis; the overdrawled creaky mid-central displeasure m o a n , ' O o o o h ,
not n o w ! ' , the pleasure m o a n , a drawled glottalized and nasalized gliding
mid-to-higher-back vowel; the Japanese unrounded low-mid central vowel
in the drawled expression of relief Huuu, and a drawled low-pitch Uuuh of
frustration wīth closed-eyes and head-tilting.
ALTERNANTS 431
H. Silent Alternants
It has been established in the definition of alternants that certain m o m e n -
tary breaks of silences in the speech stream of sound should rightfully be
identified and regarded as paralinguistic alternants also. If w e agree that
alternants perform in speech truly segmental and quasilexical functions —
and they are not always consciously uttered — w e cannot ignore the c o m -
municative value of m a n y momentary breaks in speech. They can also be
unintentional or, on the other hand, quite voluntary, but in both cases inde-
xical enough to be intimately related to their surrounding verbal and non-
verbal activities. In fact, whatever was said at the beginning of this chapter
about the hypothesized origins of language ought to be logically related to
the use of silence for communication, and one should also suspect in this
case that meaningful silences, even more the voluntary ones, would have
also coexisted with communicative sounds and movements, since even in
more rudimentary periods of h u m a n interaction, a silence could have been
a message in itself, with no reference to sound, or could have conveyed the
voluntary absence of an expected audible message, just as a m o m e n t of
stillness could have confirmed precisely the absence of m o v e m e n t or, on
the other hand, signify by itself with no reference to it. If w e try to take but
a perfunctory look at the brief silences that occur in personal interaction
without simply neglecting them as voids, w e easily identify at least the fol-
lowing functions: as a prespeech or speaker's turn-opening behavior, and at
the other end as a frequent post-speech or speaker's turn-closing behavior;
while within the speaker's turn in a conversation w e momentarily cease to
speak — or perhaps, more accurately, to communicate with sound —
because of an external interruption, a self-interruption, a word hesitation,
a word search, a thought hesitation, a thought search, a m e m o r y search, a
thinking pause, a word-withholding silence, a word-replacing silence, an
emotional break, etc.
T h e implications of this functional and semantic diversity are obvious:
from the point of view of both normal and pathological interactive
432 PARALANGUAGE
Primary qualities
Following the discussion in Chapter 4 , there are five of the primary qual-
ities that can attitudinally modify the meaning of m a n y alternants:
- loudness or volume, between softness and loudness, can differentiate
— in correlation often with a lax or tense facial musculature and gesture
perfectly congruent with the internal muscular effort — between, for
instance, a soft, compassionate apicoalveolar click, ' T z ! ' , and a loud, angry
one, or between a hardly audible prespeech pharyngeal ingressive friction
and a loud impatient or annoyed one, a meaningful variation in voice vol-
436 PARALANGUAGE
PARALINGUISTIC QUALIFIERS
loudness intonation
Primary Qualities pitch level syllabic duration
pitch interval
Breathing egressive spasmodic
Control ingressive
whispering falsetto
Laryngeal breathiness harshness
Control glottal catch shrilness
creakiness hoarseness
Esophageal belched sounds
Control
Pharyngeal pharyngeal ization faculization
Control hollowness
nasalization whimpering
Qualifiers Velopharyngeal whininess moaning
Control whimpering grunting |
Lingual Control velarization palatalization
labialization expansion
Labial protrusion constriction
Control retraction
wide-open retracted
Mandibular half-closed rotating
Control protracted |
Articulatory
tenseness laxness
Tension Control
KINESIC QUALIFIERS
Face ¡Head Shoulders Trunk Hands Body & Legs
forehead nodding shruggign erect conscious general
brows shaking dropping slumped gestures posture
eyes, gaze tilting bent unconscious
nose rocking gestures
nasolabial cocking clapping
fold rotating snapping
cheeks tapping
lips
madible
u m e that can affect many other alternants: " M r . Winkle returned to the
window and sniffed aloud [overwhelmed by emotion]" (Dickens PP, X L I V ,
655);
- pitch level is perhaps the most noticeable and effective qualifier of
alternants, as happens with the versatile closed-mouth ' H ' m ' , high-pitched
for surprised delight, interest, admiration, etc., very low-pitched for con-
tempt, reproachful pondering, etc.; an 'Uh-hu!' signifying discovery with
high-rising pitch, but disappointed affirmation with low pitch; apart from
the low and high pitches of males and females, respectively, that affect
alternants as much as they do words;
- pitch interval, naturally, affects only multiple alternants, as with ' U h -
hu!": squeezed with an intonation pattern 2-2-2 it can signal total lack of
interest, while overspread with pitches 2-4 it can be the expression of dis-
covery mentioned above, or delighted acquiescence, agreement, etc.:
"'Sweetness you're a lovely dancer,' she cooed snuggling closer. /Think so
Nevada?'/ ' U m - h u m . . . ' " (Dos Passos M T , 3, II, 242);
- intonation can be spoken of with regard to alternants made up of sev-
eral elements (or a seemingly continuous single one) with a pitch contour,
such as a segmental prolonged glottalized mid-to-high back vowel overrid-
den by a 4-2 intonation pattern to signify O o o h , I see!', "hearing a wild
tenorman bawling horn across the way, going " - Y ! - Y A H ' and
hands clapping to the beat and folks yelling, ' G o , go, go!'" (Kerouac OR,
3, IV, 162);
- syllabic duration, in terms of drawling and clipping is an important
attitudinal modifier of meaning, most typical of hesitation utterances like
'Eeer ', but also as when ' H m ! ' is prolonged in suspicious pondering;
but, of course, while w e can drawl or clip a m o a n , a hiss or a blow, it cannot
be applied to, for instance, single stop sounds, such as 'Tz-tz', unless w e
decide to regard that as drawling in a very loose way, since it is not a con-
tinuous sound quality: "Hermione lifted her face and rumbled — / ' M — m -
m — I don't know [...]" (Lawrence W L , VIII, 96); as for clipping,
w e can also make some alternants very short when they consist only of, for
instance, a stop consonantal sound, such as a contemptuous "Ha!'.
Qualifiers
associated with higher pitch, even an apicoalveolar click ' T z ' or a lateral
click 'Lh!' (clucking to a horse or a dog) can vary in pitch if w e constrict or
expend the larynx and pharynx and modify resonance, constriction result-
ing in higher air pressure and muscular tension than with expansion, thus
correlating with meaning and even with facial expression (e.g., a tense click
of sudden warning with distended lips and raised eyebrows).
Kinesic qualifiers
whisper; alternants with glottal catch elicit a tense facial expression and thus
are heard and seen as indivisible units (e.g., 'Eeugh!'); those with creaki-
ness and low pitch are accompanied usually by a lowered and retracted chin
and perhaps frowning, as in an emphatic contemptuous or reproachful
' H u m p h ! ' or a drawled low-pitched disapproving O o o h ! ' ; falsetto, h o w -
ever, because of the tenseness of the larynx, m a y elicit a similar posture of
the chin and lowered brows, but more often it is accompanied by a
'lengthening' posture of the neck and trunk, yet similar tense musculature
of face and hand gestures, which appear similarly with shrillness, screech-
ing, etc.: "'Whooee!' yelled D e a n . 'Here w e go!' (Kerouak O R , V I , 111);
the rough qualities of hoarseness, growling and, naturally, snarling are
always accompanied (except perhaps w h e n hoarseness is due to voice
abuse) by equally 'rough' facial expressions, which in fact are quite
emblematic in themselves w h e n the speaker so intends them (e.g., with a
growl or a snarl), otherwise the visual part can be more subdued (as w h e n
uttering the sounds through clenched teeth); as for laxness and tenseness,
some examples of correlating visual behaviors have been given above;
perhaps the most conspicuously visual group of qualifiers is that of the vel-
opharyngeal control, as it contains m a n y physiological and emotional reac-
tions that are equally shown on the face at least in gestures which, following
the examples given for nasalized alternants, express repugnance, contempt,
sleepiness, laziness, pain, coaxing, distress, complaint, innocence, fatigue,
etc.; the same correlation of audible and visual meaning is found in
instances of lingual control (e.g., with a high-pitched strongly veralized
' U g h ! ' ) , but even more with all forms of labial control (e.g., French
drawled, laryngealized and round-lip Oooh!, a babyish affectionate ' O h ! ' , a
tense lip-distended "Eeeee!' watching the near-collision of two cars) as well
as with mandibular control (e.g., the protracted jaw of a threatening ges-
ture with or without a rough-voice alternant). Wanting to be exhaustive, w e
would include also audible kinesic qualifiers of paralanguage, such as the
rapping on a desk that m a y accompany the clicking of a tune, the palm-
punching that qualifies a tense " U u u h ! ' of frustration at seeing a bad m o v e
in a g a m e , etc.
A s for the kinesic qualifers of paralinguistic silences, as was indicated
w h e n discussing them earlier, they are typically movements that are
arrested during the silence, as with the attitudinal eyebrow-raise that m a y
accompany an emphatic enumeration of items (equivalent to visual c o m -
mas), or simply as a slight, unconscious kinesic paralanguage marker; the
also unconscious still gaping of hesitation, or, on the other hand, the inten-
ALTERNANTS 443
edge of the grove. The cattle broke and fell back quite spontaneously"
(Lawrence WL, X I V , 191), "Huuuh! the drover's voice cried, his switch
sounding on theirflanks[the cattle's]. H u u u h ! Out of that!" (Joyce U, 97),
"Jody touched him [the pony] and he crooned, 'So-o-o-, boy', in a deep
voice [...] Then he called, ' W h o a ' , and the pony stopped" (Steinbeck RP, I,
110, 112), " ' H è , hè,' they [the drovers] shouted as they drive them [bulls] to
the temple courtyard/'Hè, hè' [...] H è h è , hèhè, ho!' and the plough cuts
into the earth [...]" (Rao K, XII, 110, 112), " A s they reached the wells, the
m e n began to tug on the headropes [of the camels, in the Sudan desert],
making a sha sha sha sound, trying to couch them" (Asher FDR, 34), "The
younger boys [in the Sudan desert] also carried axes, and as they walked
m a d e clicking noises to encourage the camels" (Asher FDR, 65). A s well,
w e find in literature different ways of transcribing the imitation of animal
sounds, for instance: " G a G a Gara. Klook Klook Klook. Black Liz is our
hen/.../ G a ga ga ga Gara. Klook Klook Klook" (Joyce U, 315).
watching for a scoring, sniffing on entering a public place, clicking the ton-
gue softly as in a tune after making certain statements, smacking rounded
lips while pondering, etc.
R a n d o m alternants, like random kinesic behaviors, can betray culture
(e.g., the Anglo-American soft ' M m ' as a middle and lower-class rather
involuntary silence filler), sex (e.g., a light unilateral mouth-corner sucking
typical of w o m e n , but also of some male homosexuals), socioeducational
level and upbringing (e.g., rather unconscious and unchecked mild belch-
ing, ingressive nose-clearing, forceful sniffing with a face-twisting gesture,
or frequent but physiologically unnecessary spitting, all mainly by males,
the latter typically in cultures where male spitting is characteristic), and cer-
tainly personal sensitiveness (e.g., w h e n , independently of social upbring-
ing, an uneducated w o m a n displays quite involuntarily a subtle sniff with a
very subtle smile, or w h e n someone with a high level of academic education
has the unconscious habit of snorting once in a while).
Naturally, unconscious involuntary alternants give away also emotional
states or momentary reactions, as paralinguistic externalizers. W e display
them in different types of situations, as w e do kinesic externalizers, but
most of the interactive visual behaviors are m u c h more noticeable and
easier to remember than subtle utterances. They are typically triggered by
various forms of social anxiety, particularly w h e n facing people on entering
public places (e.g., the throat-clearing of some students walking into a
classroom, the click-and-audible inhalations prior to introductions at social
events), but also, as mentioned above, by emotions, as with the clicks, his-
ses, ' H m ' s ' , sniffs and blows while impatiently checking an airport depar-
ture board, the puffing of rage, the coughing of nervousness and tension,
sighs of fear, etc. A t any rate, they merit an especial study for their socio-
psychological significance, first of all, but also in their possible clinical
aspects as truly symptomatic. In fact, our awareness of them as simple coin-
teractants or as professionals (in psychiatry, general medicine and nursing,
counselling, law enforcement, or teaching) should only allow us, as with
other nonverbal behaviors, to understand others better and, therefore,
relate better to them.
A s a basic inventory which is certain to remind the reader of other
similar alternants and situations (some characteristic of specific language or
culture areas), this list contains also the ones mentioned by Krout, using
mostly ordinary labels and descriptions rather than phonetic ones: air suck-
ing, belching, blowing, blowing into fist, blowing into cupped hands, blow-
448 PARALANGUAGE
7.10 Conclusion
Notes
1. a. — V o u s m'aimez!...dit-elle.
b. /.../ je voulais vous prier ce matin de.../ — D e vous acheter cela? dit Grandet en
l'Interrompent.
Inbaum, Fred. E . , John E . Reid, Joseph P. Buckley. 1986. Criminal Interrogation and
Confession. Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins.
Izard, Carroll E . 1979. Emotions in Personality and Psychotherapy. N e w York: Plenum.
Jesperson, Otto. 1933. Essentials of English Grammar. London: George Allen &
Unwin.
Johnson, Harold G . , Paul E k m a n and Wallace Friesen. 1975. Communicative Body
Movements: American Emblems. Semiotica. 15 (4), 335-53; repr. in Nonverbal
Communication, Interaction, and Gesture, ed. by A . Kendon. 1981. T h e
Hague: Mouton.
Kaplan, H . M . 1960. Anatomy and Physiology of Speech. N e w York: McGraw-Hill.
Kendon, A d a m . 1972. Birdwhistell's Kinesics and Context (Review). American Journal
of Psychology 85 (3), 441-45.
. (ed). 1981. Nonverbal Communication, Interaction, and Gesture. The Hague:
Mouton.
Kendon, A d a m and J. E x . 1969. A Notation for Facial Postures and Bodily Positions. In
M . Argyle, Social Interaction. 123-26. London: Methuen.
Kendon, A d a m , Richard Harris and Mary R . Key (eds.). 1975. The Organization of
Behavior in Face-to-Face Interaction. The Hague: Mouton.
Key, Mary R . 1974. The Relationship of Verbal and Nonverbal Communication. In
Proceedings of the Eleventh International Congress of Linguists, ed. by L . Heilman.
103-10. Bologna: Societá Editrici II Mulino.
. 1975a. Paralanguage and Kinesics. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press.
. 1975b. Male/Female Language. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press.
. 1986. Paralanguage. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Semiotics, ed. by T . A .
Sebeok. Vol. II, 668-70.
. 1987. Paralinguistic Expressions of Emotion and Socio-Nonverbal Behaviors.
Cuaderni di semantica. 7 (1), 24-31.
Knapp, Mark L . and Judith Hall. 1992. Essentials of Nonverbal Communication. N e w
York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Krout, M . H . 1935. Autistic Gestures. Psychological Monographs. 46, 1-126.
La Barre, Weston. 1964. Paralinguistics, Kinesics, and Cultural Anthropology. In
Approaches to Semiotics: Cultural Anthropology, Education, Linguistics, Psychiatry,
Psychology, ed. by T . A . Sebeok, A . Hayes, M . Bateson. 198-220. The Hague:
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172-80. Belmont: Wadsworth.
Ladefoged, Peter. 1975. A Course in Phonetics. N e w York: Harcourt, Brace
Jovanovitch.
Laver, John. 1968. Voice Quality and Indexical Information. British Journal of Disor-
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. 1972. Voice Quality and Indexical Information. In Communication in Face-to-
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WAVW.
Anand, Mulk Raj. 1972. Coolie (New Delhi: Orient Paperbacks) 1972 C .
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Augustine, St. 397-401. Confessions (New York: Doubleday, Image Books, 1960).
Balzac, Honoré de. 1833. Eugénie Grandet (Paris: Garnier, 1965) EG.
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Brenan, Gerald. 1965. The Face of Spain (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1965) FS.
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Cather, Willa. 1918. My Antonia (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1954) MA.
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1894. The Men in the Storm {Stephen Crane: Stories and Tales. N e w York: Vin-
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464 PARALANGUAGE
Campbell, J . H . 458
Bacall, L . 215 Catford, J.C. 1, 2 , 4 , 5, 55, 57, 59, 60,
Balzac, H . de 405, 434, 463 66, 71, 72, 76, 83, 87, 92, 93, 95, 107,
Barbachano, C.J. 458 380 207, 208, 210, 454
Barker, L . 6, 457 Cather, W . 336, 463
Bateson, M . C . 1, 456, 457, 458, 460 Cela, C.J. 343, 463
Bailey, F . L . 363, 453 Cervantes, M . de 183, 256, 336, 336,
Bell, A . M . 1, 453 353, 463
Bellow, G . 289, 358, 463 Chevalier, M . 209
Benthall, J. 454 Chiba, T . 1, 454
Bergson, H . 250, 453 Christie, A . 328, 463
Bible, 205, 225, 278, 290, 309, 310, 315, Cole, J. 454
326, 327, 328, 330, 366 Collet, P . 457
Birdwhistell, R . L . 1, 122, 132, 149, 168, Cooper, G . 196, 454
258, 294, 350, 453, 457 Cooper, M . 188, 453
Bloom, 301 Cranach, M . von 455
Bloomer, H . H . 99, 103, 111, 453 Crane, S. 13, 26, 245, 321, 325, 326,
Blurton Jones, N . G . 250, 270, 284, 453 327, 329, 336, 337, 402.'463
Bouissac, P . 459 Crystal, D . 1, 3, 4 , 5,131,168,191,194,
B o w e n , D . J . 379, 461 454
470 N A M E INDEX
H D
Hass, H . 250, 263, 274 Danehy, J.J. 1,2, 173,458
Hall, E . T . 1, 180, 455 Darby, J.K. 456
Hall. J. 6 Davitz, J.R. 181, 186,454
Hanson, R . 5, 101, 212 Davitz, L.J. 181, 186, 454
Hardy, T . 45, 253, 257, 295, 334, 339, Darwin, 144, 250, 259, 263
354, 405, 464 Dickens, 30, 121, 205, 212, 229, 230,
Harper, R . G . 6, 455 320, 324, 326, 339, 353, 354, 355, 358,
Harriman, E . 457 379, 389, 399, 402, 403, 404, 405, 437,
Harris, R . 3, 456, 457, 458 439, 445, 463-464
Hawthorne, N . 338, 464 Donatus 387
Hayes, A . S . 1,456,458,460 Dos Passos, J. 190, 214, 234, 352, 235,
Heffner,R-M. S. 195 289, 292, 320, 325, 355, 356, 357, 402,
Helbo, A . 459 433, 437, 441, 464
Helfrich, H . 6, 316, 455 Drayton, M . 242
Heller, J. 262, 404, 438, 464 Dreiser, T . 35, 69, 73, 357, 403, 404,
Hepler, H . W . 458 433, 434, 438, 440, 463
Herzfeld, M . 459
Heukelen, J.F. 285, 309, 455 E
Hewes, G . 380, 455 Eibl-Eibesfeldt, I. 144, 250, 277, 454
Hill, A . E . 1, 379, 455, 461 Efron, D . 24, 147, 454
Hinde, R . 452, 457, 461 Ekman, P. 6, 24, 62, 114, 128, 129, 144,
Hockett, C . F . 1, 2, 140, 173, 455, 457, 147, 275, 293, 454, 455, 456, 460
458 Eliot, G . 194, 445, 463
Hoffer, B . L . 455, 455 Ex, J. 456
Hollien, H . 211, 455, 459
Hollien, P. 459 F
Holz-Mänttäri, J. 459 Faulkner, W . 405, 434, 464
Honikman, B . 101, 455 Feurstein, R . 143, 455
Hoof, J . A . R . A . M . 250, 455 Fitzgerald, F.S. 320, 403, 404, 464
Husband, F . A . 455 Foppa, K . 455
Husband, T.F. 455 Forster, E . M . 369, 399, 403, 464
Hutcheson, S. 453, 456 Frazer, J. 204
Huxley, A . 231, 254, 255, 264, 265, 293, Friesen, W . C . 24, 62, 128, 129, 147,
338, 357, 370, 404, 432, 464 455, 456
Hymes, D . 461 Fry, D . B . 454, 455
I G
Inbaum, F . E . 314, 455 Galdós, B . P . 338, 464
Ízard, C . E . 250, 265, 456, 460 Garrido Gallardo, M . A . 459
Gide,A. 433, 464
J Gielgud, J. 301
James, H . 340, 464 Giles, H . 455, 460
Jespersen, O . 148, 456 Goodall, J. van Lawick 250, 316, 457
Johnson, H . 128, 456 Greene,G. 340, 464
N A M E INDEX 471
Joyce, J. 34, 51, 209, 254, 259, 312, 325, Malandro, L . 6, 457
336, 346, 354, 359, 370, 372, 403, 433, Malmberg, B . 50, 55, 454, 457, 461
446, 446, 464 Manahan, A . 209
Marsh, P . 457
Mattarazzo, J. 6, 455
Kajiyama, M . 1, 454 M a u g h a m , S. 259, 335, 338, 464 340,
Kaplan, H . M . 1, 456 343, 353
Kendon, A . 3, 127, 168, 258, 386, 455, McBride, G . 381, 457
456, 457, 458 M c C o r m a c k , W . 3, 453, 454, 457
Kerouak, J. 328, 328, 399, 437, 443, 464 M c Q u o w n , N . 1, 2, 168, 457
Key, M . R . 3, 5, 66, 180, 204, 209, 210, Melville, H . 329, 464
246, 316, 325, 346, 353, 363, 364, 369, Mencken, H . L . 196, 457
370, 372, 379, 381, 456, 457, 458 Moore, G . P . 177, 206, 207, 211, 216,
Knapp, M . L . 6, 456 219, 224, 457
Koerner, K . 5 Morreal, 250, 457
Krout, M . H . 363, 446, 456 Morris, D . 5, 457
Krescheck, J. 457 Morsbach, H . 284, 426, 428, 457
L Ν
La Barre, W . 363, 366, 456 Nicolosi, L . 60, 186, 457
Ladefoged, P . 66, 95, 204, 456 Nord, . 459
Lanyon, W . E . 455 Norris, F. 321, 336, 433, 465
Laughton, C . 115
Laurence, M . 32, 214, 215, 217, 226,
281, 341, 355, 390, 464 O'Connor, J.D. 53, 96, 181, 184, 188,
Laver, J. 5, 48, 55, 59, 60, 61, 62, 64, 457
77, 92, 101, 102, 106, 177, 184, 203, Olivier, L . 115
204, 208, 210, 211, 212, 213, 215, 216, O'Neill, E . 100, 212, 280, 325, 335, 337,
217, 220, 242, 453, 456 343, 364, 402, 465
Lawick-Goodall, J. 250, 316, 457 O'Shaughnessy, M . 457
Lawrence, D . H . 178, 190, 206, 213, Oshinksy, J.S. 186, 460
242, 275, 277, 336, 393 340, 389, 380, Ostwald, P . 3, 30, 3, 250, 284,, 297, 316,
399, 403, 404, 405, 437, 438, 439, 446, 350, 457
464
Leach, E . 309, 310, 457 Ρ
Leavis, F . 457 Park, R . E . 460
Lepenis, W . 455 Partridge, E . 458
Lewis, S. 337, 348, 354, 357, 399, 404, Pei, M . 1, 458,
464 Peng, F . C . C . 459
Lieberman, P . 3, 5, 381, 457 Pepys, S. 362
Löfgren, . 302, 457 Pérez Galdós, . see Galdós
Perkins, W . H . 60, 187, 203, 211, 213,
M 216, 458
MacCarthy, P . A . D . 454, 455 Pike, K . L . 1, 3, 52, 58, 60, 61, 69, 72,
M a l a m u d , B . 335, 464 88, 92, 94, 97, 426, 458
472 N A M E INDEX
A secondary 113
air, nonpulmonic 52 velic 106-108
alternants 379-449 articulatory control 230-232
animall calling 443-446 articulatory disorders 231-232
classification 416-435 articulatory tension control 233
comics, in 407-415
communicative status 446-448
definition 382 basic triple structure 121-174
iconicity 385-386 in conversation 161-162
identified and unidentified 389-403 in interaction 1590
inconsistency of written forms 403- in reduced interaction 163-164
406 ontogenetic and social develop-
labels, ambiguous 403-406 ment 143-147
nature and research interest 379- the ten realizations of 150-153
389 belch timbre 52
paralinguistic qualifiers 435-441 belching 366-370
phonetic classification 420-431 as paralanguage 366-367
semantic blends 386-387 configuration 367-368
silent 431-435 physiological and social 368-370
soundgraphs 407-415 Bible 310, 326, 330
anatomy of speech 49 blacks, Afro-American 185, 210
Arab cultures 180, 308-309, 369 Brazil 419
articulations breathing 50-51
assisted labial and labiofacial 85-86 abnormal 51
assisted narial 109 breathing control 202-203
dental 71-72 'Bronx cheer' 96
in m o v e m e n t 16
interbodily 45-46
internal and external 46-47 Californian Indians 204
labial 87-88 Canada 202
lingual 92-99 China 419
linguistic and paralinguistic 71 Chinese 184, 108, 310
narial 108-109 cleft-palate 69-70, 110
pharyngeal 66-67 clipping 192-194
474 SUBJECT INDEX