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Better English Pronunciation
This is the second edition of a highly successful and widely-used text on pronunciation. It provides a systematic and thorough introduction to the pronunciation of English to help intermediate and more advanced students improve their production of the spoken language.
After a short introduction to pronunciation problems the author explians how the speech organs work; he then deals with each sound separately before dealing with words in combination, rhythm-patterns and intonation. Practice material is given at intervals throughout the book. The particular difficulties of the speakers of certain other languages are noted, and remedial exercises provided. A recording of all the practice material in the book is available on cassettes.
"...can quite safely be said to be the most effective [book] ever written to help the ordinary learner to improve his pronunciation.'
J.Windsor Lewis in The Times Educational Supplement
The complete course consists of:
Book
Set of 2 cassettes
After a short introduction to pronunciation problems the author explians how the speech organs work; he then deals with each sound separately before dealing with words in combination, rhythm-patterns and intonation. Practice material is given at intervals throughout the book. The particular difficulties of the speakers of certain other languages are noted, and remedial exercises provided. A recording of all the practice material in the book is available on cassettes.
"...can quite safely be said to be the most effective [book] ever written to help the ordinary learner to improve his pronunciation.'
J.Windsor Lewis in The Times Educational Supplement
The complete course consists of:
Book
Set of 2 cassettes
162 pages, Paperback
First published October 23, 1967
About the author
J.D. O'Connor
20 books17 followersPhonetics is a subject that if poorly taught can seem austere and difficult. ‘Doc’ O’Connor, who has died of pneumonia aged 78, was a phonetician whose lectures were witty and effortlessly informative, and whose writing was elegant and readable. Generations of students continue to be grateful to his textbooks - particularly his Penguin Phonetics and, for students of English as a second language, his Better English Pronunciation.
He grew up in Harrogate, where his father was at one time mayor, and came to University College London in 1937 to read French. Having gained a First, he joined the Royal Armoured Corps, rising by the end of the war to the rank of Major. But he had made such an impression on those who taught him French phonetics that in 1945 Daniel Jones, the founder and head of the Department of Phonetics at UCL, succeeded in arranging his early demobilization and appointed him to the teaching staff.
Where Jones was shy and austere, O’Connor and his contemporaries (of whom the most notable was A.C.Gimson) formed a group of colleagues very much at ease with one another and with their students. They set the tone for much of British phonetics in the period 1950-1980, deftly leavening Jones’s magisterial formulations with influences from the structuralist linguistics that was then all the rage in the United States. (None of them had much time, though, for the Chomskyan revolution that displaced it.)
Doc's lasting scholarly contribution is likely to be in the study of English intonation. This is a topic always in danger of being rendered seriously boring by experimental phoneticians who take precise measurements of the fundamental frequency of the voice but fail to extract insightful linguistic generalizations from their findings. Descriptions of this kind also offer nothing for the student of English as a foreign language (EFL) to latch onto. Many people in the 50’s were struggling towards a linguistic codification of English intonation, but it was Doc - with his colleague Gordon Arnold - who first succeeded in formulating a description that made sense to the language learner while remaining substantially true to the facts. No less importantly, they devised a notation system that was elegantly iconic and concise. Their Intonation of Colloquial English (1961) has now scandalously been allowed to go out of print (except in a Japanese adaptation); but no better textbook has been published that could supersede it.
Doc remained on the phonetics staff at UCL throughout the rest of his career, smartly accepting early retirement in 1980 in order (it was generally believed) to avoid having to become Head of Department. For the rest of his life he devoted himself principally to the Ickenham Cricket Club, where at one time or another he filled every post from washer-up to President.
(http://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/wells/...)
For his publications and more :
http://www.yek.me.uk/docobit.html
He grew up in Harrogate, where his father was at one time mayor, and came to University College London in 1937 to read French. Having gained a First, he joined the Royal Armoured Corps, rising by the end of the war to the rank of Major. But he had made such an impression on those who taught him French phonetics that in 1945 Daniel Jones, the founder and head of the Department of Phonetics at UCL, succeeded in arranging his early demobilization and appointed him to the teaching staff.
Where Jones was shy and austere, O’Connor and his contemporaries (of whom the most notable was A.C.Gimson) formed a group of colleagues very much at ease with one another and with their students. They set the tone for much of British phonetics in the period 1950-1980, deftly leavening Jones’s magisterial formulations with influences from the structuralist linguistics that was then all the rage in the United States. (None of them had much time, though, for the Chomskyan revolution that displaced it.)
Doc's lasting scholarly contribution is likely to be in the study of English intonation. This is a topic always in danger of being rendered seriously boring by experimental phoneticians who take precise measurements of the fundamental frequency of the voice but fail to extract insightful linguistic generalizations from their findings. Descriptions of this kind also offer nothing for the student of English as a foreign language (EFL) to latch onto. Many people in the 50’s were struggling towards a linguistic codification of English intonation, but it was Doc - with his colleague Gordon Arnold - who first succeeded in formulating a description that made sense to the language learner while remaining substantially true to the facts. No less importantly, they devised a notation system that was elegantly iconic and concise. Their Intonation of Colloquial English (1961) has now scandalously been allowed to go out of print (except in a Japanese adaptation); but no better textbook has been published that could supersede it.
Doc remained on the phonetics staff at UCL throughout the rest of his career, smartly accepting early retirement in 1980 in order (it was generally believed) to avoid having to become Head of Department. For the rest of his life he devoted himself principally to the Ickenham Cricket Club, where at one time or another he filled every post from washer-up to President.
(http://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/wells/...)
For his publications and more :
http://www.yek.me.uk/docobit.html
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
June 22, 2011
This is the book that helped me the most in getting ahead in phonology. I just love it :)
December 15, 2011
It's a very comprehensive resource, especially, for beginners. I gave it a five-star even though it focuses on British accent. However, it's a must read book for any one wants to improve his pronunciation in English --it is the first step towards learning any accent or dialect in English. Also, don't forget to ask for the two cassettes that come with it --they are very important to have while practicing pronunciation.
February 9, 2014
Highly recommended!
It was really helpful.
It was really helpful.
January 15, 2024
This was a set text on my university course, it's a great introduction for phonetics and phonology.
I was astonished by the amount of videos on YouTube that are dedicated for phonetics and phonology, they were such a great help for getting a well rounded understanding for the material.
I don't think that just by depending on this book you can acquire better pronunciation, it is best acquired by listening and imitating native speakers, and the writer himself highlighted their importance in having a better pronunciation.
If you're a native speaker and a language nerd, you can read this book or you can just watch videos on YouTube on the topic .
You will get to know the way in which sounds are produced and the nuances of pronunciation , for example you will be aware of the glottal stop and syllabic consonants which are things that you naturally do but not aware of on a conscious level
a quick side note here, you will feel so weird when speaking as you become aware of every movement your tongue makes, it's so fun 🤪😂
I was astonished by the amount of videos on YouTube that are dedicated for phonetics and phonology, they were such a great help for getting a well rounded understanding for the material.
I don't think that just by depending on this book you can acquire better pronunciation, it is best acquired by listening and imitating native speakers, and the writer himself highlighted their importance in having a better pronunciation.
If you're a native speaker and a language nerd, you can read this book or you can just watch videos on YouTube on the topic .
You will get to know the way in which sounds are produced and the nuances of pronunciation , for example you will be aware of the glottal stop and syllabic consonants which are things that you naturally do but not aware of on a conscious level
a quick side note here, you will feel so weird when speaking as you become aware of every movement your tongue makes, it's so fun 🤪😂
May 2, 2020
One of the most valuable books
June 20, 2020
Very good book, I highly recommend it.
You can also study this book through this course on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
You can also study this book through this course on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list...
June 30, 2020
everything
September 22, 2020
Very comprehensive and informative book!
PS: You can study this book with this amazing YouTube course: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMAU...
PS: You can study this book with this amazing YouTube course: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMAU...
June 13, 2021
Excellent pronunciation exercise book for intermediate English learner.
August 21, 2021
Highly recommended by my lecturer and I enjoyed reading and practicing this book.
September 24, 2015
The most comprehensive book on phonetics. I think it deals with most of the pronunciation areas anyone needs to work on. It book starts with sound production, then moves to individual sounds (vowels and consonants), and finally the features of connected speech). I've read different books to help me improve my pronunciation, but I found it most helpful and effective as an Arabic native speaker. This is because it tackles most of the L1 interference problems that we face while learning English. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to improve his/her pronunciation.
January 8, 2013
It has been the most useful book about British English pronounciation I've ever read
March 9, 2013
Greatest simple phonological book on English (RP)
January 12, 2014
Amazing book
Read
January 20, 2014hi
June 6, 2014
I still know how to transcribe words into IPA, and I owe it all to this wonderful textbook.
Want to Read
November 29, 2018I went it
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews