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Meeting at night
Task C - our comments
A tap at the pane, a quick sharp scratch
And the blue spurt of a lighted match, |
/ə tæp ət ðə
peɪn, ə kwɪk ʃɑ:p skrætʃ
ən ðə blu: spɜ:t əv ə
laɪtɪd mæʧ/ |
There are three different sounds referred to in these lines,
all of which appear to be represented onomatopoeically:
The knock on the pane of glass is indicated by 'tap', which
is onomatopoeic of (i) the brevity of the noise involved because it consists
of three short sounds (two stops and a short vowel) and (ii) the quietness
of the noise because both stop consonants are voiceless. This onomatopoeia
helps us to feel better the secretive nature of the action. The next noise
is that of the woman striking the match on the abrasive material on the
side of the matchbox. 'Quick' is sound symbolic of the haste with which
the action is performed as it consists entirely of short consonants and
a short vowel. The consonants in 'scratch' are onomatopoeic of the noise
the match makes on the abrasive material. They are all voiceless, suggesting
a soft sound, and the combination of fricative and stop consonants seen
in the initial cluster and the final affricate represent the sharp onset
and following longer sound of the match being scraped along the side of
the box. The word 'spurt' refers to the noise made as the phosphor in
the head of the match ignites (this was before the days of the safety
match, and earlier matches ignited more noisily than today's matches).
The combination of fricative and stops (which we have already seen in
'scratch', and the long vowel in 'spurt' can be seen to be onomatopoeic
of the noise the match would make.
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