Newsgroups: alt.usage.english,sci.lang
Path: cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!bb3.andrew.cmu.edu!nntp.sei.cmu.edu!news.cis.ohio-state.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!news.sgi.com!news.msfc.nasa.gov!newsfeed.internetmci.com!newsreader.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!news-ana-7.sprintlink.net!GRAYLADY!dmn1-39.usa1.com!user
From: rdd@usa1.com (Aaron J. Dinkin)
Subject: Re: Vowels (was Chain Shift)
Message-ID: <rdd-2607961301000001@dmn1-39.usa1.com>
Date: Fri, 26 Jul 1996 13:01:00 -0500
References: <4suk93$pob@carrera.intergate.bc.ca> <4t0be8$ls8@newstand.syr.edu> <4t0usc$kaa@thighmaster.admin.lsa.umich.edu> <1996Jul23.094214.1@ahecas> <4t7na2$gn1@thighmaster.admin.lsa.umich.edu> <rdd-2507961445260001@dmn1-58.usa1.com> <4t9s26$daf@cronkite.polaristel.net>
Lines: 42

In article <4t9s26$daf@cronkite.polaristel.net>, Odegard@ptel.net (Mark
Odegard) wrote:

> Posted to alt.usage.english & e-mailed.
> On Thu, 25 Jul 1996 14:45:26 -0500 rdd@usa1.com (Aaron J.
> Dinkin) wrote:
> 
> 
> >I think I'm going to write a logic puzzle about three women named Lara,
> >Laura, and Lora, each of whom have different dialects - so, for example,
> >when Lara addresses Laura, Laura thinks she's addressing Lora because of
> >the pronunciation differences. The object would be to determine which is
> >which based on their conversation.
> 
> My mother's name is Laura. The three are different, at least
> to me, but this may be eye-spelling affecting pronunciation
> under the influence of her name. 
> 
> Lara: Law-ruh
> Laura: Lore-uh
> Lora: Low-ruh

Interesting. I'd expect most people to have the same vowel in "Laura" as
they do in "law" - be that /A/ or /O/ - and the same vowel in "Lora" as
they have in "lore" - be it /O/ or /o/. With you, though, this is
evidently not the case. Perhaps if you'd used the IPA I'd be able to make
more sense of this. Do you pronounce "caught" and "cot" as homophones?
Does your mother?

> Perhaps the difference is just in stress, but I think the
> vowel is *different*.
> 
> "Lore" has what I (no doubt incorrectly) call my dark-R.
> Under the influence of the vowel, /O/, the tongue is pulled
> back and partially obstructs the air passage. The R in
> "Lara" (as Law-rah) is almost non-rhotic.

Huh? Non-rhotic speakers retain the /r/ between vowels. I assume, though,
that by <Law-rah> you mean /A/, and not /O/.

-Aaron J. Dinkin
Dr. Whom

