CHAPTER X
MELODIOUS READING

What charm and delight surround a sweet, melodious voice, whether of woman or man. Who is there that does not recall such a voice and its influence upon him? Who does not have clinging memories of the voice of the mother, crooning over her babe, or singing a sweet lullaby as it lay at her breast; of a father, softening its strong and resonant power to soothe the restlessness of his little one who was sick; of the blushing maiden, who consciously or unconsciously had learned the immeasurably greater power exercised over her fellows, whether of her own or the opposite sex, by a soft, pure, well-controlled voice, rather than the high-pitched, tense, loud and harsh chatter of her associates. The calm, quiet, soft and low-pitched, though firm, voice of the teacher, the parent, the employer, the salesman, the speaker, the statesman, is far more effective, far more likely to attain its end than the harsh, raucous, loud, too emphatic and high-pitched voice of the uncontrolled, untaught, or careless speaker. And to listen to a reader, be he preacher, lawyer, judge, or orator, reading in public to a large audience, or for the pleasure and instruction of his own loved ones, or a few chosen friends, whose voice is melodious in every cadence, whose every intonation is musical and in good taste, what joy such a reader is able to bestow. How memory thrills as we recall a few readers of this type. Why should they be so few? Why should there be so many harsh, nasal, raucous, high-pitched, unmelodious voices? The reason is found mainly in lack of training, lack of a little thought, indifference to the possession of the finer gifts of life. For every boy and girl has it in his or her power, by the exercise of a little care, a little thought, a little self-restraint, a little time spent in discipline to produce the sweet and charming voice, with clean-cut, distinct, pleasing enunciation and pronunciation that will afford joy during the whole of a long life.

One’s own ear will tell whether his voice is properly pitched, pleasing, melodious, or the opposite. A few minutes spent in speech daily before a looking-glass will forever fix the habit of making the face pleasing; and an hour a day for a month will fix perfect habits of pronunciation and enunciation that will remain through life. When these arts are fixed, then a few hours’ study of the thought of the author and the inflections and modulations of the voice necessary to represent, to convey to the ear of the listener, the full power of that thought, and the reader has equipped himself, herself, to give joy to countless thousands. Is it not worth while to spend a few hours to gain such power?

Exercises in Inflection

By inflection is meant the glide of the voice within a word to a higher or a lower pitch. This glide may be quick and short, or long and slow. It may be a rising or a falling glide, or both. The value of inflection rests in its power to make what is said more emphatic, to aid in clear enunciation, to aid in overcoming monotony. On all emphasized words we have an intensified inflection. This is illustrated in Portia’s speech in “The Merchant of Venice.” In studying this excerpt we discover that all the emphasized words have a pronounced inflection. In the first group of words, “If to do were as easy as to know what were good to do,” we find the most intensified inflection is upon the word “know” because this is the most emphatic word of the group. This reveals that inflection is one of the most vital means of emphasis.

In regard to inflection as an aid to clear enunciation, we find that inflection occurs upon the accented syllable of a long word, and if due attention is given to the syllable upon which the accent falls, the word will receive a more perfect utterance. For instance, we can readily see in the following words, which are often mispronounced, the important part that inflection plays in the proper pronunciation of them:

(For the correct pronunciations see Webster’s New International Dictionary.)

We readily see that the proper use of inflection cannot help but give variety and contrast to our speech, and this aids immeasurably in overcoming the persistent use of monotones.