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II.
Words.

A SPOKEN WORD is one or more oral elements used to express an idea.

A WRITTEN WORD is one or more letters used as the sign of an idea.

Words are divided into primitive, derivative, simple and compound.

Primitive,

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A PRIMITIVE WORD is not derived from any other word, but is a root from which other words spring; as fix, pain.

A DERIVATIVE WORD is formed from a primitive by placing a syllable before it called a prefix, or by adding a syllable to it, called an affix; as in prefix, painful.

A SIMPLE WORD is one that cannot be divided without destroying the sense; as ink, book.

A COMPOUND WORD is formed of two or more words; as ink-stand, book-binder.

A PHRASE is a combination of words not expressing an entire proposition, but performing a distinct office in the structure of a sentence or of another phrase; as, He sat in his tent. He came in the carriage of a friend. A SENTENCE is a combination of words which asserts an entire proposition; as,

Reading is an important study.

God said, Let there be light!

Arithmetic is the science of numbers.

III ACCENT.

ACCENT is a stress of voice laid on one or more syllables of a word.

IN LONG WORDS, containing many syllables, two syllables are spoken with greater force than the others. Hence we have two accents, viz: the PRIMARY, and the SECONDARY, the former being stronger than the latter.

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PRIMARY ACCENT is marked thus ('); as, man'ly, boy' ish, hap' py.

SECONDARY ACCENT is marked thus (1), more lightly; as, con sti tu' tion, fun' da ment' al.

VERY LONG WORDS sometimes have a third accent; as, in' ter com mu ni ca' tion.

THE MEANING of many words having the same form, is determined by accent.

Con' jure, to practice enchantments.

Con jure', to entreat.

Pres' ent, a gift.

Pre sent', to give.
August, a month.
Au gust', grand.

CHANGED BY CONTRAST. The accent of words is often

changed by contrast; as,

I said in' crease, not de' crease.
He was repelled, not compelled.

EXPRESSION.

Expression is the utterance of written thoughts, feelings and sentiments, in such a manner as to convey them truly and impressively to the hearer.

The general divisions of Expression are, EMPHASIS, INFLECTION, PAUSE, and MODULATION.

Expression.

Emphasis,

Inflection,

Pause,

Modulation.

Under the head of ORTHOËPY, we have learned the oral elements of the language, the manner of their production by the voice and the organs of speech, the union of the elements to form syllables, the proper accent of the syllables, and the linking of them together to form words.

We are now to consider, under the head of Expression, the second and most important part of reading, that which treats of the adaptation of words, so formed and fashioned, to the many and wonderful uses of speech.

The vocal management of words according to the rules of EMPHASIS, INFLECTION, PAUSE, and MODULATION, gives life, warmth, coloring and effect to written composition.

I. EMPHASIS.

Emphasis is a force of voice laid upon some word or words, to intensify their meaning.

EMPHASIS is divided into ABSOLUTE AND RELATIVE.

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ABSOLUTE EMPHASIS is the force of voice laid upon a word or words, to show the importance of the idea expressed by it or them; as,

He was found guilty of stealing.

And was it, then, a dream?

Give me the book," said the dying Christian. "What book?" asked his friends. "What book!" he exclaimed, "There is but one book, the BIBLE!"

Life is real; life is earnest;

And the grave is not its goal.

RELATIVE EMPHASIS is a force of voice laid upon some word or words, to compare and contrast the idea expressed by it or them, with that expressed by some other word or words; as,

The boy is the father of the man.

Bark is a good dog, but Bite is a better one.

He not only talked Christianity, but acted it.
Aim to be, and not to seem.

EMPHATIC WORDS are often denoted by being printed in italics; those more emphatic in SMALL CAPITALS; and those still more so, in LARGE CAPITALS.

Suppose, for example, that the preceptor observes that William is idle.

He does not hear:

And again he calls,

He will say,

"William!"

"WILLIAM!"

"WILLIAM!"

EMPHASIS does not mean mere loudness of tone.

On

the contrary, the volume of the voice is often not great enough to express the depth and strength of our feelings, and the emphatic words are spoken with a hiss or a husky whisper; as,

I hate him! I HATE him! I HATE him!

And whispered with white lips, the foe! they come!

THEY COME!

A RIGHT USE of emphasis is the greatest art of good reading. The Emphasis can be moved so as to change the entire meaning of a sentence; as,

No.

Did you come on the cars to-day?
Did you come on the cars to day? No; John came.
Did you come on the cars to-day? No; I came on

the boat.

Did you come on the cars to-day? No; I came yesterday.

II. INFLECTION.

Inflection is the bend or slide of the voice, used in reading and speaking.

There are three inflections: The RISING INFLECTION, the FALLING INFLECTION and the CIRCUMFLEX.

Inflection.

Rising,

Falling,

Circumflex.

THE RISING INFLECTION is the upward slide of the voice; as,

Has John come

home

?

THE FALLING INFLECTION is the downward slide of the voice; as,

Who knows why John has not come

home?

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