Watch the website posted (or another) on animal sounds in different languages. Considering our first language phonological system constrains how we hear sounds such as these, how might our phonological system influence the interpretation of other types of sounds? Can you envision this influence as having positive and/or negative effects on our daily lives?
Now, imagine when people testify in court about a suspect’s voice or their accent, especially when they attribute those language features to a particular race or socio-economic status or, even, a personality? What might be the consequence of this influence?
Do you have experience attempting to say something in another language and your first language phonology got in the way? Were you able to master the sound? If so, how?
Suggested Readings
Calabrese, A., & Wetzels, L. (2009). Loan Phonology. John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Davenport, M., & Hannahs, S. J. (2020). Introducing Phonetics and Phonology. Routledge.
Gussenhoven, C., & Jacobs, H. (2017). Understanding Phonology. Routledge.