THE PERCEPTION OF ENGLISH LENIS PLOSIVE CONSONANTS WORD-FINALLY AND WORD-INITIALLY BY THE POLES
ARKADIUSZ ROJCZYK
The study endeavours to probe into the perception of English lenis plosive conso
nants word-initially and word-finally by the Poles without any experience with Eng
lish either in form of formal classroom teaching or contacts with native speakers.
It proceeds from a concise contrastive articulatory and acoustic juxtaposition of Polish
and English plosives, grouped into respective phenomena, to the analysis of research
data. The research is expected to shed some light upon efficiency of the perception
of lenis plosives by the Poles, who utilise the voiced - voiceless rather than fortis -
lenis distinction as a functional contrast. Then, more detailed questions are posed
concerning the potential influence of neighbouring sounds, such as vowels of front
or back quality, on the perception. Finally, certain observed tendencies and regular
ities are indicated.