Logical and emphatic accent in talk show discussions: gender-specific strategies of sentence accentuation in emphatic spoken German
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46299/j.isjel.20250406.05Keywords:
sentence stress, emphasis, prosody, gender, talk show, spoken German, emphatic spoken German, logical vs. emphatic sentence stressAbstract
The present study investigates logical and emphatic sentence stress in talk show discussions, with a particular focus on gender-specific accentuation strategies in emphatic spoken German. The aim is to analyze the role of sentence stress in structuring meaning, highlighting communicative focus, and conveying emotional nuances. The empirical analysis is based on the television program phoenix runde: Aufstieg der Rechtspopulisten -Woher kommt der Zuspruch? from June 12, 2024. Using the analysis software Praat, prosodic parameters such as pitch, intensity, and duration of stresses were examined in detail. The results reveal significant differences in accentuation between male and female speakers: men tend to employ logical, quantitative accentuation through function-word and intensifying stresses, whereas women use expressive and contrastive stresses to signal emotional emphasis and strategic differentiation. These findings provide avenues for further research on prosodic strategies in politically and emotionally charged spoken communication.
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