Page:A Study of Fairy Tales.djvu/128

104 effect created by the use of the vowels and consonants in The Spider and the Flea has already been referred to under "Setting." The open vowels of "Ŏn, little Drumikin! Tum-pä, turn-t oo !" help to convey the impression of lightsome gaiety in Lambikin. The effect of power displayed by "Then I'll huff and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in," is made largely by the sound of the consonants ff and the n in the concluding in, the force of the rough u of huff and puff, and the prolonged o in blōw. The effect of walking is produced by the p of "Trip, trap," and of varied walking by the change of vowel from ĭ to ă. The action of "I have come to gobble you up," is emphasized and made realistic by the bb of gobble and the p of up. Attention to the power of phonics to contribute to the emotional force and to the strength of meaning in the tale, will reveal to the story-teller many new beauties.

(2) Exercises in breathing. Training in breathing includes exercises to secure the regulation of proper breathing during speech and to point out the relation between breathing and voice expression. The correct use of the voice includes also ability to place tone.—Find out your natural tone and tell the story in that tone.—Many of the effects of the voice need to be dealt with from the inside, not externally. The use of the pause in story-telling is one of the subtlest and most important elements that contribute to the final effect. The proper placing of the pause will follow