Humanitext Reader

Aristotle · On Things Heard §11-20

Vocal Organs, Sound Propagation, and Auditory Perspective

Passage 2 of 7 · Greek

Summary

Discusses the effects of long necks, uneven windpipes, and moisture or dryness of the organs on the voice. It also explains how sound travels through the air and how auditory perspective works, analogous to perspective in painting.

§11Φανερὸν δʼ ἐστίν· πάντα γὰρ τὰ τοὺς τραχήλους ἔχοντα μακροὺς φθέγγονται βιαίως, οἷον οἱ χῆνες καὶ γέρανοι καὶ ἀλεκτρυόνες.
And this is clear; for all animals that have long necks utter their voice with force, such as geese, cranes, and cocks.
Μᾶλσθαιλον δὲ τοῦτο καταφανές ἐστιν ἐπὶ τῶν αὐτῶν· πάντες γὰρ χαλεπῶς πληροῦσι τοὺς βόμβυκας καὶ μετὰ συντονίας πολλῆς διὰ τὸ μῆκος τῆς ἀποστάσεως.
But this is even more manifest in the case of auloi; for everyone fills the bombykes with difficulty and with much tension because of the length of the distance.
§12Ἔτι δὲ τὸ πνεῦμα διὰ τὴν στενοχωρίαν ὅταν ἐντὸς θλιβόμενον εἰς τὸν ἔξω τόπον ἐκπέσῃ, παραχρῆμα διαχεῖται καὶ σκεδάννυται, καθάπερ καὶ τὰ ῥεύματα φερόμενα διὰ τῶν εὐρίπων, ὥστε μὴ δύνασθαι τὴν φωνὴν συμμένειν μηδὲ διατείνειν ἐπὶ πολὺν τόπον.
Furthermore, when the breath, being compressed inside because of the narrowness, bursts out into the outer region, it is immediately diffused and scattered, just like currents carried through straits, so that the voice can neither remain continuous nor extend over a large space.
Ἅμα δὲ καὶ δυσταμίευτον ἀνάγκη πάντων τῶν τοιούτων εἶναι τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ μὴ ῥᾳδίως ὑπηρετεῖν.
At the same time, the breath of all such must inevitably be difficult to regulate and not easily obedient.
§13Ὅσων δέ ἐστι μέγα τὸ διάστημα τῆς ἀρτηρίας, τῶν δὲ τοιούτων ἔξω μὲν περαιοῦσθαι συμβαίνει τὸ πνεῦμα ῥᾳδίως, ἐντὸς δὲ φερόμενον διαχεῖσθαι διὰ τὴν εύρυχαωρίαν, καὶ τὴν φωνὴν γίνεσθαι κενὴν καὶ μὴ συνεστῶσαν, ἔτι δὲ μὴ δύνασθαι διαιρεῖσθαι τῷ πνεύματι τοὺς τοιούτους διὰ τὸ μὴ συνερείδεσθαι τὴν ἀρτηρίαν αὐτῶν.
But in those where the span of the windpipe is large, the breath happens to pass out easily, but as it travels inside it is diffused because of the wide space, and the voice becomes hollow and disjointed; and further, such people cannot articulate their voice with the breath because their windpipe does not compress.
§14Ὅσων δʼ ἐστὶν ἀνωμάλως καὶ μὴ πάντοθεν ἔχει τὴν διάστασιν ὁμοίαν, τούτους ἀναγκαῖον ἀπασῶν μετέχειν τῶν δυσχερειῶν.
But those whose windpipe is uneven and does not have a similar span everywhere must inevitably share in all these difficulties.
Καὶ γὰρ ἀνωμάλως αὐτοῖς ἀνάγκη τὸ πνεῦμα ὑπηρετεῖν καὶ θλίβεσθαι καὶ καθʼ ἕτερον τόπον διαχεῖσθαι πάλιν.
For their breath must inevitably serve them unevenly, being compressed in one part and diffused again in another.
§15Βραχείας δὲ τῆς ἀρτηρίας οὔσης ταχύ μὲν ἀνάγκη τὸ πνεῦμα ἐκπέμπειν καὶ τὴν πληγὴν ἰσχυροτέραν γίνεσθαι τὴν τοῦ ἀέρος, πάντας δὲ τοὺς τοιούτους ὀξύτερον φωνεῖν διὰ τὸ τάχος τῆς τοῦ πνεύματος φορᾶς.
But when the windpipe is short, they must inevitably send out the breath quickly, and the blow of the air becomes stronger, and all such people utter a higher-pitched voice because of the speed of the journey of the breath.
Οὐ μόνον δὲ συμβαίνει τὰς τῶν ἀγγείων διαφοράς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ πάθη πάντα τὰς φωνὰς ἀλλοιοῦν.
Not only do the differences in the vessels occur, but all the conditions also alter the voices.
§16Ὅταν μὲν γὰρ ὦσιν ὑγρασίας πλήρη πολλῆς ὅ τε πνεύμων καὶ ἡ ἀρτηρία, διασπᾶται τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ οὐ δύναται περαιοῦσθαι εἰς τὸν ἔξω τόπον συνεχῶς διὰ τὸ προσκόπτειν καὶ γίνεσθαι παχὺν καὶ ὑγρὸν καὶ δυσκίνητον, καθάπερ καὶ περὶ τοὺς κατάρρους καὶ τὰς μέθας.
For when both the lungs and the windpipe are full of much moisture, the breath is broken up and cannot pass out into the outer region continuously, because it meets with obstacles and becomes thick, moist, and difficult to move, just as in the case of catarrhs and drunkenness.
§17Ἐὰν δὲ ξηρὸν ᾖ τὸ πνεῦμα παντελῶς, σκληροτέρα ἡ φωνὴ γίγνεται καὶ διεσπασμένη· συνέχει γὰρ ἡ νοτίς, ὅταν ᾖ λεπτή, τὸν ἀέρα, καὶ ποιεῖ τινὰ τῆς φωνῆς ἁπλότητα.
But if the breath is completely dry, the voice becomes harder and broken; for moisture, when it is fine, holds the air together and produces a certain smoothness in the voice.
Τῶν μὲν οὖν ἀγγείων αἱ διαφοραὶ καὶ τῶν παθῶν τῶν περὶ αὐτὰ γιγνομένων τοιαύτας ἕκασται τὰς φωνὰς ἀποτελοῦσιν.
Thus, the differences in the vessels and in the conditions occurring in them each produce such voices.
§18Αἱ δὲ φωναὶ δοκοῦσι μὲν εἶναι καθʼ οὖς ἂν ἕκασται γίγνωνται τόπους, ἀκούομεν δὲ πασῶν αὐτῶν, ὅταν ἡμῖν προσπέσωσι πρὸς τὴν ἀκοήν.
Voices seem to be in whatever places they each occur, but we hear all of them when they strike against our hearing.
Ὁ γὰρ ὠσθεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς πληγῆς ἀὴρ μέχρι μέν τινος φέρεται συνεχής, ἔπειτα κατὰ μικρὸν ἀεὶ διακινεῖται μᾶλλον, καὶ τούτῳ γιγνώσκομεν πάντας τούς ψόφους καὶ τοὺς πόρρω γιγνομένους καὶ τοὺς ἐγγύς.
For the air pushed by the blow is carried continuous up to a certain point, then it is gradually moved more and more, and by this we recognize all sounds, both those occurring far off and those nearby.
§19Δῆλον δʼ ἐστίν· ὅταν γάρ τις λαβὼν κέραμον ἢ αὐλὸν ἢ σάλπιγγα, προσθείς τε ἑτέρῳ πρὸς τὴν ἀκοήν, διὰ τούτων λαλῇ, πάσαι δοκοῦσιν αἱ φωναὶ παντελῶς εἶναι πλησίον τῆς ἀκοῆς διὰ τὸ μὴ σκεδάννυσθαι τὸν ἀέρα φερόμενον, ἀλλὰ διατηρεῖσθαι τὴν φωνὴν ὁμοίαν ὑπὸ τοῦ περιέχοντος ὀργάνου.
And this is clear; for when someone takes a clay jar, an aulos, or a salpinx, and holding it to another's ear, speaks through these, all the voices seem to be completely close to the hearing because the air is not scattered as it is carried, but the voice is preserved similar by the surrounding instrument.
§20Καθάπερ οὖν καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γραφῆς, ὅταν τις τοῖς χώμασι τὸ μὲν ὅμοιον ποιήσῃ τῷ πόρρω τὸ δὲ τῷ πλήσιον, τὸ μὲν ἡμῖν ἀνακεχωρηκέναι δοκεῖ τῆς γραφῆς τὸ δὲ προέχειν, ἀμφοτέρων αὐτῶν ὄντων ἐπὶ τῆς αὐτῆς ἐπιφανείας, οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ψόφων καὶ τῆς φωνῆς, ὅταν μὲν ἤδη διαλελυμένη προσπίπτῃ πρὸς τὴν ἀκοὴν ἡ δέ τις συνεχής, ἀμφοτερων αὐτῶν ἀφικνουμένων πρὸς τὸν αὐτὸν τόπον, ἡ μὲν ἀφεστηκέναι πόρρω δοκεῖ τῆς ἀκοῆς ἡ δʼ εἶναι σύνεγγυς, διὰ τὸ τὴν μέντοι πόρρωθεν ὁμοίαν εἶναι, τὴν δὲ πλησίον.
Just as in a painting, therefore, when someone with colors makes one part similar to what is far off and another to what is near, the one seems to us to have receded in the painting and the other to project, though both are on the same surface, so too in the case of noises and the voice: when one reaches our hearing already dissolved and another continuous, though both arrive at the same place, the one seems to be far away from our hearing and the other to be near, because the former is similar to what comes from afar, and the latter to what is near.

Notes

  1. §11Μᾶλσθαιλον — The manuscript reading 'Μᾶλσθαιλον' is corrupted and is generally emended to 'μᾶλλον δὲ τοῦτο' ('but this is even more...'). Combined with emending 'ἐπὶ τῶν αὐτων' (in themselves) to 'ἐπὶ τῶν αὐλῶν' (in the case of auloi), it is interpreted as 'but this is even more manifest in the case of auloi'. This translation follows this emendation.
  2. ¦801a¦διαιρεῖσθαι τῷ πνεύματι — This phrase means 'to articulate (the voice) with the breath.' It refers to the difficulty of pronouncing distinct, clearly separated sounds because the windpipe is too wide to compress the air sufficiently.
  3. §16παχὺν καὶ ὑγρὸν καὶ δυσκίνητον — These adjectives are masculine singular accusative, which does not grammatically agree in gender with the neuter noun 'tὸ πνεῦμα'. However, they are contextually understood as describing the characteristics of the breath (or the air, 'ὁ ἀήρ', associated with it) when affected by moisture.
  4. §20τοῖς χώμασι — This is the dative plural of 'χῶμα' (mound, earthwork), which makes little sense in the context of painting. It is universally understood as a scribal error for 'χρώμασι' (colors, pigments; dative plural of 'χρῶμα'). This translation follows this reading.
  5. ¦801b¦διὰ τὸ τὴν μέντοι πόρρωθεν ὁμοίαν εἶναι, τὴν δὲ πλησίον — Meaning 'because the former is similar to what comes from afar, and the latter to what is near.' The context implies a verb like 'seems to be carried / to be' (such as 'δοκεῖν φέρεσθαι/εἶναι') which is omitted but understood, explaining the difference in how sounds from different distances are perceived.

Cite this passage

Aristotle, On Things Heard §11-20. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0086.tlg004.humanitext-grc1:11-20

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