Listening for Intonation: The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs by Aesop

This audio recording is from the site LibriVox where you can listen to hundreds of audiobooks recorded by volunteers. The text of the fable is from the book Aesop's Fables, Pan Books, 1975.

Эта аудиозапись с сайта LibriVox, где вы можете прослушать сотни аудиокниг, записанных добровольцами. Текст басни из книги Aesop's Fables, Pan Books, 1975.

Aesop's Fables

The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs

A Man and his Wife had the good fortune to possess a Goose which laid a Golden Egg every day. Lucky though they were, they soon began to think they were not getting rich fast enough, and, imagining the bird must be made of gold inside, they decided to kill it in order to secure the whole store of precious metal at once. But when they cut it open they found it was just like any other goose. Thus, they neither got rich all at once, as they had hoped, nor enjoyed any longer the daily addition to their wealth.

Much wants more and loses all.

Text of Audio, with intonation marked

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'Aesop's \FABLES

The 'Goose that 'Laid the 'Golden \EGGS

A 'man and his 'wife had the 'good 'fortune to po'ssess a \GOOSE |

which 'laid a 'golden 'egg 'every \DAY. ||

'Lucky though they \WERE, |

they 'soon be'gan to 'think that they were 'NOT getting 'rich 'fast e\NOUGH, |

/and, | i'magining the 'bird 'must be 'made of 'gold in\SIDE, |

they de'cided to 'KILL it |

in 'order to se'cure the 'whole 'STORE of 'precious 'metal at \ONCE. ||

'But | when they 'cut it \open |

they 'found it was 'just 'like 'any 'other \GOOSE. ||

/Thus, | they 'neither got 'rich 'all at \once, |

as they had \hoped, |

'nor 'enjoyed 'any 'LONGer the 'daily 'addition to their \WEALTH. ||

'Much 'wants 'MORE and 'loses \ALL. ||

(End of The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs.)

Intonation marks used in this material

'man – sentence stress on a content word;

'STORE – stronger sentence stress on the main word of the sense group (thought group);

'must – emphatic stress;

\DAY – falling tone on the main word of the sense group or on the last stressed word of the sentence;

/and – rising tone;

| – short pause between sense groups or parts of the sentence;

|| – longer pause between sentences.