禮貌原則在商務(wù)信函中的應(yīng)用

TheApplicationofPolitenessPrinciplesinBusinessCorrespondenceIntroductionThepurposeandsignificanceoftheresearchBeingoneofthemanifestationsofhumancivilization,politenessisasocialandculturalphenomenonaroundourdailylife.Ithelppeoplebettercommunicatewithothers.Meanwhile,withthefastdevelopmentoftheworldeconomyandGlobalEconomicIntegration,theinternationaltradeandinformationexchangeareincreasing.Innowadaysworld,businesscorrespondencehasalreadybecomeanindispensiblewaywhichenablespeopletocommunicatewitheachotherintheeconomicfield.Peoplecanexchangeinformation,developbusiness,negotiate,consult,trade,solveproblemandexpressfriendshipbybusinesscorrespondence.Asaresult,whetherthecorrespondencehasbeenwrittensuccessfullyhasagreateffectonthebusinessachievementsofacompany.Theapplicationofpolitenessprinciplesinthebusinesscorrespondencebecomeanecessity.Onthebasisoftheanalysisandresearchontheexamplesofdifferentbusinessletters,thisthesisisintendedtoanalyzehowpolitenessprinciplesareappliedinvarietiesofbusinesslettersintermsofthelexicalandsyntacticlevel.ThelayoutofthethesisThethesisisdividedintofivesections.Thefirstsectionistheintroductionoftheapplicationofpolitenessprincipleinthebusinesscorrespondenceandthelayoutofthethesis.Thesecondsectionexplainsthedefinitionofpolitenessandbusinesscorrespondence.Thethirdsectiondiscussestheapplicationofpolitenessindifferentaspectsofgood-newsbusinessletters.Thefourthsectionanalyzestheapplicationofpolitenessindifferentaspectsinbad-newsbusinessletters.Thelastsectionisaconclusionofthewholethesis.BriefintroductionsonpolitenessandbusinesscorrespondenceIntroductionofpolitenessAnoverviewofpolitenesstheoriesIntheresearchofpoliteness,pragmaticlinguistshavelongapproacheditindifferentperspectives,namely,thesocialnormperspectiveputforwardbyLakoff,theconversationalmaximproposedbyLeech,theface-savingperspectiveraisedbyBrownandLevinsonandtheconversationalcontract.ThedefinitionofpolitenessPoliteness,thiswordmaybeveryfamiliartomostofus.Itisawell-knownconceptpenetratingthrougheveryaspectofourdailylife.AccordingtoLakoff,politenessisformsofbehaviorthathavebeendevelopedinsocietiesinordertoreducefrictioninpersonalinteraction.Leechdefinespolitenessasformsofbehaviorthatareaimedattheestablishmentandmaintenanceofcomity,i.e.theabilityofparticipantsinasocio-communicativeinteractiontoengageininteractioninanatmosphereifrelativeharmony.IntheforewordforthebookPoliteness:SomeUniversalsinLanguageUsagebyBrownandLevinson,politenessisbasictotheproductionofsocialorderandapreconditionofhumancooperation.(Liu,2007:1)IntroductionofbusinesscorrespondenceDefinitionofbusinesscorrespondenceBusinesslettersareletterswritteninaformallanguage,usuallyusedwhenwritingfromonebusinessorganizationtoanother,orforcorrespondencebetweensuchorganizationsandtheircustomers,clientsandotherexternalparties.(Wang,1995:59).Itisamethodthatthebusinessmanandcompanyusetointroducetheircommodities,servicesandevenproducts.FunctionandClassificationofbusinesscorrespondenceAstheincreasinglydevelopmentoftechnologies,telegram,faxandotherformsofelectronicmailsarebecomingmoreandmorepopularindailybusinessoperations.But,nomatterhowfastsocietydevelopsandhowadvancedthecommunicationmethodwillbecome,asaspecifickindofbusinessactivities,businesscorrespondencestillplaysaveryirreplaceableroleinestablishingandmaintainingbusinessrelationship.Broadlyspeaking,thefunctionofabusinesslettermaybesaidtobe(1)toaskfororconveyinformation;(2)tomakeortoacceptanoffer;(3)todealwithmattersconcerningnegotiationofbusiness.(Gan,2002:1)Businesslettersmaybeclassifiedfrmvariousangles.Themostcommonwaysofclassificationareasfollows:·Classificationaccordingtothecontentoftheletter:Thefollowingareamongthemostfrequentinuse:requestletters,lettersansweringrequests,claimandadjustmentletters,creditandcollectionletters,salesletters,employmentlettersandsocialbusinessletters,etc.(Stewart,1984:382)·Classificationaccordingtodifferentfunctionsintheprocessofabusinesstransaction:Businesslettersmaybeineveryphaseofbusinessactivities.Therearelettersforestablishmentofbusinessrelations,lettersfortheenquiryofbusiness.Therearequotationletters,negotiatingletters,orderingletters,confirmingorderletters,paymentletters,shipmentandinsuranceletters,acknowledginggoodsreceiptletters,claimlettersandadjustmentletters,etc.(ShiandXu,1993)·Classificationbythenatureoftheinformationgiven:Stewardsummedupfourdifferentkindsofinformationintermsofitseffectonthereader’sneeds:goodnews,neutralnews,badnewsandpersuasiveletters.(Steward,1984:382)ThevarioustypesofEnglishbusinesscorrespondencehavemadeitimpossibleinthisthesistomakeacompleteandclearclassification.Itisnoticeablethatthereisanoverlapbetweensometypesofletterssuggestedabove,sosometimesitisdifficulttodistinguishonekindoflettersfromanother.Whatthisthesisfocusesonisthetypesoflettersinthethirdclassification.TheimportanceofpolitenessprinciplesinbusinesscorrespondenceThecharacteristicsandfunctionsofbusinesscorrespondenceineconomyfieldrequiretheuseofpolitenessprincipleinthebusinessletters.Aletterwrittenwithpolitenessexpressionandappropriatewordscanhelpacompanybuildupagoodcommercialimageandfurtherachieveabusinessdeal.Ontheotherhand,aletterwithoutpolitenessconsiderationofwordsandexpressionmaybringnegativeeffecttoacompany.Itmaynotonlyruinthebusinessbutalsodamagethecompany’scommercialimage.So,theapplicationofpolitenessprincipleinbusinesscorrespondenceisaproblemthatcannotbeneglected.Itisacommonviewthattherearesomeguidelinesorprinciplesforeffectivebusinesswriting,whichareregardedassevenCs,thatis,completeness,conciseness,consideration,concreteness,clearness,courtesyandcorrectness(Wayne&Dauwalder1994:171).Applicationofpolitenessprinciplesingood-newsbusinesslettersAccordingtotheclassificationofEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceinthepreviouschapter,characterizedbyitseffectonthereader’sneeds,Englishbusinesscorrespondencecanbedividedintogoodnews,neutralnews,badnewsandpersuasiveletters.Thischapterwillfocusonthestudyoftheapplicationofpolitenessprinciplesingood-newsbusinesscorrespondence.Good-newsbusinesscorrespondenceistheletterthatcarriespositivemessageswhichcanpleasereaders.Thus,itcanbeaverysignificantwaytokeeporenhancethefriendshipbetweenthewriterandthereaderandpromotefuturebusinesscooperation.Itincludeslettersofacceptance,lettersofcongratulations,lettersofpraise,lettersofrefunds,offers,andorderforgoodsorservices.ApplicationofpolitenessprinciplesatthelexicallevelWordsarethefoundationofeverybusinesscorrespondence.Itcanbeabasiccomponentelementtothepolitenessofabusinessletter.Wordsofthesamemeaningsmayhavedifferenteffectsontheconveyingofpoliteness.Thechoiceofwordsandexpressionsmayaffectthefeelingofthereaders.Aconclusioncanbedrawnthatthewordsandexpressionsplayasignificantroleonexpressingpolitenessingood-newsbusinesscorrespondence.Therefore,thisthesiswilldiscusstheapplicationofpolitenessprinciplesbeginningatthelexicallevel.Usingyou-attitudelanguageWhenwritingabusinessletter,thewriterishopingtodeveloparelationshipwiththereader.Inordertogetapositiverespondfromthereader,itisveryimportantforthewritertotakethereader’sopinionintoconsideration.You-attitudemeanstobeconsiderate.Considerationisoneofthequalitiesofanygoodbusinessletteracknowledgedbycommercialexperts(Yang,2002:71).Itsfocusison‘you’(thereader)insteadof‘I’or‘we’(thewriter).You-attitudeshowsthatthewritershouldseethingattheangleofreader’s.Byusingtheyou-attitude,thewritermaymakethereadersfeelthattheyarebeingfullyconsideredandtheirbenefitsaremaximized.Atthemostofthetime,thereaderismoreinterestedinhimself/herselfthanhis/herpartner.Asaresult,inthegood-newsbusinessletters,usingyou-attitudelanguagecanletthereaderhasafeelingthattheirinterestsarebeingputattheveryfirstplace.However,ifthewriterusetheword‘I’attheverybeginningofthesentence,thereadermayfeelthatthewritercaremoreabouthim/herself,butnotthereader.Therefore,ingood-newsbusinessletters,ifthewritercanuseyou-attitudelanguagedirectlyandproperly,abetterresponsewillbegotfromthereader.Forinstance,a)Wecannotdeliverattheweekend.b)Yourgoodscanbedeliveredonanyweekday.（Yang,2009:131）2.a)Wecansupplyyouwithaverygoodselectionofwinterclothes.b)Youcanchoosefromaverygoodselectionofwinterclotheshere.(Wu,2008:34)Aquestionnairewasdoneamong20studentswhomajorinbusinessEnglishbetweentheabovetwogroupsofsentencesaswellastherestexamplesentencesinthisthesisinordertoseehowpeoplefeelaboutthepolitenessprinciplesappliedinbusinesscorrespondence.Astotheabovetwogroups,peopletendtothinkbothsentencesb)arewithpoliteness.Theword‘we’hasbeenusedinsentencesa),whichemphasizetheimportanceofthewriter.Insteadofusing‘we’,you-attitudelanguagehasbeenusedinbothsentencesb),whichmaymakethereaderfeelthathis/herbenefitismaximized.UsingpositivewordsWhendoingbusiness,everypartywantstoreceivegoodnewsfromthecounterpart.Theyalwayspaymoreinterestsinwhatcanbedoneinsteadofwhatcannotbeachieved.Atthissituation,usingwordswithpositivemeaningswillhelpthepartiesofthebusinessfeelthatthebusinessisrunningsmoothly.Andtothereader,thepositivewordswouldlikelymakehe/shehavemoreconfidencetowardsthewriter.Talkingaboutpositivewords,thewordsthatcarrypositivemeaningslikethank,pleased,glad,assure,available,provideetc.arespringingtomind.Theyexpresssincerity,courtesyandconsideration.Takethefollowingsentenceasanexample:WearepleasedtoquoteFOBHuangpu.onregularpurchaseof100dozenormoreproducts,wewouldliketoofferyoua7%discount.Pleaseacceptoursincerethanksforourpleasantassociationtogetherduringthepastyear.Yourordershavebeenmostwelcomeandyourmanyactsofcooperationareappreciated.Thegoodsunderyourorderareavailableatanytime.Fromtheuseofpositivewordslikepleased,please,sincerethanks,pleasantassociation,welcomeappreciatedandavailable,thewritershowshis/herattempttoexpressthegood-willandtheaffirmationtothereader.Besides,thiskindofwordscancreateafavorableimageofthewriterinthereader’smind,whichenhancesthereader’swilltocontinuetocooperatewiththewriter.UsingspecificandconcretewordsInthebusinessletter,specificandconcretewordshelptobuildamorevividmentalimageinthereader’smind.Asthegood-newsEnglishbusinesscorrespondence,themorespecificandconcretethewordsare,themorespecificallythebenefitwouldbedescribed,themorepolitethereaderwillfeel.Sinceinthegood-newbusinessletter,thereader’sbenefitismaximized.Letuscomparethefollowingtwosentences(Yu,2005:21).Congratulationsonyourrecentpromotion.Congratulationsonyourbeingnamedthemanagerlastweek.Thesestwosentencesmaybeusedinaletterofcongratulations.Aftercomparison,sentencea)usesageneralword‘promotion’todescribethewriter’sgood-will.Althoughthewordcongratulationisinherentlypolite,theword‘promotion’istooabstracttofulfillthereader’spositiveface.Astosentenceb),thewriterusesamorespecificandconcreteword‘manager’toexpresscongratulationsandcompliments,whichcanmaximizethepraisetothereaderandfulfillhis/herface.That’swhyamong20votes,12werevotedforsentenceb)asthemorepolitesentence.ApplicationofpolitenessprinciplesatthesyntacticlevelSentencesarethecarrierofmeaningofEnglishbusinessletters.Inabusinessletter,whatgivesthereaderthefirstimpressionisusuallythetypeandstructureofsentences,butnotthemeaningofthesentences.Therefore,thetypeandstructureofsentenceplayamoresignificantroleinexpressingthepolitenesstothereader.UsingshortsentencesInagood-newsEnglishbusinessletter,whichthenewspresentedarefavorabletothereader,itisveryimportantshowtheinformationinadirectandforcefulway.Inordertoachievethisgoal,thebestwayistoemphasizetheideabyputtingitinanindependentclause,i.e.,inasimplesentenceratherthaninacompoundorcomplexone.Presentingthemajorideainashortandsimplesentence,itmeansthatnootherideaswillcompetewiththemajorideaanddistractthereader’sattention.Asaresult,thebenefitofthereaderismaximized.Forinstance,Youcanenjoya10%discount.Wewouldliketoinformyouthatyoucanenjoyadiscountof10%ofthecontractvalue.Accordingtothequestionnaire,betweenthesetwosentences,55%peoplethoughtthattheywouldbemoreexcitedhearingsentencea).Theformersentenceisdirectandforcefulinconveyingthegoodnewsofenjoyingadiscount,inwhichthebenefitonthepartofthereaderismaximizedtothegreatestdegree.Onthecontrary,thelatteroneusesacomplexsentencewhichislesseffectivethantheformerone.UsingaffirmativesentencesUsually,theinformationthattheaffirmativesentencescarriesismorefriendlyandpolitebecausetheyemphasizeonthepositiveandpleasantaspect.Throughtheuseofaffirmativesentences,thereaderwillfeelthattheirrequestsanddemandsarefulfilledandtheirbenefitsaremaximized.Therefore,thegood-newsbusinessletterwithaffirmativesentencescanobtainfavorablereactionfromthereader,whichcanbeanacceleratorintherelationbetweenthewriterandthereader.Forexample,a)Wewillnoteffecttheshipmentuntilwereceiveyourshippinginstruction.b)Wewilleffecttheshipmentassoonaswereceiveyourshippinginstruction.Thesetwosentencesappearinaletterofconfirmationofanorder.AlloftheStudentswhoweregiventhequestionnaireagreedthatthesecondsentencefeltmorepleased.Sentencea)isanegativesentence.Thoughthemeaningitexpressesisagoodmessagetothereader,itstillgivesanegativeimpressiononthereaderbecauseofthebenefitofthereaderseemstobeminimized.Onthecontrary,sentenceb)isanaffirmativesentence.Itdrawsthereader’sattentiononthepositiveside,i.e.whatcanbedone.Thissentenceshowsthatthewriter’sreadytoservethereader,whichismoreacceptableandunlikelytotriggerresistance.UsingactivevoiceVoiceisthetermusedtoindicatewhetherasubjectactsorwhetheritisactedupon.Goodnewsisoftenwritteninamoredirectandforcefulway,whichcanmaximizedthereader’sbenefit.Usually,activevoiceismoreemphaticthanpassivevoice.Inaddition,activevoicewillexpressanoptimisticfeelingtothereader,whichmakestherelationshipbetweenthewriterandthereadercontinuessmoothly.Pleasecomparethefollowingtwosentences,I’mgladtoaccepttheinvitation.Yourinvitationisaccepted.Astotheabovesentence,allpeoplevotedfortheformeroneaswhattheywouldliketoreadaboutinaletter.Bycomparison,differencecanbeclearlyseenthatthesentencea)ismoreemphaticinconveyingthegoodmessageofacceptance.Butontheotherhand,sentenceb)ismoreimpersonal.Applicationofpolitenessprinciplesinbad-newsbusinesslettersPeoplearealwayspursuingbenefitsatbusinessandtheoneofthepurposesofbusinessistoprovideservicestomeettheallthedemandsandneedsofthecustomers.But,intherealisticbusinessworld,noteverythingcomesoffsatisfactorily.Forinstance,youmayhavetorefusequotes,turndowntherequestofreplacementofsomeproducts,delayshippingordelivery,refusecredit,saynotoinvitationandmanyotherthings.AccordingtoWayneandDauwalder’sdefinition(1994:231),bad-newsbusinesslettersarethoseletterswhicharepresumedtobereceivedunfavorablybyreceivers,whichmayfindmuchresistanceinthereader’smentalfilterandwhichmaydisappointthereader.Asaresult,itisconsideredtobeverydifficulttodeliverabad-newsbusinessletter.Whenwritingbad-newsbusinessletter,thewriterhasalwayskeeptwopointsinmind:ononehand,thewriterhastodeliverthebadnewstothereader;ontheotherhand,thewriterstillneedstomaintainthereader’sgoodwill.Unlikethegood-newsbusinessletter,ofwhichthecontentistothereader’sbenefit,thebad-newsbusinessletterthatcarryingunfavorableinformationishardtohandle.ApplicationofpolitenessprinciplesatthelexicallevelAsdiscussedinthelastchapter,thechoiceofappropriatewordsandexpressionsplaysasignificantroleinthepresentationofpolitenessinbad-newsEnglishbusinessletters.Avoidusingyou-attitudelanguageUnlikethegood-newsbusinessletter,whichdiscussedinthelastchapterthatyou-attitudeshowstherespectofthewritertowardsthereader,inthecaseofbad-newsEnglishbusinessletter,you-attitudemayusuallyimplyimpoliteness.Themainlyfunctionofyou-attitudelanguageistoseethingsfromtheviewsofthereader,toshowrespectandgood-willtothereader.However,iftheyou-attitudeisusinginthebad-newsbusinessletter,itmaycontainablameandcomplaintonthereader,whichisfarawaytheinitialpurposeofusingyou-attitudelanguage.Let’slookatthefollowingexample:a)Yourdelayindeliveryhascausedproblemsonbothourcustomerandus.b)Thedelayindeliveryhascausedproblemsonbothourcustomerandus.Althoughbothsentencesexpressnegativemessage,allofthestudentswhotookpartinthequestionnairetendtothinkthesecondsentencemoreeasilytoaccept.Inthesentencea),writerfocus‘you’on‘yourdelay’attheverybeginning,whichmaymakethereaderfeelaverystronganddirectblameonhim/her.Eventhoughitmayduetothereader’sfaultthatmakeadelayinthedelivery,thiskindofyou-attitudelanguagecancauseanunpleasantfeelingofthereader,whichmayprobablyresultinabreakupofbusinessrelationshipinthefuture.Asofthesentenceb),byusingtheword‘delay’insteadof‘yourdelay’asasubjective,thewritershowsnoblameonanyone.Thefocusofthesentenceison‘thedelay’,notonthepersonwhomadeit.Thus,thereaderswillnotfeeluncomfortableorbeingblamebythewriter.Itnotonlymaintainsthebusinessrelationshipbetweenthewriterandthereaderunhurt,butalsomakesthefuturecooperationbecomepossible.UsingpositivewordsandexpressionAsdiscussedatthelastchapter,thepositivewordshaveagreatimpactonshowingpolitenessinthegood-newsEnglishbusinesscorrespondence.Itisalsotruefoethebad-newsEnglishbusinesscorrespondence.Whencomestothesituationthatneedsconveybadnewspositively,insteadofusingsuchnegativewordsascannot,forbid,fail,impossible,refuse,prohibit,restrictanddeny,positivewordsandexpressionsareusedasmuchaspossible.Byusingpositivewordsthewriterisabletocreategood-will,promotefriendlinesstothereader.Eventhoughthelettercarriesbadnews,thepositivewordsandexpressionscanfocusthereader’smindonthepositivesideinsteadofthenegativeoneandavoidtheill-feelingthereadermayhaveafterreadingthebad-newsletter.Thusitcanincreasetheinternationalbusiness.Pleasecomparethefollowing:1.a)Wecan’tofferyouadiscountunlessyouincreaseyourorderquantity.b)Wewillbeabletoofferyouadiscountifyouincreaseyourorderquantity2.a)Thisschoolbagisnotavailableinbrown.b)Thisschoolbagisavailableinblue,pink,yellow,andpurple.Astothesetwogroupsofsentence,peopletendtothinkbothsentencesb)aremoreexhortative.Bothsentencesa)emphasizedonwhatthewritercannotdo,whichmayproduceanunpleasantfeelingtothereaderwhilethesentencesb)focusonthepositivesidewhichconvincethereadertobelieveinwhatthewritercando.Aconclusioncanbedrawnthatthoughcarryingthesamemeaning,tothereader,thesentencesb)aremoreacceptablethansentencesa).UsingvaguelanguageAsdiscussinthelastchapter,specificandconcreteconveydefinitemessage.Whenwritingabad-newsbusinessletter,ifthespecificandconcretewordsareused,itmaydrawthereader’sattentiononthenegativeside,maximizingthereader’lostandminimizinghe/herbenefit.Onthecontrary,vaguewordsaremoredifficulttoenvision,sotheunpleasantmeaningdoesnotstandoutdirectly.Vaguelanguageinbusinessletterscansaveboththewriter'sandthereader'sface.Asthefollowingexampleshows(Yu,2005:34),Youhavenotpaidforover3months.Apaymenthasnotbeensentinover3months.Inthesentencea),averbpaidhasbeenusedtostatethesituation.Whenreadingthissentence,becauseofthestronganddirectinformation,thereadermayhaveanuncomfortablefeelingasbeingthreatened.Bynominalizingtheword‘pay’into‘payment’,sentenceb)ismoreacceptabletothereader.Thementalimageitcreatesinthereaderislessvividandforceful.Thus,itsoundsmorepolitebythereader.17outof20votesforsentenceb)canbeastrongsupportforthisstatement.UsingmodalauxiliariesAccordingtoLakeoff(1973),modalauxiliariesplayanimportantroleintheexpressionsofEnglishpoliteness.Modalauxiliariescanbedividedintotwogroups:primarymodals(can,may,must,will,shall),andsecondarymodals(could,might,would,should,andoughtto).Basically,thesecondarymodalsaremorecourteousandpolite.‘May,might,could,should,would’canallbeusedtosoftenfacethreateningacts(FTAs).Inanappropriatecontext,‘may,might’,and‘could’carrythemeaningofpossibilityoraskforpermission.‘Would’expressesprobabilityorhypotheticalmeaning,and‘should’and‘can’expressputative,hypotheticalortentativemeaning(Locher2004:129).ApplicationofpolitenessprinciplesatthesyntacticlevelDifferentfromthesentenceusedingood-newsbusinesscorrespondence,bad-newsbusinesscorrespondencehasitsowncharacteristicstoshowpoliteness.UsingdependentclausescomplexsentencesInthepreviouschapter,itisconvincedthatshortsentencesareusedtopresentpolitenesstothereaderingood-newsbusinesscorrespondence.Onthecontrary,ittotallydoesnotworkinthebad-newsbusinessletters.Insteadofshortsentences,dependentclausescomplexsentencesareconsideredmorepolite.Byputtingthebadnewsindependentclausesandcomplexsentences,thewritercanbeabletoexpressthemessageindirectlywhichcandistractthereader’sattentionfromtheunfavorableinformation.Pleaselookatthefollowingsentences(Yu,2005:36),Yououghttohaveshippedthegoods.Itseemstousthatyououghttohaveshippedthegoods.Accordingtothequestionnaire,85%ofstudentsthoughtthatSentenceb)wasbetterthanSentencea).Theformersentenceisadirectaccusationtowardthereader,whichmaymakethereaderfeelasimpoliteorrough.Thelatterusesadependentclausetode-emphasizetheimpoliteness,whichmakesiteasierforthereadertoaccept.UsingaffirmativestructureInthepreviouschapter,ithasbeenmentionedthataffirmativesentencesconveyapositiveandfriendlytone.Thisisalsotrueforbad-newsbusinesscorrespondence.It’sobviousthatthebad-newsbusinesscorrespondencecarriesunfavorableinformationtothereader,so,theuseofaffirmativesentenceswhichcansoftentheblowoftheunpleasantmessagebecomeveryessential.Forinstance,a)Wearenotabletodeliverthegoodsintimeduetothebadweather.b)Wearesurethatyoucanunderstandthedifficultieswehadindeliveringthegoodsintimeduetothebadweather.Amongthe20votes,19ofthemweretosupportsentenceb)asthemoreacceptableone.Anegativestructurecanbeseeninsentencea).Thewritersentastronganddirectmessageofwhattheycannotdotothereader.Consequently,thereadermayhasabadimageofthewriterorhis/hercompany.Inthesentenceb),thewriterhasusedanaffirmativestructuretoexpresstheunfavorableinformationtothereader,whichmakesthestatementsoundpolite,appropriateandacceptable.UsingpassivevoiceInordertoavoidadirectblameoraccusationtothereader,bad-newsbusinesslettersusuallyusepassivevoicetofocusonthingsinsteadonpeople.Fromthesentencesinthepassivevoice,peopleareoftenvagueaboutwhoorwhathascreatedthesituationandwhy.Asaresult,itdoesnotdirectlysuggestanyresponsibilitybythesubject.Inaddition,expressingrequestsinpassivevoiceshowsdeferenceandismorelikelytobringsatisfactoryresults.Let’stakethefollowingsentencesasanexample,a)Youfailtoreplacethedefectivegoodsintime.b)Thedefectivegoodshavenotbeenreplacedintime.2.a)Youdidn’tenclosethecatalogueandpricelistinyourletter.b)Thecatalogueandpricelistwerenotenclosedinyourletter.(Yue,2005:74)Astotheabovetotwogroups,allstudentsgiventhequestionnaireheldtheviewthatthemessageshowedinbothsentencesb)wasmoreeasilytoaccept.Insentencesa),itisobviousthatthefocusofthesentenceisthepeoplewhocausetheproblem.Whileinsentencesb),theemphasisislaidonwhatthingisdone,notonwhodoesthethinganditmaybemoreacceptablefromtheviewofthereader.UsingcomplimentIn