Dear Sir:
Thank you for your extension of your L/C NO.5757. Today we shipped the above consignment on board S. S. “Nellore”, which sails for your port tomorrow. We are glad to have filled your order after long delay and trust that the goods will reach you in time to meet your urgent need and that they will turn out to your complete satisfaction. We will fill your future orders promptly and more carefully [5].
The seller first Thanks for the other side’s extension of the L/C and the seller had shipped the good in the letter. Then, they expressed their willing to implement the orders future quickly and earnestly. Although late delivery might have objective reasons, the seller showed “modesty” to the other side and it could give them a good impression, to maintain good trade relations.
1.2.5 The agreement maxim in politeness principle
Agreement maxim: minimize disagreement between yourself and others; maximize agreement between yourself and others.
For example: We appreciate the good quality of your shoes, but unfortunately your prices appear to be on the high side even for shoes of this quality. We regret that at these prices we cannot place an order…May we suggest that you make some allowance on your quoted prices so as to introduce your goods to our customers?
In the letter the buyer replied the offer, and required the seller to give a discount. Although the price was disputed, the buyer first expressed agreement with the other side, affirming the high quality of the shoes, and then said the bifurcation. This enables the seller to accept the different points easily, and then the requirement of discount will be easily made .e.g.
Dear Sir:
Thank you for your quotation of 20 August and for the samples of shoes you send us. We appreciate the good quality of your shoes but unfortunately your prices appear to be on the side even for shoes of this quality. We regret that at these prices we cannot place an order. However, we like the quality of your goods and would welcome the opportunity to do business with you.
May we suggest that you make some allowance on your quoted prices so as to introduce your goods to our customers [5] ?
This is the buyers reply to the offer; it is intent on requiring the seller to give a discount. The letter first affirms the quality of shoes before asking discount, which will enable the seller to accept differentia easily. Then the buyer praises the quality of the shoes, put the common ground, meanwhile, they make the request of discount, which greatly adds the business possibility.
1. 2. 6 The application of sympathy maxim in politeness principle
Sympathy maxim: minimize antipathy between yourself and others; maximize sympathy between yourself and others.
In business English letter, the key of using politeness principle is to show that we have the same mood with the other .Take the follow letter for example:
Dear Sir:
We have received your letter of 15th July, informing us that the sewing machines we shipped to you arrived damaged on account of imperfectness of our packing.
Upon receipt of your letter, we have given this matter our immediate attention. We are convinced that the present damage was due to extraordinary circumstances under which they were transported to you. We are therefore not responsible for the damage; and we do not think that it would be fair to have you bear the loss alone, so we suggest that the loss be divided between both of us, which we hope you will agree [5].
In the beginning of this letter, the seller quoted the sentence which had made them understood clear, and then they expressed the speedy concern and careful research to reduce the other side’s antipathy. Based on the research, we know the reason why goods damage in transport is not the seller’s responsibility. Thus, it closed the both sides’ emotional distance, and established a good trading relationship.
To sum up, the politeness principle in business English letter can put the mechanical business English language and the ice-cold specialty term together and it can convey information successfully, finally, to promote business.
2 Politeness in business English letter
The theory of politeness, first proposed by Brown and Levinson in 1978, has given enormous impetus to decades of politeness studies. Basing themselves on the notion of “face” proposed by Goffman(1967), Brown and Levinson put forward their theory of politeness, which rests on three basic notions: face, face-threatening acts (FATS) and politeness strategies.
Brown and Levinson define face as “the public self-image that every member wants to claim for himself' (1987). An individual's face consists of two wants: the freedom to act without being impeded by others, termed "negative face"; and the desire to be appreciated and approved of by others, termed "positive face" (Brown and Levinson, 1987). While recognizing that the content of face is culture-specific and subject to much culture elaboration, they maintain that the notion of face is universal (1987)[6].转贴于 酷文网-论文下载中心 http://www.coolwen.net
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