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英语论文：Pragmatic Analysis of Business English Corresponde
来源：985论文网 添加时间：2020-05-15 11:35
摘 要
近年来，大量学者对商务信函语言特征的词汇、句法、语义等方面进行了研究。礼貌语言是一种语言特征，在商务交际中起着重要的作用，甚至影响到商务交际的影响，引起了广泛兴趣。迄今为止的商业信函大多以合作原则(CP)和礼貌原则(PP)为依据，在理论和实践中对新的可能性进行了丰富的研究和探索。本研究旨在运用维索尔伦的适应性理论，特别是适应性和适应性的语境关联，作为商务信函中礼貌语言应用的理论依据。另外，本研究将适应性理论应用于适应性和动态的具体语境，分析了在不断变化的语境下使用礼貌语言的特点和规律。本文能为商务信函的写作提供借鉴并帮助合作双方建立和维护良好的业务合作伙伴关系。
关键词：商务信函；适应性语境关联；适应性动态；礼貌语言
Abstract
In recent years, a considerable number of scholars have studied the lexical, syntactic，semantic and other aspects of the linguistic characteristics of business letters. Politeness language is a kind of language characteristic, which plays an important role in business communication, and even affects the influence of business communication, which has aroused widespread interest. Business letters so far have mostly based on cooperative principle (CP) and politeness principles (PP), with rich research and exploration of new possibilities in theory and practice. This study intends to use Verschueren’s adaptability theory, especially the contextual correlates of adaptability and dynamics of adaptability, as the theoretic basis in the explanation of the application of courteous language in business letters. In addition, this study applies the adaptability theory to the concrete contextual of adaptability and dynamics to analyze the characteristics and rules of using courteous language in a changing context, which can provide guidance for the writing of business letters and help the two parties to establish and maintain a good business partnership.
Keywords: Business Letters;Contextual Correlatesof Adaptability; Dynamics of Adaptability;Courteous Language
1.Introduction
With the development of economic globalization and the constant increase of China's foreign trade with other countries, business communication has attracted more and more attention in China. Business English is used as a language form used in business activities. Business English is one of the most important areas of business letters, widely used in various areas of business activities.
Business correspondence services convey information, express ideas, exchange feelings, deal with business transactions, and help build and maintain good business partners and customer relationships. Their behavior, to a certain extent, help build the bridge between the writer and the reader, and the good relationship between the two sides of the successful conclusion of the transaction depends largely on the letters between the enterprises, leading to the belief that its language features with writing skills are helpful to improve product quality and business communication efficiency.
In recent years, a considerable number of scholars have studied the vocabulary, syntax, semantics and other aspects of the business letter of the language features. Politeness language is a linguistic feature, which plays an important role in business communication, and even affects the effect of business communication, which attracts a wide range of interests. However, business letters so far have mostly based on the principle of cooperation courtesy language use (CP) and politeness principles (PP), with rich research and exploration of new possibilities in theory and practice. This study applies the adaptability theory to the concrete contextual of adaptability and dynamics, which has been placed in the economic field of development in the past decade.
With the development of pragmatics, some scholars have devoted themselves to the application of business courtesy from the perspective of pragmatics, including Yang Lincong's politeness principle in business communication, and Huang Dongmei's politeness strategyas well as writing in business letters.From the perspective of cooperative principles and politeness principles, Wu Yan denies the research of information transmission.
Most of the studies on politeness in business letters are based on the principles of Grice's cooperation, the politeness of Leach, and the politeness of Brown and Levinson. They all use cooperative principles to analyze the language characteristics of business English correspondence and explore the factors in writing a successful business letter. On the basis of the principle of politeness, Zheng Wei's courtesy and its expression in business English communication (2002) discussed the realization of business English writing in courtesy from three aspects of effective methods: language, content and specific writing skills (2003).After studying thepoliteness principle courtesy, the speech morals, and the appropriateness of politeness in business letters, he points out that the different principles of politeness should be based on different cultural backgrounds in business English writing.
2.Literature Review on Politeness
2.1 The Definition of Business Letters
Business letters refer to all kinds of letters in business communication. In order to achieve a good relationship in business transactions, some methods,such as face-to-face conversation, telephone, and letters, can be used. In these ways, letters can express a person's opinions more completely and detailed, because they give people more time to think, and let people write better. It is different from face-to-face conversation, in which there is little time to think about how to express it if the communication is not friendly and harmonious.
In business letters, the author chooses formal words to finish his writing. Hetells the truth in the letter and cannot exaggerate or underestimate the actual situation. The purpose of writing a business letter is to be clear, sell a product or service, clear up misunderstandings, and deliver good news.
How to write business letters is very important in business communication. A structured letter may impress the addressee and make it easier to do what the addresser says. A well-written business letter requires some writing skills, which vary from one type of letter to another. If the letter is beneficial to the addressee, the addressee can tell the addresser directly. But if the letter is difficult to write, the sender should consider it better and choose the appropriate language to inform the addressee in a euphemistic way.
2.2 The Functions of Business Letters
The functions of business letters are varied according to the purposes including selling products or services, requesting information, answering customer inquires, and maintaining good public relations, etc.
One of the major functions of business letters is to convey and retain information. Although oral communication can also carry messages and many of these activities can be handled over the phone or in person, few business people have the time to visit every client personally, especially when they are doing foreign business, and long distance telephone calls are time-consuming and expensive. More importantly, it is observed that people can only retain about 25 percent of what they hear (Baugh, 1986:18), and the chance of message being forgotten or misunderstood greatly increases if only oral communication is relied upon. As a result, written communication remains the best form to ensure that the message is accurately received, particularly when technical or highly detailed information is transferred.
Business letters also function as written contracts, fully recognized by the courts. Letters of agreement are often drawn up between companies and independent suppliers or consultants. which are binding on both parties. For example, in case the buyers make a counter-offer, or take the initiative by placing a firm order or a firm bid with the seller, which contains all the necessary terms and conditions, the seller acceptance will conclude the deal, which means a contract or an agreement is made, and both parties must abide by it.
Furthermore, business letters serve as a part of a company’s permanent record. They can be used to verify bookkeeping and inventory entries. If one has a question about a customer order or the details in an agreement, or about whether someone’s query was answered, he can check the file copy of the letter. However, one can not do the same with a phone conversation unless he records every outgoing and incoming call.
Finally, business letters act as the basis for promoting formal or informal public relations. It can help build goodwill between business people and their clients, creditors, suppliers and other public groups. Their letters reveal their ideas and even their personalities to those they may never meet personally or call on the phone. How the writers express themselves and what language style they adopt in their letters form an impression of the writers and their business in the reader’s mind.
2.3 The Classification of Business Letters
There are many classifications of business correspondence, which may cater to different purposes and aims. Here, some common ways of classification are presented as follows.
The first classification is according to the content of the letter, such as request letters, letters replying to requests, letters for claim and complaint, credit enquiry letters, sales letters, application letters, employment letters and social business letters, etc.
The second classification is according to different functions in the process of a business transaction, such as letters for establishment of business relations, letters for the enquiry, letters for counter-offer, ordering letters, letters for payment and L／C, shipment and insurance letters, letters for conclusion of a deal, acknowledging goods receipt letters, claim letters, etc.
Thirdly, Leech’s statements on illocutionary acts are used as the basis for the classification of business letters. As Leech suggested that illocutionary acts should be divided into four categories: competitive, convivial, collaborative, and conflictive.
2.4 The Researches on Business Letters
2.4.1TheDomestic Researches on Business Letters
The Application of Dynamics of Adaptability Theory to the Analysis of Courteous Language in Business English Letters is used in business letters, such as Characteristics of Business English by Liu Shuyun and Wu Libo (2002), Approaches to Business Letter Language—with Focus on Chinese—English Translation by Zhang Jinling (2002), Stylistic Features of Foreign Trade Letters by Liu Jianxun (2004), A Stylistic Analysis of English Business Letters by Li Xin (2005), Features and Translation of Business letters by Wu Jinfeng (2006), and An Analysis of Lexical Features of English Letters by Huang Xuefang (2006). The above studies are devoted to the distinctive style of business letters and the detailed description and analysis of the linguistic features.
With the development of pragmatics, some scholars are engaged in studying business letters from the pragmatic perspective, including The Application of Politeness Principle in Business Communication by Yang Lincong (2002), Politeness Strategies in Business Letter by Huang Dongmei (2003), and A Study of Negative Information Conveyance in Business Letter Writing from the Perspective of Cooperative Principle and Politeness Principle by WuYan(2005).
2.4.2 The Foreign Researches on the Courteous Language in Business Letters
Most studies conducted on courtesy in business letters are based on Grice’s Cooperative Principle, Leech’s Politeness Principle and Brown and Levinson’s politeness strategy. Xue Yu’s About Business English Letters from Grice's Cooperative Principle (2001) applies the Cooperative Principle to the analysis on the linguistic features of business English letters, and discusses the factors in writing a successful business letter.
Although numerous studies are conducted on courteous language in business letters at the pragmatic levels, few scholars have applied the adaptability theory, which is one of the important aspects of pragmatics to the study in this field.
3.Verschueren's Adaptability Theory in Language
3.1 Literature Review of Adaptability Theory
Verschuerenputsforwardhispragmatictheory(i.e.doingpragmaticstudyfromany levelthatcanbeusedtoexpressmeaning)inhisbookUnderstandingPragmaticswhich has played an important role in studying pragmatics, and his adaptation theory explainsand interprets pragmatics from a new perspective. According to Verschueren(1999:55-56) , using language is the process of the continuous making of linguistic choices, consciouslyor unconsciously, for language-internal (i.e. structural) and language-external reasons.Atleastthreehierarchicallyrelatedkeynotionsareneededtounderstandtheprocessofmaking choicesas the base-line description of language use. They are variability, negotiabilityand adaptability. Adaptability mainly refers to the property of language which enableshuman beings to make negotiable linguistic choices from a variable range of possibilities in suchawayastoapproachingthepointsofsatisfactionforcommunicativeneeds.(Verschueren)
Furthermore,thenotionofadaptabilitycanbeusedasastartingpointtodefinefour anglesofinvestigation, andtobecombinedwheneveralinguisticphenomenonisapproached pragmatically. These four angles of investigation are as fellows: contextual correlatesofadaptability, structural objects of adaptability, dynamics of adaptability, and salience oftheadaptationprocesses.Sincethepresentresearchintendstoadoptcontextualcorrelatesof adaptabilityanddynamicsofadaptabilityinanalyzingthelanguagefeaturesofcourteous language in business English letters, the following sections will concentrate on the surveyof these twoareas.
3.1.1 Contextual Correlates of Adaptability
Contextual correlates of adaptability are any ingredient of a communicative context with which linguistic choices have to be interadaptable. This is shown in the following diagram:
Figure 3-1 Contextual Correlates of Adaptability
As language users, the utterers (U) and interpreters (I) are the focus of the context. They incorporate multiplier functional roles (called ‘voices’ in case of U). The contextual correlates may be found in the mental, social (or cultural), and physical worlds, and also include properties of the linguistic channel that is used and the linguistic context in which the event takes place. Context here is the product of a generation process involving both what is its mobilization (and sometimes manipulation) by the language users. And all these potential correlates are “activated” by being brought with lines of vision, of an utterer and/or interpreter. (Verschueren, 1999:76)
Structural Objects of Adaptability refers to overarching structural levels of language and the principles composed by these structures. (Verschueren) In general, structural objects of adaptability include the following choices:
First, there are some overarching levels of choice-making which are language, codes andstyles. Aslongaspeopleuselanguagetocommunicate,makingchoicesisunavoidable,suchas choosingwhichkindoflanguage,whichcodeandwhichstyle.However,beforemaking choices, the language users normally take a number of factors into consideration,including languageability,theusingextentofthelanguage,andothersocialfactorssuchasthepolitical stand, ideology,etc.
Second, there are basic utterance-building ingredients (from soundstructure, morphemesandwords,clausesandsentences,topropositionalstructuresandsuprasententialunitsofvariouskinds)thatarepotentiallytobefoundinanutteranceandatvariouslevelsof structure.
Thethirdpointisthefunctioningofdifferentstructuraltypesofutterancesandutteranceclusters,wherethetermutteranceisreservedforanystretchoflanguage,nomatterhowlong it is and how many voices it may contain, with a clear beginning and end, produced bythesameperson.
Fourth, attention has to be paid to utterance-building principles, which guidetheproduction and interpretation of utterances and utteranceclusters.
Finally, the way in which actual choice-making involves all the needs to bescrutinized, without losing sight of the fact that choices in one area are often co-adaptable with thosein another.
3.1.2 Dynamics of Adaptability
From the introduction of the theory, it can be seen adaptability theory is differentfromthetraditionalcooperativeprincipleandpolitenessprinciple,whichtaketheprocessof understanding language use as a static process.When people use language to conveysomeinformation they just use some linguistic symbols obeying some principles or rules andthen understand these symbols by their semantic meanings. However, according toadaptability theory, language using process and understanding process are a dynamic process thatpeopleshould choose proper symbols and meanings to convey and explain information.According to the contextual correlates of adaptability and dynamics of adaptability, the context ofthelanguageuseisalsochangeablethatpeoplecangivethelanguagesymbolsuseddifferentexplanationswiththechangesofthecontext.Thesecharacteristicsdecideitwillplayadifferent but an important role in explaining language use characteristics in businessletters, especially courteous language, which can be seen later in thepaper.
3.2 The Development of Verschueren's Adaptability Theory
3.2.1Review of Adaptability Theory
In 1987, JefVerschueren put forward firstly his adaptability theory in Pragmatics as a Theory of Linguistic Adaptation when he was doing the research on the language use. Later he developed and improved this theory in Understanding Pragmatics (1999).
The birth of the adaptability theory brings great changes to the international pragmatics research, blazing a new trail in the field that was controlled by the British and American traditional schools. The European Continent School is based on perspective views, and the British and American traditional school is related to the theory of basic unit analysis.
The pioneer of domestic scholars who introduced adaptability theory into China is QianGuanlian. In his paper Meta-pragmatic Choice of Verschueren (1990), he discussed Verschueren’s meta-pragmatic choice, which became the embryonic form of his meta-pragmatic awareness theory in his works. In Adaptability Theory—Comments on Verschueren s New Pragmatic Theory (1991), he introduced the adaptability theory comprehensively and systematically based on the Precursor of Adaptability Theory. His adaptation theory is an objective review from four aspects: the relationship of adaptability, choice, adaptability and pragmatics of language adaptation theory, the relationship between the new theory and traditional pragmatics, and raised the question of whether the adaptability theory could solve the problems of the traditional pragmatics. In another paper on adaptability theory Pragmatics Uniform and Coherent Theoretical Framework—Comments on J. Verschueren’s Understanding Pragmatics(2000), Qian discussed the theoretical head-stream and overall theoretical framework of Verschueren’s adaptability theory, and presented a review of the content of Verschueren’s Understanding Pragmatics. The paper points out that Verschueren’s book can be simplified in a basic question (i.e. What are people doing when they are using language?) and explores three key concepts (i.e. the variability, negotiability and adaptability of linguistic choices) as well as four research perspectives, (i.e. contextual correlates of adaptability, structural objects of adaptability, dynamics of adaptability, and salience of the adaptation processes).
Professor He Ziran, the expert of pragmatics in China, is also engaged in the study of adaptability theory. Evaluation of Verschueren’s New Book —Understanding Pragmatics(1999), written by HeZiran and Yu Guodong presents a general introduction to Verschueren’s Understanding Pragmatics, explains the research framework of Verschueren’s pragmatics in particular, and analyses the content of adaptability theory. The above two authors regard Understanding Pragmatics as an important work.
Huang Yan’s Reflection on Theoretical Pragmatics points out that pragmatic perspective is more possibly like the concepts of pragmatics of semeiologytrichotomy of Morris (1946). However, he opposes the view that all linguistic phenomena can be explained by pragmatics, and states “Everything is pragmatics” is impossible academically for “Everything is pragmatics’’ means in essence “nothing is pragmatics”.
Liu Zhengguang and Wu Zhigao also have introduced the theoretical foundation of Verschueren’s adaptability theory from the aspects of philosophy, psychology, and linguistics and put forward some questions to be discussed in their Choice—Adaptation: about Theoretical Foundation of Verschueren’s Understanding Pragmatics (2000). Firstly this thesis not only comments positively the efforts made by Verschueren to bring changes to the traditional approach of pragmatic research and seek the solutions to the problems of traditional pragmatics, but also raises a number of questions in terms of the adaptability theory concerning production of meaning, target and reality explanation power of adaptability theory and universality，etc, and points out that using adaptability theory to explain all kinds of problems in language use is beyond its capability. Furthermore, in the last part of this thesis, the importance of Speech Act Theory is emphasized.
Besides the introduction and evaluation of adaptability theory, some scholars are keen on the research on making comparisons between adaptability theory and relevance theory, such as inThe Application of Dynamics of Adaptability Theory to the Analysis of Courteous Language in Business English Letters. While some scholars try to combine these two theories together to avoid the inadequacy of these two respectively. Chen Chunhua introduced these two theories from the perspective of contextual concept and communication view, and analyzed the differences of these two theories in Adaptability Theory and Relevance Theory—the Comparison of Two Kinds of Linguistic Perspective(2003). Yang Ping is the first one in China who did integrated research on adaptability theory and relevance theory. In his The Relevance-Adaptation Model(2001), Yang introduced the main features of the two theories, and meanwhile analyzed their merits and demerits. Based on these theories and from the point of view of speakers，Yang proposed his relevance-adaptation model, according to which using language is a process of adaptation and relevance, i.e. the choice and utility of language is a process in which speakers seek for relevant context of adaptation and relevance.
Ran Yongping is another scholar who tentatively proposed the adaptation-relevance model of language using and understanding in The Adaptation-Relevance Analysis of Communication (2004). Liao Qiaoyun has made an attempt to combine the Cooperative Principle , relevance theory and adaptability theory. In her two essays Cooperation-Relevance-Adaptation Model and Success of Communication (2005) and A Re-exploration of Cooperation-Relevance-Adaptation Model (2006), she put forward the proposition of integrated research of these three pragmatic theories. Later, she discussed the merits and demerits of these three typical pragmatic theories, which are the Cooperative Principle, relevance theory as well as adaptability theory, and created C-R-A Model (Three-dimensional Explanations of Communication), which is regarded as an important development in pragmatics research in China.
3.2.2The Application of Adaptability Theory
Since the birth of adaptability theory, the western scholars have attempted to testify the explanatory power and reliability of this new theory from various aspects. Meanwhile, the Chinese scholars have applied the new theory to the explanations of certain concrete problems.
The first is application of Adaptability Theory is in the Study of Translation. Adaptability theory is mainly applied in translation. According to the statistics carried out by an expert, when adaptability theory is searched as the article title in the database of China Academic Periodical in CNKI, there are 14 items, among which 7 are related to translation，accounting for 50%.When adaptability theory is searched as the keyword, there are totally 28 items, among which 14 are related to translation, also accounting for 50%. When adaptability theory is searched in Google, 833,000 results can be found, and among these items 780,000 are related to translation.
The first scholar who introduced adaptability theory into the research of translation is GeLingling. She published her study of Contextual Correlates of Adaptability and its Constraints on Word Meaning (2001) in Chinese Science & Technology Translators Journal. She explained that the words’ meanings should be chosen according to different contextual relationship from several aspects. The semantic meanings of words are restricted by contextual correlates of adaptability, and the abbreviatory meanings of words are complemented by contextual correlates of adaptability, while the cultural meanings are added by contextual correlates of adaptability (i.e. the choice of word’s meanings should adapt to different contexts to express different meanings for the sake of communication). Later in The Enlightenment of Adaptability Theory on Translation Research—with Pragmatic Translation Standard (2002), she discussed the translation standard in terms of adaptability theory and the enlightenment of the theory on translation research, and pointed out that translation is a dynamically adaptable process between the context and language structure of the source language and target language.
Yuan Binye wrote in his Theory of Linguistic Adaptation and Its Possible Implications in Translation (2002) that there are two enlightenments of adaptability theory on translation. The translator can adopt different translation tactics according to the concrete context of cross-cultural communication, and every translation version has its existing and applying meaning without being right or wrong. In Strategies and Methods in Translation from the Perspective of Adaptability Theory(2005) by Wang Jianguo, translation is regarded as a dynamic process with the premise that the translator should take the readers’ cognitive environment into consideration and assure them enough cognitive effect.
In Pragmatic Translation of Culture and Adaptation to Multidimensional Context (2006), Yang Meng introduced the concepts of context and the nature of culture, and established the translator-centered adaptation theoretical framework in humanistic networks of translation process to analyze the pragmatic culture in the dynamic multidimensional context including literature translation, overseas-oriented publicity translation and tourism material translation. Adapting to the language structure, mind, social world, physical world, the target language may convey the pragmatic value of culture of the source language.
Cao Qunying also applied adaptation theory to the study of translation. In Interpretation of Translation from Adaptation Theory (2007), Cao points out, according to adaptation theory, the use of language in translation should adapte to different communication objects and settings, while translation as a kind of trans-culture activity determines that the choice of language is a dynamic process of adaptation, and that the adaptation should vary in terms of different settings and language structures should maximally meet the needs of both sides in communication.
The second application of Adaptability Theory is in Pragmatic Strategies. Another field in which adaptability theory is applied is adaptation research of pragmatic strategies. He is said the traditional pragmatic theories such as Speech Act Theory and Face Theory are not adequate in the explanations of deception, understatement, and impolite speech acts in The Application of Dynamics of Adaptability Theory to the Analysis of Courteous Language in Business English Letters. As the pragmatic strategies, the above phenomena as well as redundant information，euphemistic strategy，and false information commonly exist，and it is possible to explain all these speech acts of pragmatic strategies from the social-cultural and psychological perspectives.In HeZiran and Zhang Shulao'sReview of deceptive Studies (2006), they briefly describe deception as a pragmatic strategy based on adaptation. In Adaptation-based Approach (2006) by Ju Hong & Dai Manchun, the authors attempt to apply Verschueren’s adaptation theory to Deception (DEC) and understatement as pragmatic strategies of speech acts. The authors conclude that DECs and understatements are the outcomes of linguistic choices interadaptable with the language users’ mental world，society and physical world.
4.Analysis of Courteous Language in Business English Letters
4.1 Politeness and Impoliteness
In daily life, people are often heard to say someone is polite or impolite. Then what are the criteria for defining politeness and impoliteness?
Janet Holmes points out that being linguistically polite is often a matter of selecting linguistic forms which express the appropriate degree of social distance or which recognize relevant status differences. Generally speaking, politeness involves taking account of the feelings of others; a polite person makes others feel comfortable. Being linguistically polite involves speaking to people appropriately to maintain their relationship, while inappropriate linguistic choices may be considered rude. Brown and Levinson (1978) believe that politeness is a repressive action taken to counter-balance the disruptive effect of face-threatening acts. Referring to politeness, Lakoff says it is used in order to reduce friction in personal interaction. Kochman interprets politeness as follows: polite conversation is a way of showing consideration for other people’s feelings and does not involve anything that might hurt other people’s feelings. The so called gentlemen’s agreement is “you don’t do or say anything that hurts my feelings, and I won't do or say anything that hurts you”.
In the foreword for the book Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage by Brown and Levinson (1978), Gumperz says that politeness is basic to the production of social order and a precondition of human cooperation.
Watts defines polite behavior as social-culturally determined behavior directed towards the goal of establishing and maintaining a state of equilibrium in the personal relationships between the individuals of a social group, whether opened or closed, during the ongoing process. He Zhaoxiong (2000) claims that politeness can be taken as a social phenomenon, a means to achieve good interpersonal relationships, and a norm imposed by social conventions.
Unlike politeness, there have been fewer studies on impoliteness. Eelen (2001) points out that the theories of politeness have focused far more on polite behavior than on impolite behavior.
Fraser and Nolen (1981) and Fraser (1990) suggest that behavior which indicates that the participants are abiding by what they call the Conversational Contract generally goes unnoticed. It is only when one of the participants violates the rights and obligations of the Conversational Contract that his behavior is classified as impoliteness. Sara Mills believes that “impoliteness has to be seen as an assessment of someone’s behavior rather than a quality intrinsic to an utterance” (2003:122) . She expresses the doubt that any act is necessarily intrinsically impolite, since even the most offensive insults can be used by close friends to signal camaraderie. Hypothesizing of intention is essential to assessing an act as impoliteness.
However, all these studies have focused far more on the description of politeness and impoliteness than on the relations between politeness and the context in which it is demonstrated.
Whether the language people use is polite or impolite is closely related to people assessments and social norms and customs. Many other factors also play important roles in determining whether the language people use is polite or impolite, such as power, social distance, and ranking of imposition. But in different communication conditions and for different hearers, politeness and impoliteness can be changed mutually, i.e. some polite language may result in impoliteness in the end while some utterances without polite expressions may be accepted as being appropriate. This dynamic nature of language use can be explained by Verschueren’s adaptability theory，which views language production and language comprehension from a new perspective and takes an approach to language that takes into account the full complexity of its cognitive, social and cultural functioning. For example, in the communication process, if one asked a close friend to help him do something unimportant on an informal occasion by saying that I was wondering whether you would mind if I asked you to do me favor, it would sound strange or even unpleasant to the addressee. In this example, the addressor seems very polite, but under the above circumstance this kind of expressions is considered too polite to be really polite, i.e. it is normally regarded as being impolite or even sarcastic. Hence during a communication process such as the one described above, although the sentence sounds polite, what is conveyed to the hearer is not polite, which is determined by the relation between the speakers. In this situation, the expression such as Hey, buddy, lend me a hand may be more appropriate.
Therefore, based on contextual correlates of adaptability, politeness can be divided, in The Application of Dynamics of Adaptability Theory to the Analysis of Courteous Language in Business English Letters into apparent politeness and virtual politeness，and similarly impoliteness can be divided into apparent impoliteness and virtual impoliteness in terms of the communicative effect.
Apparent politeness, according to the above discussion, refers to the phenomenon that the language used seems to be proper and correct in linguistic communication and seemingly polite to the hearer, but actually it is not considered polite by the hearer. Virtual politeness, on the other hand, means whatever language forms are used, they will produce a polite effect in the end. The utterances are considered as being polite regardless of the language forms used. Apparent impoliteness and virtual impoliteness are just opposite to apparent politeness and virtual politeness. This can be illustrated by the above example. If one says that I was wondering whether you would mind if I asked you to do me favor to a close friend on an informal occasion, it is apparent politeness and virtual impoliteness, which means even though the sentence sounds polite, it is still considered being impolite in that particular context.
4.2Analysis of Courteous Language in Business English Letters
In verbal communication, the way to encode and decode messages relies on the participators of the communication and closely relates to the context. This is also reflected in the communication process involving business English letters. In this process, both the writer and the reader are the participators of communication, and at the same time they are also the dominators in the communicative context. Their understanding of the meaning of the messages transferred in business letters is based on the multi-factors of the context composed of their previous experiences, information transferred in business letters, and relationship between the two parties. These factors may influence their understanding and explanation of the messages.
It is known that different people may give different explanations on the same message, and therefore if the writer wants the reader to understand the information transferred by business letters just as he does in the same context, he should create an ideal context by using proper expressions to convey his intended meaning. Using courteous language is an important factor in composing the ideal context. By courteous language and the context based on them, the writer is able to weaken the influence of the other factors, such as cultural differences and different education background, to convey a kind of friendly and polite signal to the reader, which will guide the reader to the writer’s communication purpose and help the writer achieve the ultimate goals.
5.Conclusion
Based on the research on the language of business English letters, the author of this paper focuses on the study of the courteous language use with the application of Verschueren’s adaptability theory, especially the Contextual Correlates of Adaptability and Dynamics of Adaptability. Different from the traditional researches on the basis of cooperative principle and politeness principle, which merely regards the use of courteous language in business English letters as statically obeying the maxims of cooperative principle andpoliteness principle, this paper adopts Verschueren’s adaptability theory as the theoretical basis of the study of courteous language use of business English letters. According to the adaptability theory, using language is the process of the continuous process of making linguistic choices, consciously or unconsciously,forlanguage-internal(i.e. structural)or language-external reasons. This paper also considers using courteous language in business letters as a dynamic process. With the theories of contextual correlates of adaptability and dynamics of adaptability, this paper focuses on the analysis of how to choose proper languages to explain the linguistic symbols conveyed by the writers and the readers by adapting to the changing context of the courteous languages used in business English letters, and the findings are as follows:
First, in business English letters using courteous language is an effective way to enable the reader to accept the intention of the writer and to accomplish the task the writer intends to assign.
Second, not all business letters are using courteous language in the communication. Some can even be regarded as impoliteness according to Grice’s cooperative principle and Leech’s politeness principle, which are the commonly used principles for explaining politeness in language use. However, according to the adaptability theory which explains the linguistic symbols under dynamically changing context, they can be considered as politeness.
Third, this paper divides the courteous language into two categories, i.e. apparent politeness and virtual politeness according to Verschueren’s adaptability theory, especially the contextual correlates of adaptability and dynamics of adaptability, and then explains how courteous language is applied in a changing context and dynamic process. Within this theoretical framework, reasonable explanation is given to the courteous language in business English letters.
Forth, the significance of this study is not limited to the theoretical explanations of how courteous language is used in business letters,but serves as guidance for writing business letters. The study indicates that the levels of politeness change with the changes of the situations, which includes the change of the format and the language used to convey feelings and information. Therefore, context decides what kind of courteous language should be used in business letters.
As is demonstrated by this study, Verschueren’s contextual correlates of adaptability and dynamics of adaptability theory is effective in explaining courteous language use in business English letters due to its regarding communication as a dynamic and adaptable process.
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