unit-1-世紀(jì)商務(wù)英語(yǔ)-外貿(mào)函電

Unit1

FundamentalsofModernBusinessLetterWriting

現(xiàn)代商務(wù)函電寫作的根本知識(shí)世紀(jì)商務(wù)英語(yǔ)外貿(mào)函電

TheBasicRequirementsofBusinessLetterWriting

TheBasicPartsofBusinessLetters

TheBasicLayout/FormatofBusinessLetters

AddressingEnvelopes

PracticalTraining

PartOne

PartTwo

PartThree

PartFour

PartFiveContentsPartOneThepurposesofcommunicationaretoobtaincompleteunderstandingbetweenthepartiesinvolved,andelicittheresponsesrequired.Generallyspeaking,thefunctionsofabusinessletteraretoaskforortoconveybusinessinformation,tomakeortoacceptanoffer,todealwithmattersconcerningvariousbusinesses.Businessletterwritingdoesnotdifferfromanyotherformofcreativewriting.GoodEnglishisoneoftheimportantbasesofgoodbusinessletters.Whatyouwriteshouldbefreefromgrammaticalblemishes,andalsofreefromtheslightestpossibilityofbeingmisunderstood.Usually,therearecertainessentialrequirementsforagoodbusinessletter,whichcanbesummedupintheSevenCs,i.e.Completeness,Concreteness,Clearness/Clarity,Conciseness,Courtesy,Consideration,Correctness.TheseCsoftengohand-in-hand.PartOneAbusinesscommunicationshouldincludeallthenecessaryinformation.Itisessentialtocheckthemessagecarefullybeforeitissentouttoseethatallthemattersarediscussed,andallthequestionsareanswered.Businesslettersshouldavoidincompleteness.Concretenessmeansmakingthemessagespecific,definiteandvivid.Businesslettersshouldavoidbeingtoogeneral.Ingeneralletters,everythingseemstobementionedbutactuallyfewarefullyexpounded.Youshouldusespecificfactsandfigures,vividandimage-buildingwords.1.Completeness(完整)2.Concreteness(具體)PartOneMakesurethatyourletterissoclearthatitcannotbemisunderstood.Apointthatisambiguousinaletterwillcausetroubletobothsides,andfurtherexchangeoflettersforexplanationwillbecomeinevitable,thustimewillbelost.Youmusttrytoexpressyourselfclearly.Toachievethis,youshouldkeepinmindthepurposeofyourletteranduseappropriatewordsincorrectsentencestructuretofullyconveyyourmeaning.Whenyouaresureaboutwhatyouwanttosay,sayitinplain,simplewords.Short,familiar,conversationalandstraight-forwardEnglishiswhatisneededforbusinessletters.3.Clearness/Clarity(清楚)PartOneConcisenessisoftenconsideredtobethemostimportantwritingprinciple.Itmeanssayingthingsinthefewestpossiblewords.Toachievethis,trytoavoidwordinessorredundancy.ClearnessandConcisenessoftengohand-in-handandtheeliminationofwordybusinessjargoncanhelptomakealetterclearerandatthesametimemoreconcise.Aconciseletterisnotnecessarilyashortone.Sometimesaletterdealingperhapswithamultiplicityofmatterscannotavoidbeinglong.Generallyspeaking,youwillgaininclearnessandconcisenessbywritingshortsentencesratherthanlongones.Alettercanbemadeclearer,easiertoreadandmoreattractivetolookatbywritingshortsentencesandcarefulparagraphing.Oneparagraphforonepointisagoodrule.4.Conciseness(簡(jiǎn)潔,簡(jiǎn)明)PartOneCourtesyisnotmerepoliteness.Itislikeafavorableintroductioncard.Thecourteouswritershouldbesincereandtactful,thoughtfulandappreciative.Youneedtoprepareeverymessagewiththereadersinmindandtrytoputyourselfintotheirplaces.Ifconcisenessconflictswithcourtesy,makealittlesacrificeofconciseness.Promptnessisoneofthemostimportantthingsinbeingcourteous.Punctualitywillpleaseyourcustomerwhodislikeswaitingalongtimeforareply.5.Courtesy(禮貌)PartOneBeforeyougoontothedetailedstructureofthebusinessletterthereisonegeneralprinciple,onwhichthenativeEnglishwriterslaygreatemphasis,thatis,the“you”attitude.“You-attitude”isnotsosimpleasonlytouse“you”insteadof“I”or“we”.Inyourlettersyoushouldalwayskeepinmindthepersonsyouarewritingto,trytoseethingsfromtheirpointsofview,visualizethemintheirsurroundings,seetheirproblemsanddifficultiesandexpressyourideasintermsoftheirexperience.“You-attitude”canhelptoavoidanawkwardsituation,andpromotecooperationbetweenthetradeparties.6.Consideration(體諒)PartOneBusinesslettersmustbecorrect,otherwisetheymaybemisunderstoodandruntheriskofreachingnowhereorgoingastray.Correctnessmeansappropriateandgrammaticallycorrectlanguage(withoutspellingortypographicalerrors)andfactualinformationthatisaccuratewithreliablefiguressuchasnamesofarticles,specifications,quantity,priceandunits.7.Correctness(正確)PartTwoAsthefirstandmostobviouspartofabusinessletter,theletterheadexpressesacompany’spersonality.Ithelpstoformone’simpressionofthewriter’sfirm.Stylesvaryconsiderably,buttheyallgivesimilarinformationandincludetheessentialparticularsaboutthewriter—name,address,zip-code,telephonenumber,telegram/telex/faxnumberande-mailaddressofthecompany.Itisusuallydesignedandprintedinthecenterorontheleftmarginatthetopofthepage.Abusinessletterbasicallyconsistsofthefollowing13parts.1.Letterhead(信頭)PartTwoThereferencenumberisgenerallyusedasausefulindicationforfilingandconsultingforbothsides,soitmustbeeasilyseen.Itmayincludeafilenumber,acontractnumber,anL/Cnumberortheinitialsofthesignerandthetypist’sinitials.Ifyoufindthereferencenumberintheincomingletteryouneedtotaketheformas“yourref.”and“ourref.”inyourreply.Thepositionofthereferencenumberisoftenoneortwolinesbelowtheletterhead.2.ReferenceNumber(參考號(hào)/發(fā)文編號(hào))PartTwoEverylettershouldbedated.Neversendoutaletterwithoutadate.Ifyouaregivinginformation,suchasshippingordeliveryorappointmentdates,itisvitalthatthedateshouldbecorrect.Thepositionofthedateisoftenoneortwolinesbelowthereferencenumberorletterhead(ifthereisnoreferencenumber).Itcanbeputeitherontheleftortherightmargin,dependingonthestyleyoudecidetouse.Remembertoalwaystypethedateinfull.Itisunwisetoabbreviatethenameofthemonthorshowthedateinfigureslike8/9/2007or9/8/2007asthismaycausesomeconfusions.ThisisbecausetheBritishandAmericanformsdifferanddonotreadthedayandthemonthinthesameorder.e.g.September8,2007—Americanform8thSeptember,2007—Britishform3.Date(日期)PartTwoItconsistsofthenameandaddressofthereceiver.Itappearsexactlythesamewayasontheenvelope.Insidenameandaddressarealwaysputattheleftmarginatleasttwolinesbelowthedate.Whenthereceiverisacompany,typethenameofthecompanydirectly.Whentheappropriateheadofdepartmentisknown,addressthelettertothembytheirofficialtitle.e.g.TheSalesManagerTheSpaceEngineeringCo.,Ltd.830W.LauridsenBoulevardPortAngeles,WA98363USA4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)(1)PartTwoWhenthecompanyisnamedafteroneormorepersons,e.g.James,SmithCo.;Brown&WhiteBros.,etc.,theword“Messrs”,thepluralof“Mr.”andtheabbr.of“Messieurs”,hastobeused.e.g.Messrs.Harrison&Co.32,DukeStreetLondonN.W.4England4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)(2)Ifthereceiverisanindividualinthecompany,theperson’snameshouldbeprecededbythecourtesytitle,i.e.“Mr.”,“Mrs.”,“Miss”or“Ms.”.Ifyouarenotsurewhetherornotthewomantowhomyouarewritingismarried,use“Ms.”.Thistitleisnowperfectlyacceptable,especiallyinviewofthefactthatmanycareerwomenpreferit.e.g.PartTwoMs.SarahDavisSalesManager369LincolnStreetSeattle,WA98362USA4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)(3)Iftheletterisaddressedtothecompanybutdirectedtotheattentionofanindividual,taketheformof“ATTN”.e.g.Messrs.RichardThomas&BaldwinsLtd.,150GowerStreetLondonW.1.EnglandAttn:Mr.JohnSmith,SalesManager(由銷售經(jīng)理約翰·史密斯先生親閱)(ATTN=Attention=fortheattentionof)PartTwoThesalutationisthepolitegreetingwithwhichaletterbegins.Itshouldbeplacedtwolinesbelowtheinsideaddress.Therearemanyformsofsalutationinabusinessletter.Theparticularformuseddependsuponthewriter’srelationshipwiththereceiver.Tosomeextent,thesalutationsettlestheformofthecomplimentaryclose.Thecustomarygreetinginabusinessletteris“DearMr./Mrs./Ms./Miss...(姓)”or“Dear...(名)”.“DearSirs”or“Gentlemen”isusedwhentheletterisnotaddressedtoaspecificperson.Notethat“Gentlemen”isseldomusednowadaysand“Sirs”cannotbeusedalone.Quiteoftennowcompaniesareownedand/ormanagedbywomen,anditismoreandmorecustomarytousethegreeting“DearMadamorSir”,ifthewriterisnotsurewhethertheletterwillbereadbyamanorawoman.Whateveritsformis,thesalutationalwaysappearsonalinebyitselfandisfollowedbyacommaoracolon.5.TheSalutation(稱呼)PartTwoThesubjectlineisofteninsertedbetweenthesalutationandthebodyoftheletter,eitherbeginningattheleftmarginorthecentre,dependingonwhichstyleyouareusing.Thesubjectlinehelpstoinviteattentiontothetopicoftheletter.Itisespeciallyusefuliftwocompanieshavealotofcorrespondencewitheachotheronavarietyofsubjects,asitimmediatelytellswhattheletterisabout.Itisalsousefulasaguideforfiling.Itcanbeginwithorwithout“Re:”or“Subject:”.Sometimes,youcanseethesubjectlineisunderlined.Nomatterwhattheformis,itshouldalwaysdenotewhattheletterisabout.e.g.Re:SewingMachinesSubject:SewingMachinesSewingMachines6.TheSubjectLine(事由標(biāo)題)PartTwoThispartcontainstheactualmessageoftheletter.Itshouldbegintwolinesbelowthesubjectlineortwolinesbelowthesalutationifthereisnosubjectline.Usually,itisdividedintothreeparts:opening,actualmessageandclosing.Thebodyofthelettershouldbecarefullyplannedandparagraphed.Theopeningistogivethereasonofwritingandoftenrefertopreviouscorrespondence.Theactualmessageistospecifythewriter’sconcretepurposes,requirementsandwishes.Theclosingistoexpressthanksandanticipationsforfutureactionsorplans.Sometimestheclosingmaybeusedtosumupthemessageandtosuggestthewriter’srequirementstothereceiver.7.TheBodyoftheLetter(正文)PartTwoThecomplimentarycloseismerelyapolitewayofbringingalettertoaclose.Itisusuallyplacedtwoorfourlinesbelowthelastlineofthebodyoftheletter.Therearemanydifferentcomplementaryclosesthatshowrespect,butitshouldmatchthesalutation.Themostcommonsetsofsalutationandcomplimentarycloseareasfollows:SalutationComplimentaryCloseCommentDearSir(s),DearMadam,DearMesdames,DearSirorMadamYoursfaithfully,Faithfullyyours,Formal—ItisverycommonlyusedinBritain,butseldomusedinAmericaandCanada.8.TheComplimentaryClose(結(jié)尾敬語(yǔ)/套語(yǔ))(1)PartTwoSalutationComplimentaryCloseCommentDearSir(s),DearMadam,DearMesdames,DearSirorMadam:1.Yourstruly,Trulyyours,Formal—ItwasonceanOKandcommonusageinAmericaandCanada.Butnotverycommoninmodernbusinessletters.2.Sincerelyyours,Yourssincerely,Sincerely,Itwasonceinformal—usuallyusedbetweenpersonsknowntoeachother.Butnowadays,itismoreandmorecommonlyusedinbusinesslettersevenbetweenpersonsunknowntoeachotherinmodernAmericaandCanada.

DearMr(姓),DearMs(姓),Sincerelyyours,Yourssincerely,Sincerely,Dear...(名),

(With)Bestwishes,(With)Bestregard,Informal—usedbetweenclosefriends.8.TheComplimentaryClose(結(jié)尾敬語(yǔ)/套語(yǔ))(2)PartTwoThesignatureisthesignednameormarkofthepersonwritingtheletterorthatofthefirmheorsherepresents.Alllettersmustbesignedandalettershouldbesignedbyhand,andinink.Unsignedlettershavenoauthorityandaletter“signed”witharubberstampisaformofdiscourtesy.Theplaceofthesignaturewilldependonthelayoutoftheletterbutisalwaysunderthecomplimentaryclose.Usually,thenameofthesigneristypedbelowthesignaturebecausemanyhandwrittensignaturesareillegible,andthenfollowedbyhisorherjobtitleorposition.Ifthewriterrepresentsacertaininstitute,thenameoftheinstitutewillbeprintedabovethesignature.e.g.Yoursfaithfully,TheOverseasCo.,Ltd.(Signature)JohnBellGeneralManager,SalesDepartment9.TheSignature(落款)PartTwoSometimes,thereferencenotation,whichisalsounderstoodasidentificationmark,canalsobeaddedtwolinesbelowthetypedsignature.Thereferencenotationusuallyshowsonlytheinitialsofthetypist,butitcanalsobemadeupoftheinitialsofthepersonwhodictatedtheletterandthoseofthesecretaryortypistifthedirector’snameisnottypedinthesignaturearea.Theinitialsofthedirectorordictatorareusuallyincapitalletters.Thetwosetsareseparatedbyacolonoraslant.e.g.forBillClinton(manager)andNancyBrown(secretary).Thefollowingexamplesareacceptableformsofthereferencenotation:BC:nbBC/nbInternet10.TheReferenceNotation(經(jīng)辦人代號(hào))PartTwoIfanydocumentssuchascatalogues,pricelists,order,copiesoffax,etc.aresentwithaletter,itisnecessarytoaddenclosurenotationtoremindthereceiver.Theenclosurenotationisusuallyplacedtwolinesbelowthesignatureattheleftmargin.Themarkingmaybeinanyofthefollowingways:Enclosure:3copiesof... Encl.3cataloguesEnc.1invoice Encls:asstatedWhencopiesoftheletteraresenttoothers,youneedtousethecarboncopynotationbelowanyenclosurenotationattheleftmargin.Itisusedtoshowthattheletterhasbeensenttosomeonerelevant.Themarkingmaybeinanyofthefollowingways,c.c./cc/bcc—blindcarboncopy.e.g.c.c.Mr.J.Cooper11.EnclosureNotation(附件)12.CarbonCopyNotation(抄送)PartTwoApostscriptisusedtoemphasizeapointtowhichthewriterwantstodrawthereader’sattention.Itisnotforapointthatthewriterforgottomentioninthebodyoftheletter.Rewritetheletterinsteadofusingapostscriptifyouforgottomentionsomething.Sometimes,thepostscriptcanbeaddedbysomeexecutivesinpenandinkforthepurposeofaddingapersonaltouchtotheirtypewrittenletter.ThemarkingwordofpostscriptisP.S.andshouldbeplacedatleasttwolinesbelowanyothernotationandflushedwiththeleftmargin.Ofallthe13parts,sevenarestandard,principalandnecessary.Thesepartsincludetheletterhead,theinsideaddress,thedate,thesalutation,thebodyoftheletter,thecomplimentarycloseandthesignature.Theothersareoptionalparts.Thesepartsmaybeunnecessaryforsomelettersandchosenasthewriterwishes.Somelettersmaycontainoneormoreoftheoptionalparts,dependingonthedifferentsituationofeachwritingrequirement.13.Postscript(附言/注)PartThreeAlthoughformalityinbusinessletterwritingisrapidlygivingwaytoalessconventionalandfriendlierstyle,thelayoutormechanicalstructureofaletterasitiscalledstillfollowsamoreorlesssetpatterndeterminedbycustomandnotresultingfromanydeliberateplan.Choiceoflayoutisamatterofindividualtaste,butitisbettertofollowestablishedpractice,towhichthebusinessworldhasbecomeaccustomed.Agoodplantomakecorrectpracticehabitualistoadoptoneformoflayoutandtosticktoit.Basically,therearefouracceptableformats/layouts/stylesforbusinessletters.Eachpartofabusinessletterhastobesetinthepaperasfollowsinaccordancewiththeparticularformatoftheletter.PartThreeThisisatraditionalstyle.Itisseldomusedinmodernbusinessletterwriting.

1.Letterhead(信頭)

2.ReferenceNumber(參考號(hào)/發(fā)文編號(hào))3.Date(日期)4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)

5.TheSalutation(稱呼)

6.TheSubjectLine(事由標(biāo)題)7.TheBodyoftheLetter(正文)

1.IndentedStyle/Semi-blockStyle(1)PartThree

8.TheComplimentaryClose(結(jié)尾敬語(yǔ)/套語(yǔ))9.TheSignature(落款)10.TheReferenceNotation(經(jīng)辦人代號(hào))11.EnclosureNotation(附件)12.CarbonCopyNotation(抄送)13.Postscript(附言/注)1.IndentedStyle/Semi-blockStyle(2)PartThreeThisisapopularstyleinrecentyears.1.Letterhead(信頭)2.ReferenceNumber(參考號(hào)/發(fā)文編號(hào))3.Date(日期)4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)5.TheSalutation(稱呼)6.TheSubjectLine(事由標(biāo)題)7.TheBodyoftheLetter(正文)2.Full-blockStyle

(1)PartThree8.TheComplimentaryClose(結(jié)尾敬語(yǔ)/套語(yǔ))9.TheSignature(落款)10.TheReferenceNotation(經(jīng)辦人代號(hào))11.EnclosureNotation(附件)12.CarbonCopyNotation(抄送)13.Postscript(附言/注)2.Full-blockStyle

(2)PartThreeThisstyleappealstomanyreaders.

1.Letterhead(信頭)

2.ReferenceNumber(參考號(hào)/發(fā)文編號(hào))3.Date(日期)4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)

5.TheSalutation(稱呼)

6.TheSubjectLine(事由標(biāo)題)7.TheBodyoftheLetter(正文)

3.Modified-blockStyle

(1)PartThree8.TheComplimentaryClose(結(jié)尾敬語(yǔ)/套語(yǔ))9.TheSignature(落款)10.TheReferenceNotation(經(jīng)辦人代號(hào))11.EnclosureNotation(附件)12.CarbonCopyNotation(抄送)13.Postscript(附言/注)3.Modified-blockStyle

(2)PartThree1.Letterhead(信頭)2.ReferenceNumber(參考號(hào)/發(fā)文編號(hào))3.Date(日期)4.InsideNameandAddress(信內(nèi)地址)

5.TheSalutation(稱呼)

6.TheSubjectLine(事由標(biāo)題)7.TheBodyoftheLetter(正文)

4.Combined-formStyle

(1)Thisisalsoknownasmodified-blockstylewithindentedparagraphs.Itisalsooneoftheacceptablestyles.PartThree

8.TheComplimentaryClose(結(jié)尾敬語(yǔ)/套語(yǔ))9.TheSignature(落款)10.TheReferenceNotation(經(jīng)辦人代號(hào))11.EnclosureNotation(附件)12.CarbonCopyNotation(抄送)13.Postscript(附言/注)4.Combined-formStyle

(2)PartFourThethreeimportantrequirementsofenvelopesaddressingareaccuracy,clearnessandgoodappearance.Theaddressontheenvelopeandtheinsideaddressonthelettershouldbeinthesamestyleandpresentthesameinformation.Remembertousethecorrespondent’sfulladdress,includingtheposttownfollowedbythecountrynameandpostcode;bothshouldbetypedinblockcapitals.Typewordssuchas“Street”,“Road”,“Avenue”,“Boulevard”,etc.infull.Postnotationsuchas“Registered”,“Urgent”,“ViaAirMail”,“Certified”,“Confidential”,“Private”,etc.shouldbeplacedinthebottomleft-handcorner.Nopunctuationisusedexceptforabbreviations.Thefollowingexamplesofanenvelopeillustraterespectivelythedifferentstyles.PartFour1.TheCommonBlockedStyle(usedmostforbusiness)GuangzhouForeignTradingCorp.599DongfengRoadGuangzhou,Guangdong,China OverseasTradingCo. 24ParkStreet LondonEC4 EnglandUrgentStampPartFour2.TheCommonIndentedStyleGuangzhouForeignTradingCorp.599DongfengRoadGuangzhou,Guangdong,China OverseasTradingCo. 24ParkStreet LondonEC4 EnglandRegisteredStampPartFour3.TheUsageof“C/O”or“Careof”GuangzhouForeignTradingCorp.599DongfengRoadGuangzhou,Guangdong,China Mr.LiuHaiC/OOverseasTradingCo. 24ParkStreet LondonEC4 EnglandByAirMailStamp“C/O”,whichcanalsobewrittenas“c/o”or“careof”,hastobeusedwhenaletterismailedtoathirdperson(ororganization)whoisboundtopassitontotheaddressee.Thisexampleshowsthewayofaddressinginsuchacircumstance.PartFour4.TheUsageof“ByKindnessof...”or“ThroughtheCourtesyof...”

GuangzhouForeignTradingCorp.599DongfengRoadGuangzhou,Guangdong,China Mr.LiuHai ThroughtheCourtesyofJohnSmithPri