Entry 4 : Written Discourse

Oops, so this post is coming really late, but hopefully it's still worth the read!

During the written discourse lecture, we were taught the different types of discourse patterns which different cultural groups utilise. The two which I found to be the most interesting was the circular and romance pattern which the Chinese and the French use, respectively. The oriental pattern referred to placing the most important point at the end of the sentence. On the other hand, the romance pattern refers to starting and ending with the mainpoint, however in the middle, some digression will occur which doesn't tend to link to the main point.

However, the part which struck me as the most interesting was the written discourse in the form of emails. The way in which the Chinese and the Australians approached a request through an email was very starkly different. While the Chinese would temper the email with social niceties and cushion the request with praises and compliments before coming to the point of the email, the Australians went straight to the request after a brief salutation and concluded it by signing off.

This thus made me wonder whether this would be similarly applied in the context of emailing our professors with queries and clarifications. How many of us tended to go straight into the request immediately after the salutation whilst how many would tend to engage in a spot of social niceties? I wonder which approach would be more preferable to the professor. From my point of view, most students tend to engage in the social niceties for a bit, however sometimes from their replies, I tend to get the impression that professors would rather students cut to the chase with the true intention of their email than beat around the bush. (Dr Deng, if you're reading this, what is your opinion?)

Anyhow, I personally believe that in interactions with people, certain corners especially those pertaining to politeness and etiquette should not be cut. Lasting impressions are formed during the first few interactions between two people, thus what might seem inconsequential in an email, can actually go a long way towards moulding a person's perception of us.