毕业设计论文外语系从关联理论角度分析商务信函模糊语

滨州学院本科毕业设计（论文）PAGEPAGEI从关联理论角度分析商务信函模糊语摘要模糊是语言的基本属性之一，它广泛存在于人类的语言交际中。关联理论认为，语言交际是个明示推理过程，发话人应该提供尽可能关联的信息，使听话人能够以最小的努力去理解发话人的含义，达到最佳的语境效果。本文从关联理论角度探析外贸英文信函中的模糊语现象，运用关联理论首先解释了商务英语信函中的语言模糊现象，然后以真实的商务信函为例子，探讨了写信人如何使用模糊语言明示话语信息，实现最佳关联，以准确表达交际意图，达到交际目的，使贸易双方之间达成互明，实现成功交际的目的。第一章为文献综述，主要介绍了有关模糊语言的理论研究和商务信函特征，包括什么是商务信函以及商务信函的特征有哪些，第二章为探讨关联理论以及关联理论有哪些原则，第三章为从关联理论角度分析商务信函中的模糊语言。利用关联理论分析了商务信函模糊语言的功能。第四章主要总结了本篇论文的局限性以及意义。此篇论文旨在使商务交际中的贸易双更好的交际与理解对方，使得交际双方更好的使用模糊与建立良好的商务关系。 关键词：商务英语信函；模糊语；关联理论PAGEPAGEIIAnalysisofVaguenessinBusinessCorrespondenceLanguagefromthePerspectiveofRelevance-theoreticApproachAbstractVaguenessisoneofthebasicattributesoflanguage,itwidelyexistsinhumanlanguagecommunication.RelevanceTheoryproposesthatcommunicationisanostensive-inferentialprocessandthecommunicatorshouldprovidethemostrelevantinformationsothattheaudiencecanunderstandthecommunicator’sintentionwiththeleasteffort.Usingarelevance-theoreticalframework，thepaperfirstelaboratestheapplicationofvaguenessinbusinesscorrespondencesandthenexploreshowvagueexpressionsallowawritertoconveythecommunicativeintentionspreciselybyprocessingcorrectlytheoptimalrelevanceintherealbusinesscorrespondences.Thuswecanachievesuccessfulcommunication.Thefirstchapterisliteraturereviewwhichreviewspreviousstudiesonvaguenessanddeterminesthedefinitionandthefeaturesofbusinesscorrespondence.Thesecondchapterisaboutrelevancetheoryandprinciplesofrelevancetheory.Thethirdchapterisanalysisofvaguelanguageofbusinesscorrespondenceinrelevantapproach,explainingthefunctionofvaguelanguagefromtheperspectiveofrelevanttheory.Thefourthchapteristhesignificancesandlimitations,Inthischapter,theauthorpointedoutthelimitationsofthestudyandsuggestedfurtherresearchpossibilities.Theaimofthepaperistoachievebettercommunicationwitheachotherinbusinesscommunication.Keywords:businesscorrespondence;vagueness;relevanttheoryPAGE19ContentsTOC\o"1-2"\f\uIntroduction 1ChapterOneLiteratureReview 21.1Englishbusinesscorrespondence 21.2Vagueness 3ChapterTwoIntroductionofRelevanceTheory 62.1Overviewofrelevancetheory 62.2Principlesofrelevancetheory 7ChapterThreeAnalysisofVaguenessinBusinessCorrespondenceLanguagefromthePerspectiveofRelevance-theoreticApproach 63.1TheinterpretationofrelevancetheorytothevaguelanguageinEnglishbusinesscorrespondence 93.2ThewaysforsenderusingvaguelanguagetoexpressexplicitinformationtorecipientinEnglishbusinesscorrespondence 11ChapterFourTheSignificancesandLimitations 154.1Significances 154.2Limitations 15Conclusion 16Bibliography 16IntroductionDomesticandforeignscholarshavehadprofounddiscussionsaboutthevaguenessinlanguage.Inforeigncountries,theEnglishfamousphoneticianD.Jonesrealizedthevagueattributeoflanguageearlyin1957.In1965,professorZadehintheUniversityofCaliforniamostearlyproposedthevaguetheoryinhisessaycalled“FuzzySet”publishedinthemagazinenamedInformationandControlandstartedthenewdisciplineofvaguenesslanguage.InChina,professorWuinBeijingNormalUniversityfirstresearchedthevagueattributeoflanguageusingvaguetheoriesinhisthesiscalled“ThePrimaryResearchofVagueLanguagein1979andwrotethebookofVagueLinguistics,thushestartedthefuzzylinguisticsofChina,whichsymbolizethebirthofvaguelinguisticsinChina.Nowadays,vaguenessiswidelyusedinallareassuchaslaw,economy,andteaching.Businesscorrespondencecharacterizedbythecorrectnessoflanguage,theclearnessandorderlinessoflogicofthinking,theprecisenessofstructurearenoexception.Vaguelanguagetransmitsinformationusingvaguenessinitself,theuncertaintyofwhichisoftenexpressedbythewayofimplicitness,objectivity,preciseness,andpoliteness,thesefeaturescanimprovethecommunicativeeffect.Tosomeextent,vaguenessplaysanirreplaceableroleinEnglishbusinesscorrespondence.Theappropriateuseofthelanguagepolicytoolsorskillscanhelpustoachievetheoptimalrelevance.Usingtheframeworkofrelevanttheory,thispapertrestodiscussthephenomenonofvaguenessinEnglishbusinesscorrespondence.Basedontherealcorrespondence,thepaperalsoanalyzeshowthesendersselectandusevaguelanguagetoachieveoptimalrelevance,inordertoachievesuccessfulcommunicationpurpose.ChapterOneLiteratureReviewInthischapter,theauthorfirstlyhaveabriefintroductionofbusinessEnglishcorrespondence.Andthenanoverviewofvaguenessaswellasitspragmaticanalysis.1.1Englishbusinesscorrespondence1.1.1DefinitionofEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceCorrespondenceistheactofexchanginglettersortheletterswhichpassbetweencorrespondents.Businesscorrespondentscanbedefinedasthecorrespondenceusedinbusinesstransaction,inwhichtheparticipantsarecommonlyregardastheaddresserandtheaddressee.Inbusinesscommunication,businesscorrespondenceisusedtosellproductsorservices,requestmaterialorinformation,answercustomerinquiries,maintaingoodpublicrelations,andserveavarietyofotherbusinessfunctions(Channel1994:20).1.1.2FeaturesofEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceisaneffectivewaytoexpressandkeepinformationinbusinesscontacts,whichcanberoughlydividedintothefollowingparts:Lettertoestablishbusinessrelations,Informationadvisoryletter,Valuationandquotationletter,Letterfotorder,Processingbusinessletter,Claimsandcomplaintsletterafterbusinesstransactions.Businesslettersatemoreformalofficialdocumentswithcorrectwordsandsuccinctwritingstyle.BusinesscorrespondencegenerallyfollowsthewritingprinciplesofbusinessEnglish,thatis,“7cs”principle:Correctness,Conciseness,Clearness,Completeness,Concreteness,Courtesy,Consideration(Sperber&Wilson1986:40).BusinessEnglishmustbeexpressedaccuratelyandclearlytoconveyinformationandbecarefulofusingmetaphor,hyperboleandsoon.Itshouldtrytoavoidusinguncertainwords,inordertoavoidunnecessarydisputes,becausebusinesslettersareusuallyusedtobethebasisofdeterminingtherightsandobligationsoftheparties.1.2Vagueness1.2.1OverviewofvaguenessThestudyonvaguenesshasbeenalongtime.Butthereisn’tanuniformdefinitionuptonow.AsthefamousphilosopherPiercefirstpointedoutin1902,“Apropositionisvaguewheretherearepossiblestatesofthingsconcerningwhichitisintrinsicallyuncertainwhether,hadtheybeencontemplatedbythespeaker,hewouldhaveregardedthemasexcludedorallowedbytheproposition”(Pierce,1902:749).CrystalandDavyfromtheperspectiveofAppliedLinguistic,pointedoutfourreasonsthatlanguageusersusevaguelanguage.Thereasonsarethelackofmemory,lackofaccurateandappropriatewords,inaccuratetopic,intentexpressionforspecificmeaningoravoidingstatementingaccurateinformation.Channell(1994:20)proposedthreekindsofvagueness:(1)additionalvaguewords,referstothewordswhichareaddedbeforeorafterthewords,inordertomakestatementsbecomeblurred.Like,around,some,kindof,nearlyandsoon.(2)vaguewords,referstothemeaningofwordsthatarevagueinitself.Like,thingummy,whatsit,loads,heapsofandsoon.(3)vagueimplication,referstoaccurateexpressionthatcontainsfuzzyimplication.Like,Odessahasapopulationofonemillion.Theonemillionisanaccuratenumberwhichdoesn’tmeanthepopulationofthecityisreallyonemillion.Withthefurtherstudyofvagueness,peoplegraduallyrealizetheimportantanduniquepragmaticfeaturesinlanguagecommunication.Suchas,itcanmakelanguagemorepersuasiveandpolite,orthespeakerforself-protectiondeliberatelyusesvaguelanguagetocoverspecificinformation.Therefore,vaguenessisnotonlyalinguisticphenomenon,butalsoalanguagestrategy.Nowadays,internationaltradeisincreasinglyfrequent,businessEnglishlettershavebecomeanimportantmeansofcommunicationintheeconomicfield.1.2.2PragmaticanalysisofvaguenessinbusinesscorrespondenceBeingpolite.Languagecommunicationisanecessarymeanstoexchangefeelings.Infrontofthefeelingsofthings,vaguenesscanharmonizetherelationship.TheprimarybasisofEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceisappropriateandpolitelanguage,theuseofvaguewordscanmakewordseuphemisticandgentle.Especiallyforsomesensitivetopics,suchas,theinterestsofbothsides,thefocusofconflict.Vaguenesscanavoidconflictsandmakediversionaryeffect.Sometimesforthemoderateandcourtesyconsideration,theuseofvaguenessisgoodforbothpartiesoftrade.Example1:Ifpossible,pleasealsosendmesamplesofthegoodsyouareinterestedinselling(LiLi,2008:231-233).Thewriterreallyhopesthatthereadercansendhimthesamplesheisinterestedinassoonaspossible.Butthedirectexpressionwillmakewordscrude,leavinganuncomfortablefeelingforthereader.Using“ifpossible”herecanmakewordsmoreeuphemisticandgentle.Beingpersuasive.Oneofthebasicrequirementsofbusinessletteristrueandcorrect.Basedonthissituation,usingvaguenesscanbemorelikelytoarousethereader’sinterestorpersuadethemtoaccepthisviews.Example2:Weareverywellconnectedwithallthemajordealershereofindustrialproducts(YuGuixia,2007:12).Additionalvaguelanguage”verywell”makestherelationshipbetweenthewriterandthereadercloser,thisrelationshiphasmadeagoodfoundationforbilateralcooperation.Thevaguenessheremakesthewholestatementmorepersuasive.Lackofspecificinformation.AmericanphilosopherH.P.GricepointedoutinaseriesoflecturesinHarvardUniversityin1976,intheprocessofcommunication,inordertoguaranteethesmoothprogressofthesession,bothsidesmustabidebysomebasicprinciples,namelytheCooperativePrinciple.Andheputforwardfourcriteriaorimplementationsofcooperativeofprinciple:themaximofquantity,themaximofquality,applicablestandardsandmannermaxim.Amongthem,themaximofqualityrequirestomaketheinformationprovidedtrueandnottospeakfalsewords,orthewordslackofevidence.Becauseoftheobjectivethingsthemselveswithuncertainty,whenwriterlacksenoughinformation,theuseofvaguenesscanmakestatementmoreobjective,accurateandcanmakethestatementkind.Example3:Wewouldbeinterestedinreceivingyourinquiresforallkindsofchemicals(YuGuixia,2007:12).Using”allkindsof“theadditionalvaguewordreflectsthatthewriterdoesn’tknowwhatkindofinformationthereaderareinterestedin,atthesametime,hehopestoestablishagoodbusinessrelationshipwiththeoppositeparty.Self-protection.Oneofthemostimportantpurposesoftheuseofvaguelanguageinbusinesscorrespondenceistostrengthenself-protection.Inbusinessactivities,becausethingsareunpredictableandchangeableandsoon,thewriteroftencan’tgiveaccurateanswerintermsofcustomer’srequirements.Insuchcircumstances,thewriterhadbetterusevaguelanguagetoavoidwronganswerandtheimpactoftheirowninterests.Inaddition,iftheclientsthemselvesrequiretobearsomeresponsibility,ortheinformationprovidedbythemwillmakenegativeeffectstoothercustomerstosomeextentorwillproducedirecteconomicloss,thistimeusingvaguenessisaverygoodmeansforself-protection.Example4:Thisproductmaybeofmagicinthetemporaryreliefofthesymptomscommonlyassociatedwithfrozenshoulder(YuGuixia,2007:12).Thewriterpromotesthemagicpowertothereader,buttheuseof“may”makesthegoodcommitmenttothisproductvague.Therefore,eventhoughtheproductisinvalid,thewriterdoesn’tneedtoassumeanyresponsibility.Thiswayavoidsthewriterbeinginalegaldisputesandindirectlystrengtheningtheself-protection.Providingperfectinformation.ThequantityofmaximinGrice”cooperativeprinciple”requeststheamountisneithermorenorlessandmeettheneedforlanguagecommunication.Oneoftherequirementsofbusinessletterwritingisconciseness.Vaguenesssometimesexpressesakindofuncertaintywhichwillimprovetheexpressionefficiencyandmakethestatementconcise.Especiallyforbusinesspeople,timeisprecious,moreinformationthataccuratelanguageconveyswilllowerefficiencyoftheirreading.Example5:WehavemadeselectionsandhavethepleasureofgivingyouthefollowingorderonusualtermsforshipmenttoSydney(Zadeh,1965:338-353).“Usualterms”isavagueimplication.Heredoesn’tinvolveanyoftheshippingterms,becausecooperationbetweenthetwosideshasbeenalongtime,bothsideshavereachedaconsensusfortermsrelatedtoshipping,sotheydon’tneedtorepeatthedetailclauses.“Usualterms”makesthestatementclearandconciseandsavestimeofbothsides.Notwantingtoprovidedetails.Inbusinessletterswriting,oneofpurposesofintentionaluseofvaguenessbywriterisnottowanttoprovidedetails.Theymaybefortheconsiderationoftheneedfortheprotectionofcommercialsecretsorforgivingtheotheraspaceforimaginationtoarousehisinterests.Thustheirbusinessrelationscanbesteadyandthepurposeofonestepbacktodayforthetwostepsforwardtomorrowcanbereached.Example6:Weareverywellconnectedwithallthemajordealershereofindustrialproducts(LiLi,2008:231-233).Additionalvagueword“major”coverstheinformationofsupplierswithwhichthewriterhasestablishedgoodrelationships.Tothereader,nomatterhowlargehisscaleis,theothermayincludehimselfintothemainsupplierofthecolumn.Thisoffersagoodstartforcooperationofbothsides.ChapterTwoIntroductionofRelevanceTheoryInthischapter,theauthorwillintroducerelevancetheoryfromtheperspectiveofoverviewanditsprinciples.2.1OverviewofrelevancetheorySperber&WilsonputforwardtwoimportantconceptsinRelevance:CommunicationandCognition(Sperber&Wilson,1986:40):CognitiveRelevanceandCommunicativeAssociation,theyarecollectivelycalledRelevanceTheory,whichbringsnewresearchpointsofviewtoPragmatics.AccordingtoRelevanceTheory,humancognitioncoincideswithmaximalrelevance,whichisCognitionRelevance.Andeachovertcommunicativebehaviorshouldbeconceivedthatthiscommunicativeactitselfhastheoptimalrelevance,whichisCommunicativeAssociation.Inotherwords,humancognitionisbasedonmaximalrelevance,languagecommunicationisbasedonoptimalrelevance.Themaximalrelevancereferstothehearerspayaslittleaspossibletogetthegreatestcontextualeffect,whiletheoptimalrelevancereferstothediscourseusersobtainadequatecontextualeffectsafterpayingeffectiveefforts.Thehearersarenottofindthemaximalrelevanceinlanguagecommunication,buttheoptimalrelevance.2.2Principlesofrelevancetheory2.2.1ThecognitiveprincipleofrelevanceHumancognitiontendstogeartothemaximizationofrelevance.Humanbeingsautomaticallyturntheirattentiontowhatseemsmostrelevanttothem.Humancognitionisnotonlyrelevance-oriented,butalsoorientedtowardsthehighestpossiblerelevancewhenprocessinginputs.Inotherwords,humanbeingshaveanaturaltendencytowardsgreaterefficiency-obtainingthebestpossiblerewardinexchangeforthecognitiveexpenditure(JiaYongqing,2006:32-40).2.2.2TheCommunicativePrincipleofRelevanceThecommunicativeprincipleofrelevanceisageneralizationaboutostensive-inferentialcommunication.Whenthecommunicatorostensivelyattractstheaddressee’sattention,hecreatesapresumptionthattheostensivestimulusisoptimallyrelevant.Tobeoptimallyrelevant,thestimulusheproducesmustbethemosteconomicalonehecouldhavechosentoachievetheintendedeffects.Thatis,theutterance,onagiveninterpretation,musthelptheaddresseeachieveadequateeffectswithonunjustifiableeffort.Acommunicatorwhointendstoproducearelevantutterancehastworelatedaims:creatingsomecontextualeffectsinthehearerandminimizingtheprocessingeffortforthehearer.Butcommunicatorsshouldnotalwaysbeexpectedtogivethemostrelevantpossibleinformation,ortopresentitintheleasteffort-demandingway.Whatcanbeonlyexpectedisthatostensivecommunicatorstrytobeoptimallyrelevant.Theprincipleofrelevancemakesitpossibletoderiverichandprecisenon-demonstrativeinferencesaboutthecommunicator’sinformativeintention.Withtheprinciple,whatisrequiredisthatthepropertiesoftheostensivestimulusshouldsetheinferentialprocessontherighttrack(JiaYongqing,2006:32-40).ChapterThreeAnalysisofVaguenessinBusinessCorrespondenceLanguagefromthePerspectiveofRelevance-theoreticApproachTherearetwopartsinthischapter,thischapteristhecomplexityofvagueness,relevancetheoryandbusinesscorrespondence.Theauthorwillanalyzethepragmaticuseofvaguelanguagebasedonrelevancetheory.Thisisthemostimportantpartinthewholepaper.3.1TheinterpretationofrelevancetheorytothevaguelanguageinEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceAsawrittenformalstyle,thepurposeofbusinessEnglishcorrespondenceisclear,exactandspecific.Butsometimesforsomespecificpragmaticfunctions,vaguenessoflanguageisalsoneededinwritinginordertomakeitmoreappropriateandcomplete.AsZhugeLin(1981:25)pointed,notallforeigntradelettersarecorrect,insomecertaincircumstances,foreigntradelettersareallowednotonlytobegeneral,butalsotobemoregeneral.Theauthorwillexplorewhyandhowthetwosidesoftradechoosefuzzylanguagetocompletetheexpectedcommunicativepurpose.AccordingtothecommunicativeprincipleofrelevanceproposedbySperber&Wilson(1985:153-171),communicativeactivityisadynamicprocesswithpurposeandwiththeexpressionofspeakerandtheinferenceofhearer.“expression”and“inference”aretwoaspectsofcommunicationprocess.Expressionmeansthatspeakerencodesandexpressesintentionbysomewaythatmakeshearer“manifest”intermsofspeaker;whileintermsofhearer,“inference”refersto“anactthatspeakerexplicitlyexpressesintentiontohearer”(Sperber&Wilson,1985:153-171).Intheprocessofcommunication,thespeakernotonlyexpressessomeliteralinformationtothelistener,butalsoconveysthemeaningbehindthewordstothelistener,whichwecallthecommunicativeintention.Inforeignbusinessletters,senderusesvaguenessbecauseitcanproviderecipientanoptimalrelevance,accordingtowhichrecipientcanmakeproperinferencesoastorealizethecommunicationintentionofsender.Thiskindofcommunicativeeffectwhichvaguenessmakesiswhatpreciselanguagecannotreach.Forexample:Iregrettosaythatwecannotagreetoyourrequestfortechnicalinformationregardingoursoftwaresecuritysystems.Thefactis,thatmostofourcompetitorsalsokeepsuchinformationprivateandconfidential(WuLing,2008:166).Firstwecanfindoutthatthesenderwantstherecipienttoextractfromtheutterancetheinformationthatwerefuseyourrequestfortechnicalinformation.Butinordertomaintainthetraderelationshipbetweenthetwopartiesandnottobreakitfortheotherside’srequirementisnotmet,thesenderuses“mostofourcompetitorsalsokeepsuchinformationprivateandconfidential”tomakeinformationvaguefortheimplicitnessofdiscourse.Thiskindofexpressionneitherpointsoutspecificallywhichcompetitorsareinit,nordirectlyshowthatherejectstheotherparty’srequest,andtherecipientdoesn’thavetopayextraefforttocometoaconclusionthatthesenderrefusestoprovidetechnicalinformation.Sperber&Wilson(1985:153-171)pointedout,inordertoreducetheeffortstheprocessofdiscoursecomprehension,thespeakermustletthehearertoobtainenoughassociation,soastoachievetheoptimalrelevance.Theuseofeuphemismexpressionofvaguenessincertainoccasionsinthecourseoflanguagecommunicationmustmakehearerunderstandthecommunicativeintentionthustocompletethewholecommunicativepurpose.Forexample:Atpresent,weareinterestedinextendingourrangeandwouldappreciateyourcataloguesandquotations.Ifyourpricesarecompetitivewewouldexpecttotransactasignificantvolumeofbusiness(Sperber&Wilson,1985:153-171).Inthissample,thesenderwantstherecipienttoextractfromtheutterancetheinformationthat,ifthepricesarecompetitive,wewouldexpecttosettlebusinessrelationshipwithyou,notwantingtherecipientknowhisrangeandvolumeofbusiness,thesenderuse“extendingourrange,volumeofbusiness”tomakewordsvague,butheexpresseshisintentionwhichmakestheotherpartyobtaintheresultoftheexpectedestablishmentofbusinessrelationshipwitheffectiveefforts.Vaguelanguageisapartofnaturallanguage,ititselfisnotgoodorbad,thekeyishowtouseittocompletethelanguagecommunicationandtoachievethedesiredresults.Wecansay,thattherelevancetheoryprovidesatheoreticalbasisforthislanguagephenomenon,andmakesaconvincingexplanation.3.2ThewaysforsenderusingvaguelanguagetoexpressexplicitinformationtorecipientinEnglishbusinesscorrespondenceLettercommunicationisindirect,unlikecommercialnegotiationsthathavespecificcontextualeffect,sotheuseofvaguenessshouldbecareful,andnotbringextraburdentotheaddressee.Theuseshouldavoidtheconfusionofunderstanding.Nowtheauthorwilldividethewaysforsenderusingvaguenesstoexpressexplicitinformationtoreceiverintothefollowingthreeaspects:3.2.1SenderexpressinghispointsofviewtorecipientIntheforeigntradeletters,bothsidesintheprocessofexchangeofinformation,willinevitablyhavesomedifferences,inordertomakethecooperationbetweenthetwosidescontinue,bothsidesshouldstandinthepositionoftheothersideforhisconsiderationandrespecthisviews.Atthesametime,bothpartiesalsohavetouserightwordstoexpresstheirviewsandpositionstomeettheircommunicationintention.Throughmanymodelsamples,theauthorhavefoundthatthesender,inordertoavoidthearbitrarinessandabsolutionoflanguage,oftenusesthefirstpersonpronounsassubjecttostate,sothattherecipientcanunderstandtheotherside’scommunicativeintentionthroughinference.Forexample:Tosolvetheproblem,Iproposethatonreceiptofanorder,oursalesstaffcontactyoutoverifyit(Zadeh,1965:338-353).Thesenderusing“Ipropose”gentlyexpresseshispointofviewandemphasizesit’sjusthisownview,itmaynotbeentirelycorrect,theoppositepartyhastherighttodecidewhethertoadopt.Thiswaycanavoidexpressingwordstooabsolutelyandatthesametimecanrespecttheotherside.Ibelievecanserviceyourcompanybetterandhelpyouoperationsrunmoresmoothlywiththissafeguard(Sperber&Wilson,1985:153-171).Thesenderusing“Ibelieve”clearlyexpresseshisrealityofstatementtoreceiver,althoughitseemsthatitisthesender’ssubjectiveanalysisandjudgment,butthewordsintheletterwillnotmaketherecipientfeeltooarbitrary.Also,itprovidesthemessagetotherecipientandreducesthetimeandeffortthatinfersanprocessestheinformation.Meanwhile,thesendershowshispositionininformationcommunication.Bothsidesalsoreachconsensusstatement.1.TheGaylordboxwillholdapproximately13,000metersofwire.Whilethisismorethanyouwillneedtomakethesample.WethinkthatitwillbeusefulforAtogetusedtohandingthewireinGaylordboxes(sincethatiswhatwewilluseforproduction)(Zadeh,1965:338-353).2.Weareplanningtohavethepurchaseorderquantityof750,000meters(2,460,600feet)readyforshipmentfromWaynesborobyMarch4,2006.Thequantitymayvaryalittleaswecannotproducetotheexactnumberoffeetbutitwillbeclose(Zadeh,1965:338-353).Fromtheexample1and2wecansee,thatthewriterusesstrategicallyapproximately,mayvaryalittletomaketheexactnumbervague,becausehecan’tdeterminetheexactnumber,thevaguedegreeofapproximatelyisverylarge,whenitindicatesnumber.Itsmaximumlimitis13000meters,buttheminimumlimitcan’tmakeprecisedefinition.Becauseofthis,thewritermakesitclearthattheminimumwillbemorethantheactualdemand,andexplainsclearlyaboutthevaguenessofnumberduetotheproducts’packaging.Similarly,inexample2,thewriterusesalittleandclosetomakethenumbervague,duetotheuncertaintyofshipmentquantity.Butthesetwowordsconveytheslightdeviationcausedbytheproductionprocesssoclearlythatthereadercanunderstandandacceptit.3.AsItoldyouthisisthebestproposalBcanmakeandwouldliketohaveyouransweronthesepointsassoonaspossible,butnolaterthantomorrowafternoon(Zadeh,1965:338-353).4.IhaveaskedthefactorytosendyouthewireintheGaylordboxandwewillsendyouthedetailsoftheshipmentassoonasitisavailable(Zadeh,1965:338-353).Becauseofthecomplexityofinternationalbusinesslinks,thetimeinvolvedisnotwhatbothsidesofbusinesscancontrol,sothisvagueword”assoonaspossible”isafrequentlyusedwordinbusinesscorrespondence.Theexacttimeshouldbedeterminedbasedonspecificcircumstances.Sotheexample3limitstheuncertaintimetotellthethereadergivehimtheanswerassoonaspossiblebutnotlaterthantomorrowafternoon.Whenassoonascan’tlimitthetime,thewritershouldexpressthereasonwhyhemakesthefuzzinesstomakethereaderfeelhiswordssincere,appropriateandacceptable.3.2.2SenderconveyinginformationtorecipientInforeigntradeEnglishcorrespondence,bothsidesofcommunicationshouldconveythemostaccurateinformation,soastoavoidmisunderstandingandcontradict