Chapter Seven      Specialized Writings
 
I. Letters and Resume
 
Composition rules you have learned also apply to letter-writing, but the letter writing, especially the business letter and letters of application have certain other conventions. Therefore, the chapter focuses on writing business letters and letters of application because personal letters are very informal.
 
Form of business letters
 
Any business letter you write should follow the conventional form. The sample letter on the following page shows what a business letter should look like. This is not the only possible form, but it is an acceptable one that you can use with confidence.
 
Sample letter to an editor
_______________________________________________________________________

Heading       (one blank line) Inside address             (one blank line) Salutation (one blank line)          Body of the letter                                                         (one blank line) Complimentary close

(margin) Department of applied Linguistics P.O. Box 751 Portland, Oregon 97207 August 1, 1991   Editor Foreign Language Teaching and Research Beijing Foreign Studies University 2 North Xisanhuan Avenue Beijing 100081 P. R. of China   Dear Editor:   I am sending a copy of my paper, “Teachers’ Views and Use of Western Language Methods” for possible publication in your journal. This article describes evaluation of a four-summer in-service training program at Hunan Medical University in Changsha for Chinese teachers of English. The article is based on classroom observation, questionnaires, letters and interviews with the teachers after they had completed parts of the program. The purpose was to find out whether and to what extent the teachers applied or adapted the “western” methods taught in the program.   This article may be interesting and valuable both to planners of in-service training for EFL teachers and to the teachers who participate in such training. If you prefer that the article is translated into Chinese, Prof. Chang Hua of Tongji Medical University in Wuhan has agreed to translate it.   I was one of the Americans who taught in this summer program in Changsha. I have also done teacher training workshops in Costa Rica, Germany, and Hungary. I have taught EFL for many years and currently teach in the TESOL Certificate and M.A. TESOL program at Portland State University in Oregon. I teach classes in Methodology, Language Acquisition, Culture, and Curriculum. I hope to return to Hunan Medical University in Summer 1992 to teach again in the Summer Program, which has been continued by the World Health Organization.   Please let me know if you consider this article suitable for publication in your journal and if you want me to make any changes.   Sincerely, Marjorie Terdal Marjorie Terdal, Ph. D. Professor

_____________________________________________________________________
 
Remarks on the form:
        1.Typing  Type the letter, if at all possible, single-spaced with a blank line between paragraphs. Use standard correspondence paper, 8.5 by 11 inches. Keep a carbon copy or photocopy for your own records.
2.Margins  Leave margins at the top, bottom, and sides of your paper. Margins may be wider for a short letter to give the effect of centering the letter on the page.
        Leave one or more blank lines below the date, one space between the inside address and the salutation, one space between the salutation and the body, one space between the paragraphs in the body, one space between the body and the complimentary close and four spaces for the signature.
3.Return address  The return address is placed in the upper right-hand corner, flush with the right margin. The order of the return address should be
 
Department of Applied Linguistics
Portland State University                     ←The organization
P.O. Box 751                     ←Street address (route number, or post office box number)
Portland, Oregon 97207                           ←City, state and zip code
U.S.A.                                                     ←Country
August 1, 1991                                       ←The date (month, day and year or day, month and year)
The country name should not be included if the letter mails in the country. If you are using a printed letterhead, you need to add only the date usually on the left margin (see the Reading practice in this chapter). Do not put your name in the return address; your name belongs at the end of the letter.
4.Inside Address  The inside address is to be put against the left margin. The inside address includes:
 

Editor                                                               ← Receiver

Foreign Language Teaching and          ← Agency
  Research

Beijing Foreign Studies University          ← Name of agency

2 North Xisanhuan Avenue                       ← Street address
Beijing 100081                                                 ← City, zip code
P.R. of China                                             ← Name of country
 
     For the receiver line, it is best to write a person's name (such as Mary Erwin), rather than a position (such as editor), if you know the name. You may place a short title immediately after the name separated by the comma, or a long title on a separate line. Read the Reading practice in this chapter.
5.The salutation  The salutation is against the left margin with a colon (:) after it.    (A comma is used instead in personal letters. But now a comma can be used in business letters, too.) Any of these would be acceptable:
 
Dear Mr. Martin: Dear (= Dear + title + family name)      Mrs. Martin:
Dear Dr. DeCarrico:                                                  Dear Ms. Terdal:
Dear Prof. Steven:                                                             Dear Miss Erwin:
Dear Senator John M. Steele (= Dear + title + full name)
 
If you do not know the name, you may use “Dear Sir/Madam/Sirs” or “Dear Sir or Madam.” Of course, using the name is preferable to the more impersonal “Dear Sir” or “Dear Madam.” If you know the person well, you may use the first name in a salutation:
 
Dear Joan:
Dear Jeanette:
 
If you are writing to a company rather than to an individual, you may use one of these salutations:
 
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Gentlemen:
Dear Sirs:
 
The salutation “Ladies and Gentlemen” is gaining favor because most companies and agencies now consist of women as well as men. Of course, there are some other innovative salutations:
 
To persons concerned:
To whom it may concern:
 
6.The body of letter  It includes the introductory paragraph stating the purpose of the letter, the body paragraphs which should develop it with further information, and the concluding paragraph ending on a positive note, perhaps reaffirming exactly what you wish to have done.
There are two popular forms for writing your letter: full block format and semi-block format. In the former, every line begins at the left margin. In other words, you do not indent at all, but love to leave out one blank space between two paragraphs. It is popular because it eliminates the need to tab and center. In the latter, the first line of each paragraph is indented by 3-5-7 letters.
In the business letter writing, either of the above forms is acceptable. Whether you choose semi-block format or full block format depends on your personal choice. But more and more businesses are using the full block style.
 
Semi-block Format
 

Dear Director:   While gathering data on home solar heating, I encountered references (in Scientific American and elsewhere) to your group’s pioneering work. Would you please allow me to benefit from your experience? As a graduate student…

 
Full Block Format
 

Dear director:   While gathering data on home solar heating, I encountered references (in Scientific American and elsewhere) to your group’s pioneering work. Would you please allow me to benefit from your experience?   As a graduate student…

 
7.The complimentary close  The close may be placed either at the left margin or toward the right side. Only the first word of the close is capitalized, and a comma follows. Any of these formal closings would be acceptable:
 
Sincerely yours,
Yours truly,
Very truly yours,
Respectfully yours,
Cordially yours,
Sincerely,
 
More informal inclosings, which are used in close relationships, may include the following:
 
Warm (Best) regards,
Best wishes for 1991
As ever,
Love,
 
8.The signature  You must sign your name with your signature and type your name (and your title, if it is pertinent) underneath. You put your signature to verify the truth and correctness of the letter and type it to verify the correctness of the name because the signature is usually a vague writing.
 
Letters of application and resume
 
As a student you will write some letters of application, say, for a job commonly, for a scholarship or fellowship position, for a Ph. D. degree and the others. When you write your first letter of application which is usually called the cover letter, you will have to enclose your resume. Though the form is the same as that of a business letter, it has its own features, especially in the content of the body.
In the body, you will usually put the following points clearly: the purpose of the letter and asking politely to be considered for the position, brief introduction of relevant educational background, mentioning some of the working experience, showing interest in the position you are applying for and asking for a reply or interview. It is advised that each of the above points take up one paragraph, if at all possible. 
Read the following sample letter of application.
 

Sample cover letter

______________________________________________________________________
 

Department of English Tongji Medical University 13 Hongkong Rd Wuhan 430030     P.R. of China Dec. 8, 1989   J. S. DeCarrico, Professor Dept. of Applied Linguistics Portland State University P.O. Box 751 Portland, Oregon 97207 U.S.A.   Dear Prof. DeCarrico:   My name is Chang Hua. I am an instructor in English at the Department of Foreign Languages, Tongji Medical University, Wuhan. I am writing to you about the possibility of a visiting scholar's appointment in your department in 1990.   I was a graduate of Guangzhou Foreign Languages Institute, where I completed my training for my M. A. degree. And then I received several in-service trainings as an ESL college teacher in my country.   Since my graduation in 1966, I have been working as an ESL teacher in the university. The enclosed resume will provide further details about my working experience and research work.   I have chosen to write to you because your university has an excellent reputation both at home and aboard and because I am interested in your program.   I wish I could find words to express the importance of a visiting scholar appointment, for I know how much I could learn and how much China could gain from working under the guidance of your department. If you should accept my application, the food, living and traveling expenses will be provided by my university.   Enclosed please find a brief resume of my education, teaching experience, publications and references.   Thank you for your consideration. I am looking forward to hearing from you.   Sincerely yours, Chang Hua Chang Hua, instructor   Enclosure:resume

Return address and date           Inside address         Salutation   Purpose of letter       Education         Working experience       Reason of writing     Interest in appointment                 Request for reply   Close Signature Typed name

_______________________________________________________________________
 
General rules
 
When you are writing to a business, to a chairman of a department of a university or to an editor of an academic journal, several general rules apply.
1.Conciseness It is particularly important in business letters, because businessmen arrange their business in minutes. Wasting time is wasting money.
2.Clarity     It is also important, because if you do not make your wishes clear, you may not get what you want.
3.Words      The words you choose can sound warm and friendly, or angry or just plain businesslike. For most business purposes, choose words that sound courteous and reasonable.
 
Read the following letter and discuss if it goes against the above rules.
 
A cover letter
___________________________________________________________________
                                                                                              Department of English
                                                                                              Tongji Medical University
                                                                                              13 Hongkong Rd
                                                                                              Wuhan 430030
                                                                                              P.R. of China
                                                                                              Dec. 8, 1989
 
J. S. DeCarrico, Professor
Dept. of Applied Linguistics                                                      
Portland State University                                                    
P.O. Box 751
Portland, Oregon 97207
U.S.A.
 
Dear Prof. DeCarrico:
                                        
May I take the liberty to introduce myself to you? My name's Chang Hua. I graduated from the Guangzhou Foreign Languages Institute in 1970 as an undergraduate and left the graduate school in 1975. I'm an instructor in English at the Department of Foreign Languages, Tongji Medical University, Wuhan.
 
Since my graduation in 1970, I've been working as an ESL teacher in this university. I've been engaged in research work on some linguistic subjects. I've also lectured on the American literature.  I've written a few papers on these topics.
 
I know you've been the pioneer and leading professor in the department. I've read some of your books and am very much interested in them. Now I'm writing about the possibility of admission to your department as a visiting scholar. If I were accepted by your Department, I would be very pleased to study and work under your guidance and I believe I could achieve a lot.
 
Thank you for your consideration. I am looking forward to hearing from you.
 
Sincerely yours,
Chang Hua
Chang Hua, instructor
 
 
Enclosure: resume
_______________________________________________________________________
 
If you compare this letter with the preceding cover letter, you will find this one goes against the rules of conciseness, clarity, andappropriate style.  The first sentence of the first paragraph goes against the conciseness. Westerners probably wouldn't write, “May I take the liberty to introduce myself to you?” because you already have taken that liberty. It is not necessary to ask permission without the professor's permission.  Meanwhile it is not courteous. In a business letter, it is more polite to cut out most extraneous material, flowery sentences and phrases because those sentences or phrases are wasting the receiver's time. Wasting time is wasting money.
Some of the words and the paragraphs are unclear. It is not clear whether you completed your graduate studies or not. The word "left " was used in the letter. Did you complete the study or graduate from the Institute? You have also given a brief account of your education and working experience but they were not complete, leaving unclarity in the receiver's mind. If you compare this with the above cover letter, you will notice that the above cover letter plus a resumeis much clearer.
The style is not appropriate. A business letter is usually formal. But you have used many short forms of words and phrases, such as “I'm, I've”. They are used in informal letters.
 
Resume
 
The resume, sometimes called a vita,gives more specific detail and is organized for easy review of qualifications. The essential components of a resumeare working experience, education and publications or achievements. Most important information comes first, so you should list your most recent work experience, education and publications first, oldest last. You need not include your age or other personal information unless you feel it will be to your advantage or they are requested. You can give references (usually three) but you may give the ones that would be most suitable for this particular appointment, but you have to ask permission before giving someone's name as reference; that shows consideration. Hobbies and interests may also be included to show something of your personality especially when you are applying for a job. The items will vary with different purposes. Read the following sample resume:
 
Sample Resume
_______________________________________________________________________________
 
                                                     Resume
 
Chang Hua                                                           Date: Dec. 1, 1989
13 Hongkong Rd.                                                            Phone: 01-027-85886318
Wuhan, Hubei 430030
P. R. of China
 
EDUCATION
 
1970-1975           Guangzhou Foreign Languages Institute,                          Department of the English Language
                            Graduate student
 
1966-1970           Undergraduate student — (as above)   
 
WORKING EXPERIENCE
 
1991-present        Tongji Medical University
Professor of the English Language. Have the responsibility for the graduate program.
 
1990-1991            Portland State University
                             Visiting Scholar. Performed teaching assistance.
 
1975-1990            Tongji Medical University
    Associate Professor and Lecturer. Taught the undergraduates reading, listening and speaking.
 
PUBLICATIONS
 
1. 1993:      “Prospective Renewal of EFL Teaching” in Collection of Excellent Theses published by the Foreign Languages Association under the Ministry of Public Health.
2. 1989:   A Guidebook to Practical College English. Wuhan: Education Press.
3. 1989:       The English-Chinese Encyclopedia of Practical TCM. (Translated) Beijing: Higher Education Press.
4. 1986:      “Aspects of English Teaching in China: Why Can't Foreigners Confer with Chinese Learners successfully?” in The ORTESOL JOURNAL, Vol. 7, 1986, Portland, Oregon, U.S.A.
5. 1985:   English Faster Reading. Wuhan: Education Press.
 
REFERENCES
 
Liu Xinpu, Professor of the English Language, Chairman of the Department of Foreign Languages, Tongji Medical University, Wuhan, PRC.
Li Qin, Professor of the English Language, Department of the English Language, Wuhan University, Wuhan, PRC.
Mary Erwin, Associate Professor, the Department of Applied Linguistics, Michigan State University, Michigan, U.S.A.
_______________________________________________________________________
 
II. Summary (précis), Abstract, Synthesis, Memorandum
 
Summary(précis)
 
One form of expository writing is the summary, which requires putting into shortened form the major ideas from someone else's writing. Writing a good summary depends first of all on your ability to read the original material and understand it thoroughly. While reading, you must identify the main point or thesis, understand the difference between the major points and supporting detail, and restate these points in your own words.
How you summarize will partly depend on whether you are dealing with a narrative or an essay. The summary of a narrative is usually called a sequential plot summary and comprehensive summary. The sequential summary follows the order in which the main events of a narrative are presented in the original work. A sequential summary of “One Good Turn Deserves Another” on Page 51, for instance would begin as follows:
 
With &50 drawn from the bank, Mr. Green was driving home along a lonely country road. At the loneliest part of the road, he gave a lift to a stranger. From the talk with the stranger, he got to know the stranger had been broken out of prison for robbery two days before. He was worried and drove over the speed limit, hoping he would be caught by the policeman. The policeman caught him up, wanted just his name and address and left instead of taking him to the police station where he could tell the policemen about the escaped robber. When they reached the outskirts of London, the robber handed him the policeman's notebook with Mr. Green's name and address which he had stolen and said “Thank you for the lift. You've been good to me.”
 
Like all summaries, this one reduces each event to its bare essentials in the order of the essential events. While a sequential summary simply recounts one event after another without saying which is the most important, a comprehensive summary immediately identifies the central action to which all other actions must be referred.
 
“One Good Turn Deserves Another” is the story of Mr. Green's experience with a stranger when he was driving home with &50 drawn from a bank. When he was hurrying home, he was stopped by a stranger on the loneliest part of the road. He gave him a lift. From the talk to the stranger, he got to know he had been a robber broken out of prison....
 
A comprehensive summary such as this gives a clearer account of the story as a whole than a sequential summary does.
 
There is another kind of summary which summarizes an essay or an argumentative essay. In this summary, you have to have the following points:
 
1. Cite your source. A good summary of this kind should begin with a sentence that identifies the source, by title, author, and type of writing.
2.Present the author's controlling idea. The summary should restate at the beginning what the controlling idea is before continuing to mention the other main points. The detail or support usually is not included in the summary.
3.Clarify the author's attitude. This is especially important in argumentative writing. Remember that the summary is not the place for you to present an opposing viewpoint or your own point. You must clarify the original point of view in the summary.
 
Read the following editorial from the Oregonian and see how the summary is composed:
 
The original:
 
Cut for Campus Quality
 
Facing the crunching consequences of Measure 5, higher education Chancellor Thomas A. Bartlett is making the best of a bad situation. The least the Oregon Legislature can do is not make it any worse.
The situation is bad because Measure 5 diverts more than $625 million of the state general fund to school districts and, probably, community colleges to replace reduced property tax receipts. Higher education's share of the cuts looks likely to leave the system about $90 million short of what it needs to continue operations at the current level.
Even the system's best options are bound to move it in the wrong direction. Just when the system should be getting better and preparing for growing numbers of students, it's preoccupied with the best way to shrink.
But the challenge is to ensure that the ripple of Measure 5 doesn't wash Oregon's state universities into national higher education back-waters. As Bartlett notes, if Oregon is going to be competitive, its universities must be competitive, too — even in pared-down form.
Many specific choices have yet to be made at individual colleges and universities on where and how to respond to the budget difficulties. But the system is inevitably facing a combination of substantial, specific program cuts and big tuition increases. The result will be fewer course choices for students — and also fewer students, most of whom will be paying more for their education.
That is a tough bullet to bite. But Measure 5 wasn't warning shot. And by eliminating whole programs where they are deemed less necessary than others, the system retains a chance at preserving quality elsewhere. And unfortunate as tuition increases are, they are a better deal for students than a cheaper but poorer education.
The Legislature needs to respect the need for these hard decisions, unhappy as they are. It needs to recognize, too, the importance to Oregon's future of an excellent higher education system, even as an excellent primary and secondary system is important. It needs to see that this is not a budget to raid further; indeed, it's a place to restore resources as they become available. And it needs to recognize that maintaining a high-quality system requires addressing one of the system's most fundamental problems — uncompetitively low salaries for nationally respected faculty members.
Finally, the state — which under Measure 5 assumes primary responsibility to provide for community colleges as well — needs a more comprehensive higher education strategy for both systems, clarifying missions and what can be expected in funding support.
If the Legislature refuses to face the reality of higher education's needs, it may find that a bad situation can always be made worse.
 
 
The Summary:
 
“Cut for Campus Quality” is an editorial that appeared in the January 6, 1991, edition of the Oregonian. In it the author states that the Oregon Legislature must not allow the quality of higher education in the state to deteriorate further. The crisis caused by the passage of Measure 5 means that there will be a cut in the state universities' budgets of $90 million. Raising tuition and getting rid of some programs are necessary steps to cutting costs without cutting quality. But the author fears that even these unpopular strategies will not provide sufficient quality to allow Oregon to compete with other states for college students unless legislators also increase salaries for teachers and reorganize funding and planning for both community colleges and universities.
 
This summary begins with the source. The second sentence states the author's main point. The following sentences state the author's main supporting points or the author's attitude toward the Measure 5 passed by the Legislature.
To write a good summary of this kind, you must keep the following in mind:
 
1.Read the original well. You may need to read the original piece several times, and then jot down a brief outline of the main ideas before writing your summary.
2.Restate or paraphrase the main idea without using the exact phrase or sentences of the original. This may be the most difficult part of writing a summary. The easiest way to write a good restatement or paraphrase and avoid the danger of copying is to put the original piece away while you draft the summary. Remember to use your own sentence structure and vocabulary to express the ideas in the original piece.
3.Only present the author's main idea. The summary is not the place to present your own judgments or conclusion of the author's idea because its main purpose is to acquaint the reader in short form with the author's ideas, not the summary writer's opinion on those ideas. You may present yours in another paragraph, not in the summary, if you want to.
 
 
Abstract
 
An abstract is a brief summary of the information in the article. A well-written abstract enables readers to identify the basic content of the article quickly and accurately and thus help them to decide whether or not they need to read the entire article. 
It differs from a summary. An abstract (or a descriptive abstract) usually follows the title of the article and tells what the original is about. It contains only its skeletal structure and provides no exact facts from the original. So it can be considered as a “summary of a summary”. When such an abstract is written, topics described in the original work are simply listed and exact information is not provided. However, a summary (or an informative abstract) usually follows the article and is a miniature article which condenses the original article to its main idea and main points. It reflects what the original contains and embodies the essense of the original.
 
Sample abstracts
 
Abstracts mainly consist of two types: descriptive abstracts and informative abstracts. Read the following samples and pay your attention to the difference between them.
A.       Descriptive abstract
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