Social and Business Etiquette Paper 1

Abstract: Politeness is a sign of human civilization and a pragmatic principle that cannot be ignored in international business letters. Etiquette in business letters not only helps to improve the quality of life in the workplace, form the best staff ethics and establish the company image, but also plays an important role in creating profits. Especially in the current increasingly fierce international trade, it is more and more important to understand international business etiquette. In order to achieve the purpose of business cooperation, it is necessary to follow the principle of politeness, make it euphemistic in tone and properly worded, which will help the two sides establish trade relations on the basis of equality and mutual benefit. However, different politeness principles in different cultures are indispensable considerations for doing business well in business letters.

Keywords: business letter; Politeness principle; Cultural differences

abstract: courtesy is the symbol of human civilization, and this is pragmatic principle which has to be followed in international commercial correspondence. Business etiquette is based on the theory that goo d manners are cost-effective because they not only increase the quality of life in the workplace, contribute to optimum employee moral, and embellish the company image, but they also play a major role in generating profit. An atmosphere in which people treat each other with consideration is obviously one in which a cu stomer enjoys doing business. Also ,most importantly, a company with a well-mannered high-class reputation attracts—and keeps—good people. In order to be contribute to establish relations with two sides o n the basis of equality and mutual benefit, It must follow the politeness principle ,tone and phrase your comments tactfully. Yet , different politeness principles in different cultures are indespensible for conducting successful in commercial correspondence.

　Key words：Business letter; politeness principle; Culture difference

I. Introduction

The 21th century is a century of increasingly globalized economy. Trade between China and other countries has become more frequent, and international trade has developed rapidly. However, with the development of science and technology, business letters play an important role in the communication between Chinese and foreign enterprises. It is more accurate, convincing, economical, efficient (sending information to more people) and more formal than oral communication. "A good business letter can bring completely different effects, make what you want to express look brand-new, impress the other party deeply, and make your career path smooth. A polite business letter can directly affect the relationship between the two sides of trade, help enterprises establish a professional ethics image and promote the cooperation process between the two sides of trade. Usually, it is suitable to use simple and easy-to-understand words in business letter writing. The process of communication between people with different cultural backgrounds is cross-cultural communication. Different nationalities have different historical backgrounds, customs, customs and cultural traditions. Therefore, when writing international business letters, we must understand the national and foreign cultural differences, and try to make these differences disappear in the writing process, and at the same time find accurate words in the goals and objectives.

Second, the writing principles in business letters

As an important way of international communication, business English letters must be carefully prepared when writing. Bobby D.Sorrels summed up six C principles in his book Business Communication Fundamentals, namely, "Concise, accurate, clear, literary, considerate and coherent." On this basis, domestic scholars have also supplemented and improved it. In 21xx, represented by Lu Mozhu, Xu Xueyi and Zhou Yaozong, the 7C principle, which is universally recognized today, was put forward. That is, politeness principle, Clarity principle, Conciseness principle, Correctness principle, Concreteness principle, Consideration principle and Completeness principle. Among them, politeness principle in business English writing constitutes the keynote of business communication skills and is one of the most important and sharp weapons for businessmen. Geoffrey Leech, a British linguist, and others put forward the Politeness principle, which holds that in all language communication, speakers and listeners should maximize the expression of politeness and minimize the expression of impolite beliefs. This principle is of great significance to business English writing. On the basis of absorbing Grice's research results, Leech systematically put forward the theory of politeness principle in his book Principles of Pragmatics. It is believed that politeness principle should include (1) Tact Maxim: let the other party suffer the least and get the most; (2) Generosity Maxim: let yourself benefit the least and suffer the most; (3) Approbation Maxim: belittle each other as little as possible and try to be more yourself; (4) Modesty Maxim (5) Agreement Maxim: try to reduce the differences of the other party and increase the agreement with the other party as much as possible; (6) Compassion principle: minimize dislike of each other and maximize sympathy for each other. However, Brown & Levinson also said that the politeness principle has some universality. Among many politeness principles, Lakoff puts forward three different politeness principles that speakers can abide by: first, don't force others; Second, leave room for each other; Third, enhance mutual friendship.

3. Politeness principles in different cultures

Politeness principles in different languages are different. Professor Gu Yueguo proposed that politeness principles in Chinese language and culture include respect, Modesty, enthusiasm and refinement. In 1992, he also proposed that politeness principles in Chinese culture are: (1). This rule refers to "belittling" and "modesty" when talking about things related to yourself, and "picking up" and "respecting" when listening to things related to the listener. (2) Address criterion: This criterion means that people, out of courtesy, should address each other according to the tradition of "righteousness from top to bottom, dignity from bottom to top and order from young to old" to reflect social relations in interpersonal communication. (3) Rule of refinement: In Chinese culture, "being polite" is considered to be polite and educated. Its basic content is "choose elegant language, ban profanity, use euphemism more, use blunt words less". Avoid mentioning things that make people unhappy or embarrassed. (4) The principle of seeking common ground: it refers to paying attention to each other's identity and social status, respecting each other's "face", and making both parties strive for harmony in many aspects. When you have to criticize others or express different opinions, you can adopt the strategy of "courtesy before soldiers" and "praise before criticism". (5) Moral code of conduct: it refers to minimizing the cost paid by others and maximizing the benefits of others in terms of behavioral motivation; Try to exaggerate the benefits that others give you in words, and try to say less about the price you pay. These politeness principles are also instructive for China people to engage in international trade in business letters. China people think that self-esteem is a kind of courtesy, while westerners think it is a kind of dishonesty, so it is difficult to communicate and even cause misunderstanding in the process of communication, so it is necessary to pay more attention to the language expressions between different languages and cultures. In the writing of business letters, we should pay attention to the principle of etiquette, do not offend others at will, and respect people's language habits in different cultures. For example, how to deliver bad news to business partners is usually expressed in an indirect way, euphemistic tone and positive words in the United States. French, British and Germans generally use direct methods; However, high-context cultures like Japan and China emphasize harmony and face-saving, and adopt indirect euphemism, while Latin America avoids transmitting bad news. In different cultures, there are differences in ways and means of expressing politeness and people's judgment standards. Westerners generally accept compliments with "thank you". They believe that it is polite to accept compliments gladly to avoid damaging the positive face of the other party. For us, China often uses "where, where", "I'm flattered" and "far from it" to express the modesty of the praised person. It can be seen that western countries attach importance to individual concept and independent spirit, which includes individual freedom, rights and individual independence.

IV. Conclusion

In the increasingly fierce international trade competition, business letters are not only a medium to realize communication, but also a means to establish friendship and attract customers. As the old saying goes, "A gentleman should not lose his color and his mouth", it means that a moral person should be polite, not rude or rude. It is a fine tradition of our Chinese people to be polite to others and use polite language. Politeness is also the expression of humility and propriety in human communication. With the development and change of society, due to the mutual influence of different social and cultural traditions, politeness is bound to change constantly. Politeness in language includes being measured, polite, educated and knowledgeable, avoiding privacy, shallowness, vulgarity and taboo, and generalizing "four haves and four avoid". Therefore, in business letter writing, it is of great theoretical and practical significance to follow the politeness principle, reply in time, respect each other in proper language, be neither humble nor supercilious, and keep a good polite and noble attitude to write carefully, so as to ensure the smooth and effective conduct of business activities and promote the construction of socialist spiritual civilization. From the examples at the beginning and end of business letters in different countries, we can see that the United States pays attention to the cultural characteristics of high efficiency and quick action, while Arab letters reflect the cultural characteristics of paying attention to identity, status, relationship and hospitality; Japanese letters reflect cultural characteristics such as modesty, politeness, indirectness and relationship. We should pay full attention to the influence of culture on business English writing and the politeness principle.

References:

[1] Ke Jing, Wang Introduction: The Application of Politeness Principle in Business English Letters [J] Shopping Mall Modernization, 21xx-12, (527):182-183

[2] Huang Yalan. On the Important Role and Skills of Etiquette in Business Visits [A]

[3] Wang Xi-nb. On the Politeness Principle in International Business English Correspondence [J]. Journal of Tongren University 21xx (2): 98-. Journal of Luoyang Institute of Technology 21xx-11 (5): 8-9 Social and Business Etiquette Thesis 2

[Abstract]: China has always been a "state of etiquette", and etiquette is not only an important part of ideology and morality, but also an important form reflecting the construction of spiritual civilization; Etiquette not only reflects a person's mental outlook, but also reflects the moral fashion of a unit, a region and even the whole society. With the increasing communication between people and countries, as well as the exchange and collision between eastern and western cultures, the etiquette and customs around the world have been continuously integrated and developed.

Keywords: college students, etiquette, importance and cultivation

In today's era, college students are a special group in society. They have outstanding personality, abundant energy, good cultural knowledge, fearless spirit and strong desire for knowledge. They are elites in society and successors of the motherland. However, many college students lack the sense of etiquette and the ability of communication etiquette, which will make it difficult for them to gain a foothold in society. Therefore, the issue of cultivating college students' communication etiquette deserves our deep consideration, and universities should incorporate the etiquette education of college students into the training process.

1. Definition of Etiquette

Etiquette generally refers to the code of conduct and standards that people should abide by in the process of social interaction. Specific performance is etiquette, courtesy, ceremony, instrument, etc. Etiquette, as a culture, is a symbol that people use to express friendship and affection for others when dealing with interpersonal relationships in social life. Etiquette can make a person moral, shape an ideal personal image, make your career successful and make society more stable. Etiquette is an important component of the quality of individuals and even a nation.

2. The importance of college students' etiquette

2.1 is the need for college students to adapt to the modern information society

The rapid development of communication technology and means in the modern information society is changing people's traditional communication concepts and behaviors, especially the communication scope of people has gradually expanded from interpersonal communication to public communication, from face-to-face close communication to remote communication.