An analysis of english inquiry letters in online shopping from a systemic functional grammars perspective

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES    PHẠM THUÝ HẰNG AN ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH INQUIRY LETTERS IN ONLINE SHOPPING FROM A SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL GRAMMAR'S PERSPECTIVE Phân tích thư yêu cầu tiếng Anh mua bán trực tuyến theo quan điểm ngữ pháp chức hệ thống M.A MINOR THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS CODE: 60 2215 HA NOI - 2010 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES    PHẠM THUÝ HẰNG AN ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH INQUIRY LETTERS IN ONLINE SHOPPING FROM A SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL GRAMMAR'S PERSPECTIVE Phân tích thư yêu cầu tiếng Anh mua bán trực tuyến theo quan điểm ngữ pháp chức hệ thống M.A MINOR THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH LINGUISTICS CODE: 60 2215 SUPERVISOR: NGUYỄN HƯƠNG GIANG, M.A HA NOI - 2010 iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgement i Abstract ii Table of contents iii Abbreviations used in this thesis v List of Tables and figures v PART 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale of the study .1 Aims of the study .1 Scope of the study Methods of the study Design of the study PART 2: DEVELOPMENT .4 Chapter 1: Theoretical background 1.1 The role of Grammar in Discourse Analysis 1.2 Theories of Systemic Functional Grammar 1.2.1 Ideational Meaning and its realisation through the system of Transitivity 1.2.2 Interpersonal Meaning and its realisation in the Mood and Modality system 11 1.2.3 Textual Meaning and its realisation through the system of Theme and Information focus13 Chapter 2: An Analysis of English inquiry letters from a Systemic Functional Grammar's perspective 2.1 English inquiry letters 17 2.1.1 Definition 17 2.1.2 Inquiry letters: Types and contexts 17 2.1.3 Template of an English inquiry letter 18 2.2 Features of English inquiry letters in shopping online from a systemic functional grammar's perspective 2.2.1 Transitivity in terms of Experiential Meaning 21 2.2.2 Mood in terms of Interpersonal Meaning 27 2.2.3 Thematic structure in terms of Textual Meaning 29 iv Chapter 3: Implications of the study 34 3.1 Implications for writing an English inquiry letter 34 3.2 Suggested exercises for practising writing English inquiry letters 35 PART 3: CONCLUSIONS 38 Summaries and findings 38 Limitations 39 Suggestions for further study 39 REFERENCES 40 APPENDIX KEYS v ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS THESIS Cir : Circumstance Comp : Complement Fin : Finite No of cls : Number of clauses Mat : Material Men : Mental Pro : Process Pred : Predicator Rel : Relational LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Figure 1.1 Types of process in English Table 1.1 Process types, their meanings and participants Figure 1.2 A fragment of the Mood system in English Table 2.1 Distribution of processes in English inquiry letters Table 2.2 Distribution of Mood choice in English inquiry letters Table 2.3: Distribution of Modal verbs in English inquiry letters Table 2.4: Distribution of Theme in English inquiry letters PART 1: INTRODUCTION Rationale of the study Thanks to the open-door policy and renovation process, Vietnam has been expanding its relationship with a lot of countries all over the world in all fields, especially in economic field English, therefore, has been widely used and it is considered a key to every success In today's fast-moving society, like many other fields, the economy has many changes with a variety of business Selling and buying things happen not only at the real markets, shops, supermarkets but also on the Internet through websites, or in other words that is "online selling" People not have to go to the shops, supermarkets or markets for seeing, choosing and shopping for products What they have to is to go online, access the website and search for samples of products or the information of the products they want to buy, and then buy them online With a variety of products, forms of business and the expansion of commercial cooperation with many other countries in the world, emails for exchanging information about products between Vietnamese companies and foreign companies, between customers and sellers are getting more and more popular and necessary These emails are one kind of inquiry letters Therefore, a linguistic study on English inquiry letters is, of no doubt, highly relevant and we hope that it can reveal the nature of English inquiry letters and suggest linguistic improvements that make communication through those documents more effective Aim of the study The study is conducted to investigate some features of language used in English inquiry letters requesting samples or information about products in shopping online - from a Systemic Functional Grammar‟s perspective in order to provide deeper theoretical and practical insights into English inquiry letter texts Then, based on the research findings some suggestions are offered for improving the writing English inquiry letters This study hopes to help people who are working in economic field or those who are interested to understand perfectly and compose this kind of text better The research is carried out by answering the following questions: What is an English inquiry letter? What are the features of language used in English inquiry letters in shopping online from a Systemic Functional Grammar's perspective? What implications does the study have for learners of English to compose a good English inquiry letter? Scope of the study The object of the study is the English inquiry letter However, not all kinds of inquiry letters are covered but only the kind of letter that requests samples or information about products in shopping online is chosen There are fifteen English inquiry letters under investigation and all of them are in English Moreover, because of the limitation of a minor thesis, this study will analyze English inquiry letters from a Systemic Functional Grammar‟s perspective, which is explored only in terms of three metafunctions: ideational, interpersonal and textual functions through an analysis of Transitivity, Mood and Theme-Rheme Methods of the study To achieve the aims of the study, the following activities will be conducted Firstly, set up a framework of Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) in order to define characteristics of English inquiry letters that request samples or information about products in shopping online as a type of discourse Secondly, fifteen English inquiry letters that request samples or information about products in shopping online will be described and analyzed in terms of some grammatical devices: Transitivity, Mood and Theme-Rheme Thirdly, necessary comments and conclusions as well as suggestions are made according to the data analyzed Design of the study The study consists of three parts Part I is Introduction It presents the rationale of the study, states the aims of the study, and identifies the specific tasks and the scope of the study Also, it provides an outline of the method to be applied and the structure of the study Part II is Development and it consists of three chapters: Chapter is Theoretical background of the study involving the subject under consideration: The grammatical role in Discourse analysis and Theories of Systemic Functional Grammar Chapter presents English inquiry letters in general and discusses the most typical features of English inquiry letter texts requesting samples or information about products in shopping online under a Systemic Functional Grammar's perspective: Transitivity in terms of Experimental Meaning, Mood in terms of Interpersonal Meaning, Thematic structure in terms of Textual Meaning Chapter is Implications for writing an English inquiry letter requesting samples or information about products in shopping online Part III is Conclusion It summarizes the main points discussed throughout the study Limitations and suggestions for further study are also presented in this part PART II: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1 The role of grammar in Discourse analysis As we know, Discourse analysis is a new branch of linguistics "It is concerned with the study of the relationship between language and the contexts in which it is used Discourse analysts study language in use: written texts of all kinds, and spoken data, from conversation to highly institutionalized forms of talk" (Michael Mc Carthy: 5) There are several approaches to discourse analysis including pragmatics approach, language variation, interactional social- linguistics, conversation analysis, integrated approach Each approach plays an important role and they study discourse in different aspects In this thesis, we base on Systemic Functional Grammar to analyze English inquiry letters as a kind of discourse The importance of grammar in discourse analysis is obvious as Halliday stated " and it is sometimes assumed that this (discourse analysis) can be carried on without grammar- or even that it is somehow an alternative to grammar But it is an illusion A discourse analysis that is not based on grammar is not an analysis of all, but simply a running commentary on a text " Moreover, according to Halliday, language has three functions: ideational, interpersonal and textual All these functions are reflected in the structure of the clause Therefore, when analyzing a discourse, it is important that we should analyze the grammar 1.2 Theory of Systemic Functional Grammar Systemic functional linguists have summarized the way in which human beings use language under three broad categories and maintained that these categories of user are guided by three metafunctions They are ideational, interpersonal and textual functions 1.2.1 Ideational function and its realisation through the system of transitivity Transitivity is the system of grammatical choice, which involves the experiential meanings of the clause Transitivity choices have relations with the field of discourse, so given what the discourse is about, analysts can predict the choice of processes that the interactants are making to achieve their communication goals, and given the process types used in a discourse, analysts can work out the meanings interactants are trying to communicate Transitivity, therefore, is sometimes, referred as process type Each process, as pointed out by Halliday (1994:107), consists of three components in principle: (i) the process itself, (ii) the participants in the process and (iii) circumstances associated with the process There are six types of process in English: Material, Mental, Relational, Behavioural, Verbal and Existential Each of process has its own features and the following figure is a diagrammatic summary of these process types, and they will also be investigated briefly for more understanding RELATIONAL having attribute EXISTENTIAL having identity symbolizing existing world of abstract relation happening (being cheated) saying doing MATERIAL VERBAL being cheating, changing physical world sensing thinking world of consciousnes s doing (to) acting feeling MENTAL behaving seeing BEHAVIOURAL Figure 1.1 Types of process in English (Source: Halliday 1994:108) IV Appendix 4: Colin Rudzinski St Lucie County, FL February 19, 2005 Pearson Brown President of Sales and Marketing VMWare Company 248 Abingdon Road, Oxford, Oxford OX1 4SP, UNITED KINGDOM Dear Pearson Brown: Attached to this letter is an overview of those items and services which we anticipate ordering from your firm, providing your terms and conditions are favorable, and your prices are competitive Since this is only an informed guess as to our needs, it should not be considered as anything more than a rough idea of our requirements Please provide to us, in writing, a price list, along with your terms and conditions of sale, applicable discounts, shipping dates and additional sales and corporate policies Should the information you provide be acceptable and competitive, you can look forward to our first order within thirty (30) days Thank you for your cooperation We have also enclosed our procurement specifications and conditions for your review Yours faithfully, Colin Rudzinski V Appendix 5: Earl K Long Library University of New Orleans 2000 Lakeshore Drive New Orleans, LA 70148 20th January 2002 Customer Care Manager Whitesmoke Inc 501 Silverside Rd, Suite 105 Wilmington, DE 19809, USA Dear Customer Care Manager: I am the manager of Resource Department of Earl K Long Library, University of New Orleans We are considering using your new product named WhiteSmoke software for editing and enhancing English writing I am quite interested in your email about WhiteSmoke software However, before purchasing this software, I would like to ask you some of the following questions: Are there any promotion or discount programs at the beginning of this spring term? Can we install this software for both computer rooms in our library and all of lecture rooms in our university? Which operating system can this software run? I would be glad if you provide me with that further information as soon as possible I can be reached at EKLL_contact@gmail.com.us Yours faithfully, Kerry Fisher Manager of Resource Department Earl K Long Library University of New Orleans VI Appendix 6: Oracle Corporation 500 Oracle Parkway Redwood Shores, CA 94065 United States (650) 591-2011 October 25, 2008 Jennifer Lewis 2438 South Stratford Road, Winston Salem, NC, United States (336) 765-9027 Dear Ms Lewis: As per our discussion in the college last week, I am requesting you to give me information about you recently launched Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) by your company The Sales Executive of your company who had come to my office to collect the monthly premium had told me about the scheme that will be launched in a fortnight Yesterday's newspaper had the advertisement of the scheme but did not give all the details I searched on the internet but I got information in bits and pieces I want all the details about the scheme like initial investment, monthly installments, locking period etc This will help me in taking a final decision for investment Let me understand how the scheme will help me in securing my amount and what profits I will make after 3, or 10 years as per your scheme I will appreciate if you send me the complete brochure regarding the scheme If you can manage to send a Marketing Executive who will explain me the scheme then it will be of great help to me If I like the scheme and find it worth investing then I will give the initial amount right there to your Executive I am looking forward to your positive reply You can contact me at (650) 591-2011 extension 116, or my personal email address-Daniel@rediffmail.com Yours truly, Daniel Smith VII Appendix 7: 006 Paul's Path Austin, TX 78700 July 12, 1998 Technical Support Red Hat Software, Inc 4201 Research Commons, Suite 100 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 Dear Technical Support Department: I am writing this letter to ask you some technical questions about hardware support in version 5.1 of Red Hat Linux I saw Red Hat Software's advertisement for version 5.1 of Linux in the August, 1998, issue of Linux Journal I was quite impressed with the capabilities as listed in the advertisement, and I would like to learn some more about the product Before I make the decision to purchase the software, I need to be certain that it will work properly on my computer I have three hardware support questions that I would like you to answer I have reviewed the technical support information at Red Hat Software's home page (www.redhat.com), but I have not been able to find answers to my questions The three hardware-related questions that I have are as follows: Does the latest release of Red Hat Linux support the Diamond Viper 330 PCI video card? This card uses the Riva chipset released by NVIDIA Corporation If Red Hat Linux does not currently have a driver for this card, is there a timetable for when the card will be supported? Is there an online site for the latest list of supported hardware? This would be a great aid to me in the future, as I often upgrade my machine I am aware that some of the early versions of Red Hat Linux were not able to support some of Diamond Multimedia's products, and I hope that new drivers have been created in this latest software release If the latest release of Red Hat Linux can support my video hardware, I will definitely purchase the product I feel that the price on the product is exceptional, and the range of features is outstanding For your convenience, you can respond to me by e-mail My e-mail address is garyc@nnn.com If you prefer to respond by telephone, you can reach me at (512) 2256745 I appreciate any assistance that you are able to provide me Sincerely, Gary Clare VIII Appendix 8: Better Widget Makers, Inc 5555 Widget Avenue Silver City, CO 80456 September 26, 2003 Mr Russ Hamilton Vice President, Sales and Marketing Golden Bread Company 123 Loaf Street Silver City, CO 80451 Dear Mr Hamilton: Construction on the new employee cafeteria at Better Widget Makers, Inc is nearing completion and I am looking for a supplier capable of fulfilling our weekly bakery needs Do you have an information packet that would help me project the cost of doing business with your company? We will need daily deliveries of pasties, pies, dinner rolls and sandwich bread Our facility operates 24/7, Monday through Friday, with a flextime workforce of 1,500 employees To complete my operational budget I will need the following information:  Wholesale price sheets  Quantity cost breaks  Annual contract discounts  Delivery and or any other service charges To submit my proposal to the finance committee at their October 20th meeting I will need to receive your information by the 10th I will also need to meet with you after reviewing the requested materials Please call me for an appointment at your earliest convenience My personal extension is 216-8080, #29 In keeping with long-standing policy we would like to place this contract locally I look forward to working with you and am hopeful that the Golden Bread Company can fulfill our needs Sincerely, Ida Mae Knott Purchasing Agent IX Appendix Cosmetco, Ltd.Co, 258 Green Road, Ward 12 London, UK July 4th, 2006 Sales Manager Allergan Ltd Coronation Road High Wycombe Bucks HP12 3SH, UK (01494) 444722 http://www.allergan.co.uk Dear Sir/ Madam: I am the team leader of marketing department of Cosmetco in London We are the official distributor of many famous cosmetics and medicine trademark I am writing to you for more details about your new products, BOTOX which has been received lots of attentions and ordered by many of our customers Thus we want to order some of your products However, I would like to ask some questions about the side effects of BOTOX Has it been certified to have no effect to people with allergic skin? If possible, please contact me soon at annaspear@costmetco.com.uk Yours truly, Anna Spear X Appendix 10 CSC -South America Branch Raymond Kwok Manager 323 728 3502 ex113 rkwok@columbia.com March 15th 2005 George Franklin Sales Manager Columbia Sportswear Company (CSC) 1256 Link Park, Central Building Washington DC USA Dear Sir: I am writing to ask you some technical questions about Factory Quality System Control Manual (FQSCM) which was sent to our branch in South America yesterday Will we apply this FQSCM for a series of T-shirts model CSC-A123? In FQSCM, there will have a Qualified Testing Lab for all CSC branches all over the world, so when will you start building it in South America branch? I am not quite clear about Defect Classification Manual in FQSCM, could you please give me further information? For your convenience, you can contact me by email at rkwok@columbia.com or telephone number 323 728 3502 extension 113 at any time I look forward to hearing from you Yours sincerely, Raymond Kwok Manager CSC -South America Branch XI Appendix 11: High Ridge School Doncaster Road Scunthorpe DN15 7DF December 14, 2006 CartoonChurch.com PO BOX 6250 Basil don SS14 0DD Dear Sir or Madam: I am a student at High Ridge School I am involved in a Technology Project to design and make a 3D calendar for the New Year I saw your advertisement about 3D technology on your own website and I am very interested in it I would be grateful if you could send me more information or samples concerning 3D calendars Please, contact me at my email address: Tony145@gmail.com I look forward to hearing from you soon Thank you for your help and attention Yours faithfully, Tony Brown XII Appendix 12: Rita Woodhouse, 134, Hill Road, Bristol 12th August, 2006 Ms Mary Thompson, Vice-President (Sales &Marketing) Star Perfumes Unit Dallas Court Salford Lancashire M50 2GF Dear Ms Thompson: This is with reference to the new perfume you have launched in the market I have been hearing good reviews about it from my friends who have tried it I would like to request you to send me full details of your product (including price, colors, different kinds of smell of perfume etc) In case it appeals to me, I may be interested in trying out the perfume ourselves I look forward to hearing from you soon Please contact me at my personal email address: Rita_WoodhouseB.hotmail.com Thanking You, Rita Woodhouse XIII Appendix 13 1001 Technology Way Libertyville, IL 60048, USA (877) 727-4448 May 17th, 2006 Michele Merrell Senior Director of Global Marketing and Communication Brightstar Europe Limited Hampshire House, Wade Road, Basingstoke RG24 8NE UK (+44)870 401 1313 www.brightstarcorp.com Dear Mr Merrell When we attended the International Electronics Trade Fair in London last month, we visited your stand and saw a very interesting demonstration of your automatic highsecurity garage doors The ability to drive straight in and out of your garage from the comfort of your car, as well as your emphasis on theft protection, appealed to us We believe that there is a ready market for this in the United States Our company is a wholly owned subsidiary of the international Zetax Corporation, wellknown in the security and theft prevention industry Would you please send us your current sales literature and price list? Of course, we will be glad to provide the usual credit and trade references if we decide to order from your company I look forward to your reply You can email me at Thomspson_M@nn.com Sincerely yours, Thompson Moore Vice president of Sales and Marketing XIV Appendix 14 Kenneth Beare 2520 Visita Avenue Olympia, WA 98501 September 12, 2000 Jackson Brothers 3487 23rd Street New York, NY 12009 To Whom It May Concern: With reference to your advertisement in yesterday's New York Times, could you please send me a copy of your latest catalogue? I would also like to know if it is possible to make purchases online Please, contact me at this email address: K.Beare@gmail.com I look forward to hearing from you soon! Yours faithfully, (Signature) Kenneth Beare Administrative Director English Learners & Company XV Appendix 15 Hayley Jones Long Tall Sally PR Executive 25 St John's Lane London, EC1M 4HD September 26, 2009 Sugar Inc 111 Sutter Street, 15th floor, San Francisco, CA 94104 USA To whom it may concern: One of our business associates- Mr Ben Nevins of Gorham Brothers in Canada- informed us that your company is a major manufacturer of pure cotton- striped or solid polo shirts and terry jumpsuits in all sizes for young women I would like you to send me detailed information and your export price list, as well as several samples of the shirts and jumpsuits I expect that I will send you an order soon Please, contact me at my personal email address H.Jones@gmail.com.uk I look forward to hearing from you Sincerely yours, Hayley Jones XVI KEYS Here are the keys for exercises used in the chapter of implications of the study TYPE 1: Compose the inquiry letter using full blocked styled and closed punctuation Key: Galaxy Company Eberswalder Str.34 10455 Berlin, Deutschland June 24th, 2007 John Adamson Manager of Sales and Marketing Allwood and sons Ltd, 22 Highway, Ashford, Kent Dear Mr Adamson: I am an electronic distributor from Galaxy Company My company needs a supplier to fulfill my customers‟ needs I got your name and company from my partner- Mr John William, the chief of William X-nics Company, supplier of electronic spare part and I know that you are a big company Would you please send me your full details and pricelist of your radios and television? Also, I would like to know whether you can arrange for your instruction booklets to be translated into Germany You can contact me by email at Garyinfo@gmail.com or phone me at +49(0)30 47 38 20 86 I look forward to hearing from you soon Sincerely yours, Gary Brown XVII TYPE 2: Put the following sentences into correct order to complete a letter of inquiry Key: Sorana Holl 5104 Crawford, N.W Washington, DC 2008 August 10, 2006 Ms Rhonda Hipkins Sales and Marketing Silver Garment Company 319 Stalling Road, Suite 108 Stallings, NC 28104 Dear Ms Hipkins: I read an advertisement about the dress collection, Autumn 2006 in Fashion magazine- Elle some days ago, and I really like to buy a dress However, I did not get much information about the collection such as the price, colors, and materials of each dress Can you please send me your catalogue of the collection? Moreover, I would like to know how to pay for the product and how long I could get the product I want to buy You can contact me by email at Sorana221@gmail.com or phone me at 770-599-9155 I look forward to hearing from you soon and I hope to be your regular customer Yours Sincerely, Sorana Holl XVIII TYPE 3: Below is an English inquiry letter Use the words given to complete the sentences Key: CSC -South America Branch Raymond Kwok Manager 323 728 3502 ex113 rkwok@columbia.com March 15th 2005 George Franklin Sales Manager Columbia Sportswear Company (CSC) 1256 Link Park, Central Building Washington DC USA Dear Sir: I am writing to ask you some technical questions about Factory Quality System Control Manual (FQSCM) which was sent to our branch in South America yesterday Will we apply this FQSCM for a series of T-shirts model CSC-A123? In FQSCM, there will have a Qualified Testing Lab for all CSC branches all over the world, so when will you start building it in South America branch? I am not quite clear about Defect Classification Manual in FQSCM, could you please give me further information? For your convenience, you can contact me by email at rkwok@columbia.com or telephone number 323 728 3502 extension 113 at any time I look forward to hearing from you Yours sincerely, Raymond Kwok Manager CSC -South America Branch ... discourse analysis including pragmatics approach, language variation, interactional social- linguistics, conversation analysis, integrated approach Each approach plays an important role and they... Textual Meaning and its realisation through the system of Theme and Information focus13 Chapter 2: An Analysis of English inquiry letters from a Systemic Functional Grammar's perspective 2.1 English. .. questions: What is an English inquiry letter? What are the features of language used in English inquiry letters in shopping online from a Systemic Functional Grammar's perspective? What implications does