BCOM 3141 (Foundations) Quiz
3x3 writing process:
1. Prewriting (analyze, anticipate, adapt) 2. Drafting 3. Revising
Kinneavy Quote
"The aim of a discourse determines everything else in the process of discourse: what is talked about, the oral or written medium which is chosen, the words and grammatical patterns used—all of these aspects are largely determined by the purpose of the discourse"
The most difficult principle to grasp in bcom
"The inability to imagine, appreciate, and adapt to audience concerns is a major problem in professional communication." (Jamson 2013 BCQ)"
"The right business attitude toward people; golden rule of business writing—adjust business writing to the needs of the reader"
(George Burton Hotchkiss, 1916— responsible for establishing the modern teaching of business writing in American universities and colleges)
bcom genre
(such as the memo, proposal, claim message) is defined as a typified communicative action characterized by similar substance and form in recurrent situations (Miller, 1984)
Why should we adopt the you-attitude in business communication?
Bcom is transactional and the effectiveness of the communication depends on the reader's response; that said, the communication message must be written from the reader's point of view (ASEP goal).
How can we understand the needs/concerns of the audience (profile the audience)?
Responsibilities, education level, attitude, interests/concerns/needs (benefits), characteristics, cultural background
Writing situation/rhetorical situation
The whole picture; the circumstances in which communication happens.
Golden rule
The you-attitude or you-viewpoint
How can we understand the writing/communicative purpose? Ask two questions:
Why am I sending this message? What do I want to achieve with this message?
What is business communication?
a process of establishing a common understanding between or among people within a business environment; it's a strategic decision-making rhetorical process based on the correct understanding of the writer's communicative purpose and the needs of the intended audience
Understanding genre
doesn't mean how to conform to generic conventions, but more importantly, understanding one way of responding appropriately to a given situation
Transformative Understanding of Bcom
effective business communication is a rhetorical and social process that involves a negotiated dialogue between the communicator/writer and the audience. An effective business communicator always uses strategies to affect how others think, believe, behave, and act. Through this rhetorical perspective, you not only learn the forms or conventions of different business communication genres, but also explore and understand the characteristics which make a genre as it is
Writing situation includes the following elements:
o Author with a specific writing purpose o Audience with an equally specific purpose, characteristics, background, attitude o Topic/reality involved—making a rhetorical choice o Context in a particular time and place involving certain community or organization o Text that achieves the writing purpose and meets the needs of the audience
The I-attitude
o fails to convey an awareness of the reader's unique needs o fails to explain information in terms of benefits to the reader/audience
Rhetoric
originated from ancient Greece (important figure Aristotle, who divided the means of persuasion, appeals, into three categories—Ethos, Pathos, Logos.), developed throughout thousands of years; discipline in the academic world—an art of discourse; about how a speaker/writer uses strategies to affect how others think, believe, behave, and act.
Importance of Prewriting
stages focuses on analyzing the writing purpose, anticipating readers' needs, and adapt the message to the needs.
Functions of business communication
to inform, to persuade, to promote goodwill
Business communication is
transactional, contextual, rhetorical; it's a social act
Business communication goals: ASEP
—Achieve receiver understanding —Seek receiver response —Establish favorable relationship —Promote organizational goodwill
Genre changes
•"an open class with new members evolving, old ones decaying" •"Contextual changes can result in new genres developing or in old genres developing new qualities" (Devitt, 2004); •Rhetorical situations never reoccur, for each situation is unique (Devitt, 2014); •a change of the rhetorical situation calls for a new act that reflects the contextual changes in genre's textual features.
Bcom core principle:
know the purpose of communication and understand the needs of audience
