Text Type: Letter

Functions:
Letters are a kind of substitute for spoken conversations. It is spontaneous,
private, and personal. It is non-literary and is not written for the eyes of the general
public.
Letters provide written and signed proof of a persons message to another. It can
be filed, duplicated, reread, and offered as evidence of business transactions, promises
made, and personal comments on a variety of matters. Unlike telephone calls, which
quickly pass away and leave no traces; letters, on the other hand, remain behind as
proof of at least one side of a relationship. There are many different types of letters,
formal and informal letters, and with different writing purposes and addressees.
Letters can be used to say thank you, to express sympathy, to congratulate, to
invite someone to some occasions, to reply invitations, to ask questions, to order
goods, to promote products, to complain, or to apply for jobs and many others. In the
words of the great poet W. H. Auden, we see that there is a wonderful variety of subgenres in the genre of letter writing:
Letter of thanks, letters from bank,
Letters of joy from girl and boy,
Receipted bills and invitations
To inspect new stock or visit relations,
And applications for situations
And timid lovers declarations
And gossip, gossip from all the nations
Context of use:
There are great varieties of uses, including business, political educational,
family and personal. Friendly letters for family and friends are informal and
uncomplicated, personal in tone, and usually generous with details and specifics.
Business letters, on the other hand, is a means of communication among secretaries,
executives, politicians, or salespeople. They are written in a formal tone, and are
strictly informative, avoiding emotional and personal responses, concentrated on facts,
short and to the point.

Ways of organizing information:

The main body of a letter usually consists of three parts: the introduction, the
main body, and the conclusion. (Sometimes a subject heading is included which
helps readers identify the reasons of writing the letter and it is a bit more formal.)
Letters of different purposes determine different structures of organizing information.
The subject and reasons of writing the letter are explained in the introductory
paragraph; the supporting reasons or elaboration of ideas are given in the following
paragraph(s), and the ending is with the calling for actions/ indication of
anticipation/expectation.
Format and layout:
Basic structure of a friendly/personal letter:
24 C Manson Building
32 Johnson Street
Kowloon, Hong Kong

Greeting /
Salutation
(comma)

May 21, 2002

Senders
address

Date

Dear Sandra,

Body

Its been lonely since you moved to Australia. How are you? I
have just finished my teaching practice recently and now I am
preparing for lots of term papers and the coming exams.
How is your life there? Do you enjoy the school life? Do you miss
your family in Hong Kong? I want to visit you there in this coming
summer holiday. If you have room, maybe I can spend part of the
summer at your new place. I look forward to your next letter. Write
soon.
Missing you,

Linguistic characteristics:
Clear and concise, superfluous words should be avoided, aiming at transmitting
the message from writer to recipient, to move recipient to action, and to imbue the
recipient with friendly feelings towards the writer/ his company. Hence, letters should
2

Closing
(Comma)

Signature
of sender

be aiming at clarity, simplicity, brevity and friendliness.

In addition, passive voice is avoided, as the active voice is so much more
forceful and direct.
Word choices:
Salutation and closing:
For the addressee known by the writer, Dear Mr./Ms are used, and Yours
sincerely is used as the closing. For the unknown names of the addressee, Dear
sir/madam (but NOT Ms) is used and ended with the closing Yours faithfully.
Complementary close examples:
For business letters:
Yours truly, yours very truly, yours sincerely, yours cordially, best regards, formerly
yours, with anticipation, and so on.
For letters to friends and loved ones:
Love, with love, affectionately, warm regards, many thanks, as ever, best regards,
forever yours, and so on.
Format:
Personal/ friendly letters have free variations in terms of the format. In matters of
format of business letters, there are two basic types: traditional format, with indented
address and closing, and block format, with everything aligned at the left margin.
Traditional business letters allow the least room for creativity and variations. We must
follow the conventions that the readers expect.
An envelope:
Senders full
name and
address

Receivers
full name
and address

Pricilla Barnes
ABC Company
321 Nathan Road
Kowloon, DH 2391

Mr. John Alison

Mid-West Corporate Design
678 Mary Road
Columbus, IN 218729
3

Format of business letters:

Name and address of the
senders company.

ABC Company
321 Nathan Road
Kowloon, DH 2391
Date

Recipients name
and title
Recipients address

Salutation

Body #1: state the

purpose for writing,
the connection with
the recipient. #2:
describe whats
wanted. #3: request
specific actions

May 21, 2002

Mr. John Alison, President

Mid-West Corporate Design
678 Mary Road
Columbus, IN 218729
Dear Mr. Alison:
We are a mid-sized polymer manufacturer founded in 1979. We are
now.
2 spaces
In particular, we would like samples of your different types of paper
and envelops..
2 spaces
Would you please send us..
Thank you very much for your help.

Closing

Yours truly,
6 spaces

Typists name

Pricilla Barnes
Assistant Vice President

Enclosures
additional

Enclosed: current letterheads and envelopes.

materials included

Copies: listing

CC: Karvin Chan

Alfred Li

other recipients
4

References:
1. M. E. Snodgrass. (1997). Writing Letters. American Guidance Service, Inc. U.S.A.
2. M. Bosticco. (1985). Instant Business Letters. Gower.
3. N. Burbidge, P. Gray, S. Levy, M. Rinvolucri. (1996) Letters. Oxford English.