time of the dealing sides, and shortens the time of business procedure
as well. A special branch of English linguistics, - business English,
- is devoted to the purpose of simplifying of business making.
Written business English has got certain traits and problems of its
usage, not only for foreigners, but for English-speaking business
people.
2. Theoretical problems of the language of documents
Knowledge of drawing up business correspondence is equal to
communicating with people in a businesslike manner [7, P.4]. A person
should know rules of documents’ writing to make one’s business
effective and profitable. All of them are united under the notion of
style.
A style of the language is a system of interrelated language means
which serve a definite aim in communication [3, P.33]. As has already
been written, the style can be formal (business written English) and
informal (spoken English). The difference of formal and informal
English is a matter of style and attitude of people to each other.
However, it is not an easy matter to draw an exact line between formal
and informal English [8, P.28], and that is the first, and the most
important thing to be clarified in this paper.
English of business correspondence possesses some important
qualities, common for formal style of English as well.
The language of business correspondence is very bookish and is
remarkable for the usage of larger and more exact vocabulary, in
comparison with informal style of communication. Sentences in
documents are longer and their clauses are grammatically fitted
together more carefully, which means a lot of practise for a person
who draws up a contract. It is generally considered and expected that
real business people, experts in their field of activity, should enjoy
the preciseness and careful grammatical construction. It does not
mean, of course, that business people must communicate orally in
formal business style.
Formal business correspondence should be more impersonal. It should
not emphasise the individuality of the writer, and takes little
account of the personal qualities of people who are going to make use
of it. Thus, the speaker should not refer directly to himself or his
readers, but avoid the pronouns I, we, you, and it may also be of a
difficulty for a person.
One more problem is that formal English lacks force and vividness.
The fact that it is formal implies its great dependence on arbitrary
conventions, rather than on natural speech habits [8, P.29]. That is
why it is so hard for non-business people to keep concentrating their
attention on contents of documents all the time, as their attention is
diverted by intricate language use. Some of them will find their long
and complicated sentences rather confusing. Words of formal English
may sound nice, but their meaning is often hard to get through. Very
often a person must read something all over again to make sure what it
means.
e.g. This stipulation being of the essence of the contract, default
by the buyers shall entitle the Sellers to load and ship the
goods as convenient to themselves to any of the ports named in
this contract and Buyers shall take delivery accordingly.
(Extract from a standard form of contract for the sale of timber
through broker in the U.K.) [6, P.229]
Another chief problem to remember about business correspondence is
that it will be read by busy people who usually have no interest in
either one’s personality or his / her problems [8, P.280]. Bearing in
mind that one should not waste anybody’s time and try to gain anything
by impressing your employers, a person uses formal English to avoid
unnecessary details about matters handled, replacing them by strict
routine. To be as clear and brief as possible without sacrificing
clarity is a common trait of any business document.
e.g. The time of delivery of the Turbine Plant against the
above contract expires on the 1st July.
Please inform us by return of post of the progress of
manufacture of the Turbine [6, P.260].
Anyway, in some important business correspondence we may find
deviations from what is called official English of the business world.
For example, if a person wants to get a job or to sign a contract, to
make a sale or to ask somebody for special advice, he / she is likely
to want to make a definite impression on the interlocutor, like in the
example:
e.g. So I spent my green years first in East Germany that
influenced on me greatly (they say I look like a German, joke),
then we moved to live in Siberia where I played an ice hockey,
entered the Secondary School and fell in love with British rock
music. [4, P.35]
This person was applying for a journalist and tried to show his
writing skills.
It does not mean, however, that a person in charge will be much
concerned about one’s personality without knowing a way of using it.
If a person is starting business correspondence on an important
matter, the first thing to do is to consider it all carefully from the
other person’s probable viewpoint, and to go on making business in the
same way.
These are some of the most frequent problems in the theory of
business correspondence which can concern a person who is likely to
get involved in a business undertaking.
3. The structure of contracts and their essential clauses
Contract is a business document presenting an agreement for the
delivery of goods, services, etc., approved and signed by both the
Buyer (exporter) and the Seller (importer) [5, P.131]. By law
contracts are made in writing. When striking a deal, standard
contracts are widely used. Standard contracts are not a must. Some
articles can be altered and supplemented [10, P.12].
The following items are of the greatest importance in any contract:
- contract No.;
- place and date of signing;
- names of the Sides which signed the contract;
- subject of the contract;
- quality of goods;
- price (per unit and total price);
- destination;
- delivery time;
- requirements for packing and marking;
- payment terms;
- conditions of submission and acceptance of goods;
- transport conditions; warranty conditions and sanctions;
- arbitration conditions;
- force majeure;
- judicial addresses of the Sides;
- signatures of the seller and the buyer.
All appendices form an integral part of contract. Contract is drawn
up in accordance with the established form, often on special printed
forms filled in with basic information by one-time writing. Sometimes,
when a transaction is small in volume, a contract may be concluded by
telex [5, P.131].
Now the most significant clauses of contract should be regarded.
The subject-section names the product for sale or purchase. It also
indicates the unit of measure employed in foreign trade for specific
commodities.
The quality of machines and equipment is to be conformed with the
technical specification of the contract. The quality of raw materials
and foodstuffs is determined by standards, samples, and description.
The price stated in a contract may be firm, fixed or sliding. Firm
prices are not subject to change in the course of the fulfilment of
the contract. Fixed price governs in the market on the day of delivery
or for a given period. Sliding prices are quoted for machinery and
equipment which require a long period of delivery.
There are some kinds of payment. A cheque is a written order to a
Bank given and signed by someone who has money deposited there to pay
a certain amount mentioned in the cheque to a person named on it. In
the place of the cheque system Banks provide an international system
of bank transfers. A draft is another order to pay. It is made out by
an exporter and presented to the importer. It is also called a bill of
exchange. A sight draft is a bill which is paid immediately on
presentation. A bill is to be paid at a later date is called a term
draft. There are 30-day, 69-, 90- and 120-day drafts. The payment is
guaranteed with a letter of credit or a revolving letter of credit.
Transport and delivery terms. The so-called door-to-door
(multimodal) transport is wide-spread in shipping now. It involves a
transfer of the goods from one kind of transport to another. The main
carrier often prefers to assume through responsibility for the cargo
he caries. In a through movement of the gods a combined transport
document is issued instead of a traditional Bill of Lading.
Packing goods for export is a highly specialised job. If the goods
are improperly packed and marked, the carrier will refuse to accept
them, or will make qualifications about the unsatisfactory condition
of packing in the bill of lading. Packing can be external (crate, bag)
or internal (box, packet, flask, etc.), in which the goods are sold.
In case of consumer goods packing had a double function. On one hand,
it is for protection. On the other hand – it serves to advertise a
product and attract a customer.
Marking should be in indelible paint with recognised kind of marks.
The cases in which the equipment is packed are to be marked on three
sides: on the top of the case and two non-opposite sides. The marking
shall be clearly made with indelible paint in the languages of the
dealing sides.
Insurance of goods. The export trade is subject to many risks.
Ships may sink or collide; consignment may be lost or damaged. All
sensible business people now insure goods for the full value. The idea
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