[Picture of Oliver Cromwell*]
For every native-speaker of English, there are around four non-native
speakers. This means 80% of English users not only have imperfect knowledge of
English grammar and spelling but how to express tone. In other words, of increasing
importance due to social media, most are not familiar with the manner in which
it is possible to express ideas without sounding rude or aggressive. In this
regard, it is important to understand that each language has its own acceptable
style of written expression, which may sound ridiculous or rude when
translating literally.
Two extremes are French and Hebrew. French is a flowery language arising
from a culture that highly values formal politeness. Some beautiful phrases found common in French
correspondence of all kinds include: nous avons l’honneuer de … [we have the honor of], je suis dans
l’obligation [I am in the obligation of], en vous addressant mes meilleurs
voeux de succes [in sending my best wishes of success], and je me
permits d’attirer votre attention [I allow myself to bring it to your
attention], even when the the content does not reflect such thoughts. By contrast, Israeli society and the Hebrew language are quite
direct, if not blunt, which is reflected in the written language. For example, Hebrew
generally avoids use of such fillers as please in sentences and how are you doing at the beginning of emails.
Since, its syntax generally follows the subject-verb-object order and the
language has often has few synonyms, the message is to the point. Its tendency
to call a spade a spade is the polar opposite of the French indirect style.
English is a direct language in terms of sentence syntax but developed
in a class society that valued politeness. In practical terms, the polish in
English correspondence is added through doubt, understatement and vagueness,
among others. To avoid putting people in uncomfortable corners, English has
many phrases to allow for error, at least in form. These include to the best
of my knowledge, as far as I can know, it appears that and I
have received information that. These words avoid direct accusation.
Another technique, typically British, is reducing the severity of the term,
sometimes to the point of sarcasm. For instance, your services did not meet
my satisfaction means that the contractor’s worker was awful while I
find it regretful often expresses great anger. When it would be too confrontational
to formally mention a painful matter, native English speakers prefer vague
terms. Some examples include please advise, payment issues, contractual
obligations and resolving the issue. Using these techniques, English
correspondence loses its uncomfortable aggressiveness at least as far as native
speakers are concerned.
However, most users of English are neither native speakers nor advanced
students of English in terms of formal studies or living in an English-speaking
country. At the same time, they increasingly are active in international
writing, especially in social media and email. Their language is generally
understandable in terms of content but sometimes creates misunderstanding in
terms of tone. Specifically, the writer may have intended the greatest respect
but the reader, especially a native English speaker, may forget that the writer
does not share a common culture and interpret a comment as rude, even insulting,
or bloated This communication gap can create avoidable communication barriers.
In terms of implications, it is clear that non-native English-speaking
professionals that actively use email and social media should seek guidance on
the matter to ensure that they transmit their true message. For example, my
wife, an Israeli, occasionally consults me in regards to sensitive email to
make sure that the underlying message is effectively expressed. On a greater
scale, when reading and reacting to various comments in social media, especially
Facebook, it is important to consider the background of the writers. If they
are non-native English speakers writing in English, however correct that
English may be, they may be entirely unaware of English writing conventions
and, consequently, how insulting their comments sounded to a native English
speaker. Accordingly, we native speakers must be patient with foreigners not
only because they are the majority but also because the vast majority have
limited knowledge of English. I hope for the same when I write in French or
Hebrew. As Cromwell would say, tolerance is the basis for a civil society.
* For the sake of the blind, do not forget to caption your pictures. Picture taken from wikipedia site.
