Business English: A Practice Book

Business English! The very name is an anomaly. From a literary point of view there is no such thing. English is English whether it be used to express the creations of our imagination, our aesthetic appreciations, or our daily wants. There is no magical combination of words, phrases, and sentences that is peculiar and distinctive to business transactions. Business English as used in these pages means effective communication, both oral and written. The author's aim throughout has been to teach the art of using words in such a way as to make people think and act. To do this she has applied the principles of literary composition to the highly complex and ever increasing problems of our business life. She realizes that business is vital, and that the problems of commerce are not to be met and handled with dead forms and stereotyped expressions of legal blanks.

To use our language effectively it is necessary to have an understanding of its elements. Thus the author has very wisely devoted much space to word-study and English grammar. This is a field commonly neglected in books on the subject. The people engaged in business are, on the whole, woefully weak in the grammar of our language. It is believed that the treatment herein will be a great aid in correcting this deficiency. If we have ideas, we must express them in words, and our words should be so chosen and arranged as not to offend, but to please and interest. This result can be secured by a systematic study of Part I.

Part II deals with oral and written composition. Here the author has arranged her subjects in such a way as to give the whole a cumulative effect. The method throughout is inductive, and sufficient examples are always given to warrant the conclusions drawn. Most textbooks on Business English neglect the subject of oral English. This book regards the spoken word as important as the written word.

If there be any one feature in this textbook more to be commended than another, it is the exposition in Part III. The situations arising in many different kinds of business are here analyzed. The author believes that the way to become a good business correspondent is, first, to learn what the situation demands and, second, to practice meeting the demands. We must know before we write. Given a knowledge of the subject, we must have much practice in expressing ourselves in such a way as to make our composition effective. The author meets this need by supplying many and varied exercises for practice. These exercises are live, practical, and up-to-date. The problems to be solved are real, not imaginary. Thus the power to be gained in meeting these situations and solving these problems will prove a real asset to those who contemplate a business career. It is confidently hoped that both teachers and pupils will find in this work material which will help them to prepare themselves to meet the many problems and demands of our growing commercial needs.