发布时间 : 星期三 文章分析商务英语的文体风格与语言特征更新完毕开始阅读
〔摘要〕国际商务管理论文中国加入世贸以来, 商务英语变得越来越重要了, 因此掌握商务英语应用文的文体风格与语言特点是很有必要的。本文通过大量的例证分析, 讨论了商务英语应用文的文体风格与语言特点, 希望对商务英语学习者与商务英语工作者有所裨益。 一、商务英语写作的类别一般来说 , 按照其用途 , 商务英语写作可以分为以下八种: 1 . 信函。通常信函广泛地运用于各种社会关系活动与商业事务中。它又可分为私人信函和官方信函。2 . 商业文件。通常商业文件广泛地运用于经济与贸易领域。它又可分为一般的商业信件和特殊的商业文件。一般的商业信件包括建立商业关系的信件 , 接受函和合同等。特殊的商业文件包括索赔的报价函、贷款信件、委托证明书、意向书、投诉信件等。3 . 礼仪文件。此类文件包括祝贺文件和吊慰文件。4 . 合同。这类文件包括意向协议书、销售证明、代理协议、合同、文化交流协议、约会信函、协议条款等。5 . 信息通告文件。此类文件常用来通知公众或引起公众的注意。如: 报告、通知、海报、备忘录、广告等。6 . 说明性的写作。此类文件常用来解释或说明某个问题或事件 , 包括商标、广告说明书、质量保证书、图文说明等。7 . 帐单和收据。这类写作可分为许多种 , 如帐单、表格、收据、保险单、订单、航运文件、证明等。8 . 会议的文件。此类文件包括会前签定和告知的会议中所记录的及会后有关的文件。
二、商务英语的文体风格与语言特征应用文英语写作 , 尤其是商务英语写作 , 是实际运用语言的一个典范。其主要作用是按照文件上所定的条款规则来告知或提醒其合作伙伴或公众的行动。这样的应用文写作有其独特的语言风格: 标准性、正式性和特殊性。当然 , 商务英语也有其基本的语言特征 , 那就是: 完整性、具体性、简洁性、简明性、顾及性和准确性。 1 . 频繁地使用动态的词 , 如去等 , 而不是那些静态的词 , 如是等。例如:(1) We are glad t o inform you that our cust omers are quitesatisfied with the quality Of your p r oducts1(2) Your p roducts are selling well1众所周知 , 商人处在正在进行时的句子中代表着繁荣的景观 — — — 产品已售出。2 . 更多地位用连贯介词而不使用单个的简单介词。如in favor of, in comp liance with, as per, in view of . . . 例如:(1) Freight payable as per charter party’ s p lus t wo non —negotiable cop ies1(2) This certificate of silk p roducts is issued in comp liancewith the consignee’ s request1因为商务英语写作属于正式文体写作 , 所以更多地使用直观的语言更使人们觉得庄重与严肃。3 . 使用由 “here” , “there”构成的复合词 , 或由“where”加上 in, by, after等后缀构成的词。例如:(1) We confir med the credit and thereby undertake that alldraft drawn and p resent as above specified will be dulyhonored by us at our counter on or before .(2) This contract is made by and bet ween the Buyers andthe Sellers, whereby the Buyers agree t o buy and theSellers agree t o sell the under—menti oned commodityaccording t o the terms and conditi ons sti pulated bel ow1这些词的使用能避免没必要的重复 , 从而使意思更简洁明了。 “here”指代 “this” , “there”指代 “that” , “where”指代 “what” , 或 “which” 。
4 . 使用正式法律英语的表达法。如 assist, assign, con2strue, convene, execute, interi m, partake, repatriate, the said等。例如:(1) At the request of Party A agrees t o send technicians t oassist ( ratherthan“hel p” ) Party B install the equi p2ment . .( 2 ) I n p rocessing transacti ons, the manufactures neverhave title ( rather than“right” ) either t o the materialsor t o the finished p r oducts .
5 . 更多地使用非限定的形式来表达严肃的语气。例如:(1) Should the Vessel deviate or put back during a voyage,contrary t o the others ordirecti ons of the Charterers, formany reas ons other than accident t o the cargo or wherepermitted in lines 257 t o 258 hereunder, the ire is t obe sus pended from the ti me of her deviating or puttingback until she is again in the same or equidistant posi2ti on fr om the destinati on and the voyage resumed there2fr om.(2) Should ice
p revent the Vessel from reaching port of dis2charge the Charterers shall have the op ti on of keep ingthe Vesselwaiting until the reopening of navigati on andpaying demurrage p r of ordering the Vessel t o a safeand i mmediately accessible port where she can safelydischarge without risk of detenti on by ice1Such orderst o be given within 48 hours after theMaster or the Own2ers have given notice t o the Charterers of the i mpossi2bility of reaching port of destinati on . 6 . 更多地使用 “shall”来增强语气。例如:(1) This contract shall become effective upon and fr om thedate onwhich it is signed1(2) The Sellers shall be liable for any rust, damage andl oss attributed t o inadequate packing by the sellers1在合同中 , 单词 shall”不仅表示将来时 , 而且表达了每一方的职责与义务 , 常具有 “must”的强制意味。
7 . 更多地使用成对的同义词。例如:(1) This Agreement andany rights or obligati on hereunderare not transferable or assignable by one party t o this a2greementwithout the consent of the other party here t o1(2) This contract is made by and bet ween the Buyers andthe Sellers, whereby the buyers agree t o buy and theSellers agree t o sell the under—menti oned commodityaccording t o the terms and conditi ons sti pulated bel ow18 . 适宜地使用被动语态和主动语态。如:(1) Party A hereby appoints Party B as its exclusive salesagent inChangsha1 ( active voice)(2) Party B is hereby appointed by Party A as its exclusivesales agent in Changsha1 (passive voice)但有时使用被动语态比使用主动语态更好。如:(3) The Buyers’ Shi pp ing Agency, China Nati onal ForeignTrade Trans portati on Cor porati on, Beijing, China( cable address : 3 3 3 3 Beijing) will attend t obooking of shi pp ing space . ( active voice)(4) Booking of shi pp ing space shall be attended t o by theBuyers ’ Shi pp ing Agency, China Nati onal ForeignTrade Trans portati on Corporati on, Beijing China ( ca2ble address : 3 3 3 3 Beijing) (passive voice)比较以上四个句子 , 我们便发现句子 (1) (4) 分别比句子 (2) (3) 好。9 . 较少地使用间接表达 , 更多地使用直接表达。如:(1) This article does not app ly t o bondholderswho have notbeen paid in full .(2) This article app lies only t o bondholder who have beenpaid in full .比较以上两个句子 , 我们便发现用直接表达写的句子(2) 比用间接表达写的句 (1) 更清楚而没有拐弯抹角。 10 . 频繁地使用一些特定的表达 , 其中主要的一个是“whereas” 。用在介绍背景的开场白中和表达签合同的意向时 “whereas”是个关联词。如:(1) Whereas the contract or is desirous t o p rovide the man2power for the works1(2) Whereas PartyA agrees t o sell t o PartyB the p r oducts,the steel wire r ope, in compensati on of the p rice ofParty B’smachines and equi pment .此外 , 在证明方面还有许多特定的数量表达法。如:(1) In Dup licat or 2 - Fold (一式两份 )(2) In Tri p licate or 3 - Fold (一式三份 )(3) In Quadrup licate or 4 - Fold (一式四份 )(4) In Quintup licate or 5 - Fold (一式五份 )(5) In Sextup licate or 6 - Fold (一式六份 )(6) In Sep tup licate use of or 7 - Fold (一式七份 )(7) In Octup licate or 8 - Fold (一式八份 )(8) In Nonuj p licate or 9 - Fold (一式九份 )(9) In Decup licate or 10 - Fold (一式十份 )11 . 频繁地使用多体词。如 confirm ( confir mati on) , ac2cep t ( accep tance) , collect ( collecti on)。(1) We have added our confirmati on (保兑 ) on the creditand engage that documents p resented t o us in full com2p liance with the terms and conditi ons of the credit willbe duly honored .(2) The fall set of shi pp ing documents shall accompany thecollecti on (托收 ) draft and only be released after fullpayment of the invoice value .(3) We hereby engage with drawers and /or bone fide hold2ers that draft drawn in conformitywith the terms of thiscreditwill duly accep ted (承兑 ) on p resentati on andduly honored atmaturity .在商务英语写作中一个非常普遍的现象是多体词的运用 , 这些词能频繁地改变意思 , 所以其准确的意思必需依赖于句子的上下文。
12 . 频繁地使用非真实条件句并不断地改变句子结构。如: in case of, only if, only after, p r
ovided, unless, if, inview of, on conditi on that, p r oviding that等。例如:(1) In case of transfer, documents No1 ( K) is no morerequired p r ovided that the bank of china, L ianyuangcertifies it has transferred the credit1(2) Transshi pment is all owed on conditi on that the entirevoyage becovered by thr ough B /L1有时表条件的词如被省去了 , 相反的却使整个句子的写作风格更简洁 , 严密。如:(3) Should the negotiating bank not be advised of st opp ingrenewalwithin 15 days after each negotiati on, the un2used balance of this credit shall be increased t o the original amount1
13 . 在合同中 , 阿拉伯数字与英语数字一起运用 , 确保其精确性并能避免窜改 , 伪造。如:(1) Four Hundred T wenty Thousand Five Hundred SixtyDollarsOnly (US ＄420, 560)(2) US ＄4550, 00 ( say US Dollar Four Thousand FiveHundred and Fifty Only)(3) Quantity: 10000 (Ten Thousand) dozens only(4) With fifteen ( 15) days after the Sixty day ofMarch,1999 ( nineteenninety - nine) by and bet ween . . .
14 . 频繁地使用状语从句。如:(1) The p rovisi ons of this contract shall continue t o be ap2p lied after it has exvired within the territ ories of thecontracting parties .(2) Should the sellers fail t o effect shi pment by the end ofthis year, the buyer has the right t o cancel the con2tract .一个文件在宣布决定或职责时 , 必须精确地指出在什么情况下 , 在什么时候 , 在什么地方 , 或以什么方式来接受此业务。这就需要使用时间状语从句 , 条件状语从句 , 方式状语从句等。 15 . 频繁地使用带有附加修饰的长而复杂的名词短语。如:(1) All payment for oil - drillingmachines sold t o the buyershall be made by an irrevocable Letter of Credit .(2) The payment t o the seller of the t otal amount of any in2stall ment then remaining unpaid shall be reversed andagreed t o be paid during the ter m. . .这是为了达到简洁性 , 法律英语写作的又一个显著特征。人们更喜欢使用附加修饰语 , 因为把单个的词放在一个名词前 , 没有短语或从句那样能更好地修饰这个名词。
16 . 组合、缩写. 转化和省略在商务英语写作中常用来减少信息链中的词汇。
(1) 介词短语、短语介词、名词短语、动词短语、数词以及其他短语的组合。如:( a) above par - ABOVEPAR( b) In sp ite of - I NSP ITEOF( c) Bank rate - BANKT ATE( d) airmail us - A I RMA I LOFUS( e) one and half - ONEANDHALF( f) out of st ock - OUT OFSYOCK(2) 单词和短语的缩写。如:( a) Bill of lading - B /L( b) Free On Board - FOB( c) your cable - YC( d) Cost, I nsurance and Freight - CIF( e) EuropeMain Port - EMP( f) Thanks - TKS(3) 短语 , 句子 , 时态 , 语态和标点符号的转化。如:( a) hurry up - EXPED ITE( b) As soon as possible - S OONEST( c) on account of - BECAUSE( d) We make you a fir m offer - F I RMOFFER( e) The shi pment has already sent - SH IPMENTSENT( f) We shallwrite you the details later - WR IT NGDET A I LS(4) 助动词、系动词、情态动词、大部分的代词、部分形容词、副 词以及单词形式的省略。如:( a) We recommend your accep tance - RECOMMEND AC2CEPT ANCE( b) Referring t o your letterOf Jan110, we have Opened -L /C1 - Y L10JAN. L /COPENED( c ) The quality of the goods is unsatisfact ory - G OODSQUAL ITY UNS ATISFACT ORY17 . 在信息链中不直接使用标点符号 , 而经常使用COMMA, ST OP, PCT等。, - COMMA # - NUMBER. - ST OP “- I NCH; ECOND? - QUESTI ON MARK ‘- FOOT, M I NUTE- DASH - DEGREE& - AND = - EQUS LS+ - PLUS - UNDERL I NED% - PCT ? - YEN, Y UAN￡ - STG, STERL I NG ＄- DLS, UDS 〔 参考文献〕
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