THEME 6:

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION. DIFFERENT TYPES OF WRITTEN TEXTS.

STRUCTURE AND FORMAL ELEMENTS. NORMS OF WRITTEN TEXTS.
ROUTINES AND FORMULAS.

1. INTRODUCTION

a). Definition of Written Communication

b). Nature of Written Communication
c). The Importance of Learning a Second Language, Especially English

2. CHARACTERISTICS OF WRITTEN TEXTS

3. STRUCTURE AND FORMAL ELEMENTS OF WRITTEN TEXTS.

FORMULAS AND ROUTINES.

a). Postcards
b). Letters
c). Filling in Forms
d). The Curriculum Vitae
e). Summaries
f). Reports

4. TYPES OF WRITTEN TEXTS

a). Narrative Texts

b). Descriptive Texts
c). Argumentative Texts
d). Expository Texts
e). The Reflective Text

5. CONCLUSION
1. INTRODUCTION

a). Definition of Written Communication:

Both animals and human beings need a means of communication to transmit

messages to other beings. The former use sounds or certain movements for this
purpose whereas the latter use oral, written, graphic and plastic forms of
expression. All communicative acts consist of the following elements: the message,
the channel, the speaker or writer, the receiver, the code and the context.

 The message is what the speaker or writer expresses to the receiver.

 The channel is the means by which the message goes from the speaker or
writer to the receiver.
 The speaker or writer is the being that transmits a message.
 The receiver is the person that receives the message.
 The context is the situation in which the speaker or writer and the
receiver of the message are, which allows them to interpret this message
correctly.
 The code is the system of signs used to transmit a message.

Written communication is a two-way process between writer and reader, which

involves the productive skill of writing and the receptive skill of reading with
understanding. Both writer and reader have a positive function to perform. In
simple terms, the writer has to encode the message he wishes to convey in
appropriate language, while the reader has to decode or interpret the message. It
should be kept in mind that the reader’s interpretation will not necessarily
correspond to the writer’s intended meaning.

b). Nature of Written Communication:

When we write, we use graphic symbols, that is letters or combinations of letters

which relate to the sounds we make when we speak. On one level, then, writing can
be said to be the act of forming these symbols, making marks on a flat surface of
some kind. But writing is clearly much more than the production of sounds. These
symbols have to be arranged, according to certain conventions, to form words, and
words have to be arranged to form sentences. These sentences, then, have to be
ordered and linked together in certain ways, forming a coherent whole called a
text.

Writing is neither an easy nor a spontaneous activity. Sometimes it comes easily if

we are in the right mood or have a clear and perhaps pressing need to express
something, but as a rule it requires some conscious mental effort. We think out
our sentences and consider various ways of combining and arranging them. We
reread what we have written as a stimulus for further writing. Other common
practices are making notes, drafting and revising of a text before we are satisfied

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with the result. The reason for this is that we are writing for a reader, for
someone who is not physically present and in some cases may not even be known to
us. So, we have to ensure that what we write can be understood without any
further help from us.

c). The Importance of Learning a Second Language, Especially English:

When different countries communicate it is vital that the message should be

clearly understood; therefore a language understandable to all parties is
necessary. In many cases English is the chosen medium, mainly because of the
great influence that Britain had in the past and that of the United States at
present. In many parts of the world people of the same nationality communicate in
English, as their regional languages or dialects would be incomprehensible to the
other. This is particularly true in India and Africa.

As countries strive to achieve economic cooperation, the role of the common

second language is becoming more important. University students in countries with
a relatively small population like Denmark and Norway find it impossible to obtain
specialist books on their subjects in their own languages and are obliged to use
English texts. The U.S.A., with its economic predominance, attracts many
European specialists including a large number of Spaniards who develop their skills
and knowledge for the benefit of the host country which publishes the findings of
their investigations in English, putting this information out of reach of many
monolingual European students.

Anyone wishing to take part in any international educational project will hardly be
able to do so unless they speak, read and write English and this applies to
practically any field of study.

In the developed Western countries, foreign travel has become available to the
masses, Southern European countries, because of the climate and good
infrastructure, receive many visitors from Northern Europe, and English is often
the language used to communicate, although it is not the language of the visitor
nor the host. As this tourism is a source of foreign currency, vital to the economy
of all countries, the importance of this second, common language is obvious.

Learning a second language, thus, is a necessity nowadays, especially inside the

economic European community, due to the circulation of professionals and workers
throughout the countries belonging to this community, to journeys abroad, to
cultural exchanges and to the communication of news and knowledge. There exists
a social pressure for acquiring a communicative competence in foreign languages,
both in oral and written communication as not only do people communicate face to
face, but also through written texts.

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As far as writing is concerned, thus, the students of a second language should be
provided with the necessary tools to enable them to produce written texts which
may be useful for them in the future, as well as to understand them. For this
purpose, special emphasis should be given to notes, letters, postcards, booklets,
brochures, filling in of forms, designing a c.v., dialogues, narration, description,
reflexive essays and argumentation, as they might need to use them sooner or
later to communicate with foreigners.

2. CHARACTERISTICS OF WRITTEN TEXTS

Written texts consist of graphemes which are not created in front of a reader
and so there is neither an immediate stimulus response nor a spontaneous
readjustment. They must include the situational context. They use verbal and
graphic elements such as punctuation, margins, underlining, illustrations and types
of letters.

Repetitions and abusive use of interjections, exclamations and onomatopoeia are

avoided. Their lexis is careful, their syntax seems to be more explicit and
coherent than that of oral texts and the same linguistic register is kept
throughout the text. The use of writing is not universal, but where it is it is
learned at school. Writing has a spatial character; the layout of the text can be
better organised and the overall effect can be altered or amplified.

3. STRUCTURE AND FORMAL ELEMENTS OF WRITTEN TEXTS.

FORMULAS AND ROUTINES.

There are so many different sorts of written texts that talking about all of them
in depth would be endless. So here we will just mention those which could be
important for students learning a foreign language in a secondary school.

a). Postcards:

These are cards which have a picture or a photo on one side and on the other the
text. The back of each postcard is divided into two parts: On the left part we can
write the text and on the right we put the name and address of the person we
want to write to, on lines printed for that purpose. The stamp is put in the top
right-hand corner, on a printed square. As postcards are not very big, texts have
to be quite short. They are especially used for congratulations and greetings.
Many people write postcards to their family and friends when they are travelling
during their holidays.

As far as the text is concerned we must follow some rules:

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  Town or city where you are staying, ordinal number which indicates the day
we are in, name of the month and year.
 Dear . . .
 Brief text.
 Love/Lots of love/Best wishes/Yours. One or more x can be added. Each x
means a kiss (men normally use ‘Love’ for the family and ‘Yours’ for friends).
 Signature.

When writing the address, we do it like this:

First we write the name and surname of the person the postcard is addressed to.
Then we write the number of the flat or house, the name of the street, road,
avenue or square. Afterwards, we write the name of the town, city or village,
followed by its postcode; and finally we write the district and the country of that
person.

As far as writing is concerned, colloquial, everyday language is used. An informal

style is preferred.

b). Letters:

These are written messages sent from one person to another. We can divide them
into informal or formal letters.

I. Informal Letters:

These are letters written to friends or to the family. When writing one of these,
we must follow some rules:

 The writer’s address appears in the top right-hand corner with the date
underneath.
 As far as the date is concerned, the form 21(st) February 2008 is
preferred to 21-2-2008.
 On the left-hand side, one line below the date, the first line of the letter
is written. This is always: Dear + name of the person being written to
followed by a comma.
 The following line begins with the text of the letter, which consists of
various paragraphs. The first paragraph is an introduction. There are
several ways of beginning it, some of which could be:

I’m sorry I haven’t written for so long, but . . .

It was good to hear . . .
It was lovely to get your letter . . .
Thank you very much for your letter.
It’s been ages since I saw you and quite a lot has happened . . .

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The second paragraph contains the reason for your letter. The third paragraph
contains the additional information. Here, the writer gives any news about himself
and what he has been doing. The last paragraph can be a conclusion. Most letters
have a brief sentence on a separate line before the ending. Some of them are:

Thank you for . . .

Please write and tell me . . .
Hope to hear from you soon.
I’m looking forward to hearing from you/to seeing you . . .
Best wishes to . . .
Do keep in touch.
Give my love/regards to . . .
Let me know whether/when/how . . .

 Endings. The most common are:

Yours, (for people we are not very close to)

With best wishes,
Love, (for the family and very close friends)
Lots of love,
With love,

 Signature, with the name and surname underneath in clear letters.

Sometimes we can find the letters P.S. below the signature and some text after
them. This is a postscript and it is used to write something we have forgotten to
mention in our letter.

For this type of letter a colloquial style is used.

II. Formal Letters:

These are letters written to enterprises and other official places. When writing a
formal letter one must follow certain rules:

 The writer’s address is written in the top right-hand corner with the date
underneath. In the top left-hand corner, at a lower level is written the
address of the centre or enterprise it’s addressed to. Some lines below it,
the first line of the letter appears and it begins like this:

Dear Sir/Madam, if we do not know the name.

Dear Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms + name if we know it.

 Then, on the following line, the text of the letter appears. This could, for
example, consist of three paragraphs: the first contains the reason why

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 you are writing; the second explains what you want from the addressee; the
last is a conclusion.

 The end of the letter is Yours sincerely, when you know the person it is
addressed to, and Yours faithfully, when you do not

 Signature, with the name and surname written clearly underneath.

In this sort of letter one must be clear and concise and not use emotional
language.

c). Filling in Forms:

This is very easy. It consists of answering what you are asked as briefly as
possible. For filling in this type of form you do not need a writing style.

In order to be able to fill forms in properly, one has to know the meaning of words
referring to one’s own personal details, such as:

Name, Christian Name, First Name.

Family Name, Surname.
Age.
Address and Telephone Number.
Nationality.
Date of Birth.
Place of Birth.
Sex (Male/Female).

It is also advisable to know other details as well, such as school, hobbies, driving
licence, religion, etc. This will depend on the type of application we have to fill in.

d). The Curriculum Vitae:

This is a clear summary used to give the academic knowledge and experience
someone has on a certain matter. The basic elements and structure are as follows:

 Personal details: Name and Surname, Date of Birth, Nationality, Marital

Status, Address and Phone Number.
 Current Occupation. If one is working, indicate the type of job one is doing
and why one wants to change it.
 Academic Qualifications. Studies, Courses, Publications, Knowledge of
Foreign Languages, etc.
 Professional Experience.
 Economic Expectations (where necessary).

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e). Summaries:

These are brief résumés of articles, booklets, brochures and books. Due to their
special form of composition and writing they allow the reader to gather
information about the original work without reading it. Their main purposes are:

 To help those people who are interested in the theme of the article or
book to decide if they will read it completely.
 To give the reader, for whom the article or book only offers a marginal
interest, as much information as possible, so that they do not have to read
it completely.
 To make the essential information of books and articles that appear in the
scientific and literary world easily accessible.

Summaries have certain characteristics:

 They are brief and explicit sketches of the content and conclusion of the
article, booklet or book from which they are taken.
 They cannot contain information that is not contained in the original text.
 They consist of a coherent series of sentences and are not a reckoning of
epigraphs.
 They use common words and not the technical ones used by the author.
 They must be written in the third person to maintain objectivity.
 They must not contain references nor particular or textual quotations.

The art of summarising consists of the ability to take the essential ideas, the
nucleus of the original text. When we read the original we must have a notebook at
hand, where we will write the fundamental ideas or concepts we find and the
corresponding pages of the text.

The essential or most important information should be stressed. The summary

order does not have to coincide with that of the original text. Sometimes it is
more effective to follow the interest order, from the most important to the least
important. The best way of summarising can be achieved by making a synoptical
diagram.

f). Reports:

These are used to present, clearly and in detail, the summary of present and past
facts or activities, and sometimes, of foreseeable facts from already checked
data. Although they consist of facts they often contain the interpretation of the
writer, his conclusions and his recommendations about the problem that causes it.

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The difference between reports and other written genres, such as novels for
example, is that the former communicate concrete facts or activities to a limited
and concrete number of readers.

A report is not the product of a momentary inspiration that we want to express to

others, but the answer to a question or a question to another person searching for
information. The intention of reports is to acquire a perfect knowledge of the
reality of an enterprise, agency or institution without deformative personal
visions.

According to their content and objectives three types can be distinguished:

expositive, interpretative and demonstrative.

I. Expositive Reports:

They narrate or expose a situation as it is, without any analytical or interpretative

process, or conclusions and recommendation.

This type of report must begin by summarising the previous situations, as that
overall view will help the reader to follow the posterior details better.

A typical example of this sort of report is that which narrates a process of

manufacture whose value will only rest upon the given data.

II. Interpretative Reports:

This type of report will consist basically of two parts. The first will simply be
facts or data, as in an expositive report. The second will be a conclusion or a point
of view that the writer forms as a result of his analysis of the facts, having
previously had an open mind.

III. Demonstrative Reports:

This type of report basically consists of the same two elements as above: data and
point of view. The difference between these and interpretative reports is that
the writer has a closed mind; he seeks to prove his point of view, and is sometimes
selective in the facts he uses in order to do so.

As in all demonstrations it is essential to prove certain things. It is necessary for

the reader to have a through knowledge of the thesis which the informant tries to
establish. In this sort of report a clear distinction between facts and their
commentary should be made and also all the steps which have allowed the
informant to arrive at his main propositions should be presented clearly.

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IV. Characteristics of Reports:

The composition of a report is usually impersonal and direct. To be effective, the

writer must concentrate all his objectivity and professional honesty in his work.
They must be sober, that is must almost have a lack of style, without being dry or
laconic. Long sentences with complicated grammar should be avoided. They must
be objective. The observant must be faithful to the sense of the facts. Mention
as much data as possible. They should be divided into epigraphs if they are very
long.

V. Presentation/Structure of Reports:

Although reports can be written as letters or memoranda, it is difficult to give a

model outline valid for all cases, but even so the following layout could be
suggested:

 Cover.
 Title. It must consist of a page related to the work it is about and the
name of the author.
 Presentation. Here, the objectives use method information sources and it is
more relevant aspects should be clearly exposed.
 Index or content.
 The proper report, which contains:
Introduction.
Text divided into epigraphs if it is very long.
Conclusions.
 Suggestions or recommendations.
 Appendix.
 Bibliography.

VI. Complementary Documentation:

As reports are ordered enumeration of concrete facts, which sometimes refer to

controversial questions in which individual interest plays a role, it is very often
necessary to complement them with documents which, on one hand, complete the
textual information and, on the other hand, give it a greater value. These
documents, the appendixes we have previously referred to, must be fixed to the
report, forming part of it. For the inclusion of these complementary materials, we
must take the following things into account:

 Number each appendix, so that anyone wanting to check any piece of

corresponding information can go directly to the corresponding information
can go directly to the corresponding appendix without much effort.
 Write an enumeration in brackets, in the report text, which coincides with
the appendix.

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  Number also as appendixes the graphics, statistics, pictures, maps etc. if
they are preferred to form part of the report.
 Notes and quotes: the quotes are ideas expressed by other authors which
are used to illustrate one’s own ideas or to refute an opposing argument.

Rules for figures should be followed:

 Write them in inverted commas so that they are easily distinguished from
the text of the author.
 They must be followed by a number according to an order which begins at 1
and continues successively.
 Margins should be left on every page where quotes appear. The title and
page of the book or publication from which it was taken, along with the
name of the author and publisher, should be included at the foot of the
same page.
 Italics should be used in a printed text to transcribe a quote. Where the
text is type-written the quote should be double spaced and with a bigger
margin, so it is clear that it does not form part of the author’s original
work.

4. TYPES OF WRITTEN TEXTS

a). Narrative Texts:

This is a form of text used to tell stories. So, its main characteristics are use of
concrete nouns, qualifying adjectives, and verbs in the past tense or in the
historic present, which is a tense used to express past events vividly.

When narrating, the events are usually described in chronological order, although
we can also begin in the middle or even at the end, and make use of flashbacks to
describe the previous development of the story.

Narrative can be divided into sub-categories, depending on the type of

information and the effect we wish to create on the imagination of the reader.

I. Generalised Narrative:

This is the least common form of narrative. It consists of repeated or typical

actions to give a notion of typical events or to characterise people and their sort
of life, saying what they usually did.

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II. Summarised Narrative:

This is a condensed account of specifying facts or events. The reader does not
see the action going on, but is told what happens. Examples of this type of
narrative can be found in biographies, history and personal narrative.

In fiction, action may be similarly summarised to prepare for a scene that is

presented directly o to show what has gone on since the preceding scene, or to run
through quickly action that does not deserve more detailed or vivid telling.

III. Dramatic Narrative:

This is a direct scene. It includes conversation or at least details which give a

relatively full picture of what is going on, so that the reader feels he is directly
observing it.

Narration has the following elements:

 Action:

Every action must have a beginning, a middle and an end. The beginning should
attract the readers’ attention and simulate their curiosity to make them want to
continue.

The middle will contain the substance of the narration and will be longer than the
beginning or the end. The main theme or meaning should be introduced here in
such a way as to hold the interest and provoke thought. Care should be taken to
avoid the glaringly obvious, as this tends to insult the readers’ intelligence. The
end must satisfy the promises the beginning makes to the readers.

 Characters:

These are the persons which appear in the story.

 Narrator:

This is the person who narrates the story.

 Atmosphere:

This refers to the environment, the context and the circumstances of the story.

There are various narrative points of view:

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Narratives may be presented by a character, a person who tells his own story and
refers to himself throughout as ‘I’. This is the first person narrative.

The author may be a mere observer and refer to the character in the third
person. This is the ‘witness narrator. Then we have the ‘Intrusive Author’, who has
a complete knowledge of the situation and intervenes to make direct comments to
the reader.

b). Descriptive Texts:

This is defined by Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary as the form of text whose
purpose most resembles that of the pictorial arts, as it is designed to give a
mental image of a scene, person, emotional situation etc. The descriptive writer,
like a painter, frames an image. He may be technical and objective or he may be
imaginative and impressionistic, but his object is always to create a picture.
Descriptive texts use metaphors, similes or comparisons, qualifying adjectives and
relative sentences.

There are various types of descriptions:

According to the writer and the descriptive object they can be pictoric,
topographic and cinematographic.

In pictoric descriptions both writer and object are immobile. The author is in
front of a picture and talks about its colour, light and figures.

In topographic descriptions the object is still and the writer is in movement. A

good example of this is when the author sees an object from a train, car, ship or
plane. The most important thing is the relief. We do not describe everything we
see but the most characteristic details that define it.

In cinematographic description the object is mobile whereas the writer is still. An

example could be the description of a battle. This is the most complete
description because it requires light, colour, movement, relief and sound.

There are various types of language used:

 Scientific: its main aim is to describe an object, its parts, how it works and
it is used. Its main elements are objectivity, clarity and precision. Many
technical words are used.
 Literary: its main aim is to cause a positive or negative impression or a
certain sensation on the reader.

In order to write a description the following steps must be followed:

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  Observation of reality: first of all we should select the object of our
description and then look at its qualities, uses, etc.

 Selection and order of details. This order can be established:

From general things to particular ones or viceversa.
From form to content or viceversa.
From the nearest things in time and space to the furthest ones and
viceversa.

c). Argumentative Texts:

This is a form of text which attempts to secure the support of the readers for
what is defended, which is called thesis The most common type of argument is the
analogical argumentation. Here the author presents a situation which is familiar to
the reader and makes a comparison with his defended idea in an attempt to clarify
his message.

I. Argumentative Methods:

 Induction: This is the mental operation which consists of inducing a general

law from concrete facts, to explain them.
 Deduction: This is the mental operation which, by using logical and valid
premises, arrives at a conclusion.

II. Argumentation Organisation and Structure:

First, we must think before writing. Our thesis will be based on previous and more
or less explicit arguments which are in our mind. Now they should be made clearly
explicit and we may need to find examples to support them. Secondly, these
arguments should be ordered according to the order of importance, and later on
they should be interrelated (the most obvious arguments should be omitted).
Thirdly, an outline should be made. In order to write the thesis we should
underline the key words to have them always present. Then we should elaborate
two or three main ideas for the headings.

d). Expository Texts:

Their main aim is to present objective and accurate information on any technical,
scientific or humanistic topic such as presentation of ideas, experiences, use of
machines, etc. However, they can also be used in different moments of daily life,
like informative prospects of any type, school works on literary or historical
matters and so on.

All expository texts have three main parts: documentation, structure and
elocution.

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The first consists of gathering information on the topic which is going to be
developed later on. This information should be complete, actualised and
contrasted. Sometimes opinions of experts in the chosen topic could be included.

The second can be diverse, as it adapts easily to the topic and point of view of the
author. Some of the most common ones are:

 Analysis outline: The initial idea is developed to show its validity. The
confirmation of this idea is done by using data which give it credibility.
 Synthesising outline: It exposes the ideas from which a conclusion is
obtained.
 Framed outline: The initial idea is used for giving an explanation with its
corresponding conclusion.
 Parallel outline: All the ideas have the same importance.

e). The Reflective Text:

This is an exercise in contemplation on any given subject. It tests your ability to

think and describe, to order your ideas and to draw on your experience,
imagination and general knowledge.

Although they cannot be easily classified, two main groups can be distinguished:
those which require a great deal of description as well as reflection, which we may
call descriptive reflective, and those in which the emphasis is on reasoning rather
than description, which we may call abstract.

I. Descriptive-Reflective:

These usually take the form of one-word titles. When writing, you should draw
conclusions from what you describe. Teaching, for instance, is a title of this sort
where you are not only expected to describe teaching, but to express your views
on it.

II. Abstract:

These again may take the form of one-word titles when they refer to abstract
qualities such as ‘happiness’. In subjects of this kind, purely descriptive writing is
of secondary importance. Your ability to reason rather than to describe your own
feelings and views about the subject take the first place. All reflective essays
consist of three main parts: introduction, development and conclusion.

 The introduction is the most important paragraph because here you have to
make your interpretation of the subject clear to the reader. It is, in
effect, an essay in miniature because you should touch briefly some of the

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 main aspects of the subject; that is, the introduction should lead the
reader to expect certain things.

 Development is the part of the essay in which you should develop the points
that were hinted at in the introduction.

 Conclusion is the part which in some way should be related to the

introduction and so round the essay off.

The main devices used to elaborate this type of discourse are description,
illustration or examples and contrast.

5. CONCLUSION

Learning a foreign language is very important nowadays in order to be able to

communicate with people from other countries, both orally and through writing.
Languages have a greater importance now than before and in this competitive
society those who can speak, or in this case write, several languages get better
jobs and opportunities in life. So, students should try to learn foreign languages in
order to communicate with other people both for pleasure and for work purposes.
They will be able not only to communicate but will also learn new cultures, habits,
etc. and all this knowledge will broaden their minds and make them more cultured.
Lastly, the learning of new languages will help them to know their own language
better and to appreciate it.

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