声明
Acknowledgments
Abstract
摘要
Contents
Chapter One Introduction
1.1 Origin of the Study
1.2 Objective and Significance of the Study
1.3 The Approach to the Study
1.4 Organization of the Thesis
Chapter Two Literature Review
2.1 Politeness and the Cooperative Principle
2.2 An Overview of Major Politeness Theories
2.3 General Concepts in Contemporary Politeness Theory
2.4 Cultural Values Relating to the Perception of Politeness in English and Chinese
2.5 Current Research on Refusals
Chapter Three The Introduction of Business Letters
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Language Used in Business Letters
3.3 Business Letter Structure
3.3.1 Salutations
3.3.2 The Body of the Letter
3.3.3 Closing Greetings
3.3.4 Complimentary Close
Chapter Four Analysis of Rejection in American and Chinese Letters
4.1 The Style and Structure of American and Chinese Rejection Letter
4.1.1 Minimizing the Impact of Rejection
4.1.2 The Style and Structure of an American Rejection Letter
4.1.3 The Style and Structure of a Chinese Rejection Letter
4.2 Research and Analysis
4.2.1 Expectations and Hypotheses
4.2.2 Methods of Analysis
4.3 Results
4.3.1 Salutations
4.3.2 The Letter Opening-The Preparatory Phase for the Rejection
4.3.3 The Four Most Prevalent American Patterns
4.3.4 Explanation of Chinese rejection
Chapter Five Conclusion
5.1 Major Findings of the Study
5.2.Limitations of the Study and Suggestions for Further Research
References
Publications