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Subject:Re: A question/comment, or "rehearsing" email From:Fred M Jacobson <fred -at- BOOLE -dot- COM> Date:Thu, 6 May 1993 14:00:41 PDT
> I can understand a certain amount of embarrassment, but some
> folks seem to think everyone will know what they mean even if they
> do not state it clearly. ...
> The only conclusion I can come to is that we value clear communication
> more than others do. ...
It may be possible that some such writers don't understand one essential
difference between speaking (to people you can see) and writing. Without
thinking, we sample the reactions of our audience when speaking and
adjust and correct our presentation as we go. If we say something that
is not understood (whether the statement is unclear or the audience is not
capable of understanding it for some other reason), and if the audience
reacts in a recognizible way (puzzled looks and the like), we restate,
explain, or amplify. This feedback loop is essential to effective spoken
communication.
Written language requires more care just because we don't have that
immediate feedback. Those of us who make a living (or try to) writing
understandable descriptions, procedures, and the like are keenly aware
of this difference. Other who have not been taught about this and are
not curious enough about language and behavior to have figured it out
may write email by transcribing what they would say. If this is what is
happening, you have seen that it doesn't always work. Because the writer
doesn't realize that he or she is missing his or her normal (often non-
verbal) feedback, he or she may not know how to deal with your written
feedback.
Maybe you could try to mimic the talking-listening interaction more. You
could send a response like "<puzzled look>," or phrase your reply "I'm not
completely certain what you meant by ... Was it ... ?" I guess you might
still run the risk of being considered thick-headed by those who aren't
as compulsive as we are about writing.
