The extent of letter-writing, as well as the principles and uses for letters, might have changed a lot over the past few centuries, but it is good to see that some things don't change. For example, I never forget to address letters to my parents with "servitude of filial veneration." They'd never forgive me if I left that out.
On a serious note, though, there are some similarities between letter writing past and present. When I was reading about the overview of the parts of a proper letter I couldn't help but be transported back to that secretarial training known as high school business courses. They might not have been labeled in such a way, but I've certainly written (and responded to) fictitious complaints and inquiries to imaginary companies with letters that had salutations, securing of goodwill, narration, petitions, and conclusions. I didn't know I was that talented. I suppose those experiments with business letter writing (and their real counterparts in actual businesses) don't match the importance of the kinds of letters envisioned by the writer of Principles of Letter-Writing, but the form is the same (or at least not significantly different) nonetheless.
Though I'm still curious about the other four parts, it was amusing to read through the examples of salutations. I am particularly taken with the teacher/pupil examples. I will now anxiously await the day when a student actually writes me a letter. And then I will pretend that instead of saying "Dear Ms. [horrid misspelling of my name]," it instead goes on about my Ciceronian charm. I suppose this shift is just another indicator that the minimum level of respect held by instructors has significantly diminished in the past several centuries. It makes me wonder what expected signs of respect teachers have left. No Ciceronian charm comments, no standing when professors enter the room...it looks as though we're about at rock bottom. I guess we've still got the title/last-name address form...for the moment anyway.
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Dear Genesis, by divine grace replendant in Ciceronian Charm, Steve, inferior to his devoted learning, expresses the servitude of a sincere heart, I appreciate your candor with concern to the waning respect that students give to their teaches in terms of address. These days, I've been addressed as "Dude, man, yo, hey, bro, and every now and then but not so often...teach." Now, I'm not suggesting that my students don't ever refer to me as Mr. Rucker, but just once in a while, just every great now and then, I don't think it would be too much to ask from them to call me "dearest being of supreme intelligence and charm, wonderful giver of knowledge, master of dreams and all amibitions, witty, beautiful, and graceful teacher of the impressionable and needful youth." I mean, is that asking a lot?
Yo, Dude-Man Steve! Uh, I mean...he who is exalted in all forms of learning and distinguished instructor of impaired youth.
Point the First: You crack me up - your comment made this morning a lot brighter!
Point the Second: My personal favorite is the student who called me "Dawg" at the beginning of my first year of teaching. That turned into my first official in-the-hall conversation. Fun.
Point the Third: No, it is certainly not asking too much of your students to lay in on pretty thick. They need to learn how to suck up some day - might as well be in Eng 110.
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