Designed for foreign-born professionals working in the U.S. who already possess good English skills and yet are not polished communicators in a U.S. business environment, this resource provides practical advice for becoming more effective in typical business situations.
Explains the uniquely American cultural references that appear in American English for students and professionals to increase their written command of the language. Language is a window into the soul of a culture. The hardest part for newcomers who want to master American English is not learning the alphabet, grammar, or vocabulary — it's understanding the distinctive way Americans approach the world. This book shows readers how to do just that. The American Way of Writing guides readers through the nuances of American English, providing a toolkit for non-native speakers who come to the United States to study, as well as international business and legal professionals who have to work and communicate with Americans in a professional or business context. Understanding what makes Americans uniquely "American" is a challenging subject for anyone to master. Such characteristics are always in flux and a source of constant debate. Steven D. Stark's comprehensive approach to American English in The American Way of Writing is suited to Americans and foreigners alike, offering a deeper understanding of the ties that bind rather than divide.
The purpose of this book is to help the reader to better understand American values, expectations, and behaviours in business activities and to help them to develop practical strategies for being successful in working with Americans.
Althen (former foreign student adviser, U. of Iowa) gives advice to foreign visitors to the U.S. that is intended to help them understand the motivations, attitudes, communication styles, and actions of Americans. Emphasizing the interpretation of observed behavior, he covers ways of reasoning and American ideas about politics, family life, education, religion, the media, social relationships, racial and ethnic diversity, male-female relationships, sports and recreation, driving, shopping, personal hygiene, and organizational and public behavior. Over-generalization is an understandable danger in such a work as this, but Althen does make an effort to emphasize that there are variations among Americans, while he concentrates on the similarities. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Can ghoti really be pronounced fish? Why is "o" short in glove and love, but long in rove and cove? Why do English words carry such extra baggage as the silent "b" in doubt, the silent "k" in knee, and the silent "n" in autumn? And why do names like Phabulous Phoods and Hi-Ener-G stand out? Addressing these and many other questions about letters and the sounds they make, this engaging volume provides a comprehensive analysis of American English spelling and pronunciation. Venezky illuminates the fully functional system underlying what can at times be a bewildering array of exceptions, focusing on the basic units that serve to signal word form or pronunciation, where these units can occur within words, and how they relate to sound. Also examined are how our current spelling system has developed, efforts to reform it, and ways that spelling rules or patterns are violated in commercial usage. From one of the world's foremost orthographic authorities, the book affords new insight into the teaching of reading and the acquisition and processing of spelling sound relationships.
Explains the uniquely American cultural references that appear in American English for students and professionals to increase their written command of the language. Language is a window into the soul of a culture. The hardest part for newcomers who want to master American English is not learning the alphabet, grammar, or vocabulary — it's understanding the distinctive way Americans approach the world. This book shows readers how to do just that. The American Way of Writing guides readers through the nuances of American English, providing a toolkit for non-native speakers who come to the United States to study, as well as international business and legal professionals who have to work and communicate with Americans in a professional or business context. Understanding what makes Americans uniquely "American" is a challenging subject for anyone to master. Such characteristics are always in flux and a source of constant debate. Steven D. Stark's comprehensive approach to American English in The American Way of Writing is suited to Americans and foreigners alike, offering a deeper understanding of the ties that bind rather than divide.
Whether you're a businessperson beginning to work in the United States or a foreign student visiting for a semester, this new edition of American Ways will help you navigate America's diverse and changing culture. From the deep-seated attitudes that mark the American character to customs and everyday activities, American Ways explores the tapestry of the country's life, providing invaluable information on cultural values, politics, education, religion, and relationships. In this revised edition, Gary Althen and Janet Bennett have added material that reflects some of the important changes that have occurred over the last decade. This edition features new material on American politics, reflecting the impact of the Bush administration as well as the election of the nation's first black president, and an updated chapter on the effects of social networking sites on meeting people and creating friendships.