Formal & Informal Letters: Format & Features – SS3 English Lesson Note (Second Term)

A formal letter is written to a person in an official position, such as a commissioner, a school head or a local government chairman. An informal letter is a private letter to someone familiar, such as a parent, relative or friend. Both have a writer’s address, date, salutation, body and complimentary close.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

• state the difference between a formal and an informal letter, and list the features of each;
• write a formal letter and an informal letter in the correct format;
• explain and use common words of government and politics;
• identify the functions of adverbs and adverbials in sentences;
• explain the approaches to literary appreciation and the concrete issues in literary appreciation.

What is the vocabulary of government and politics?

Definitions

Government: a system of governing a country, or the act or process of governing.

Politics: the ideas and activities concerned with gaining and using power in a country, city, etc.

Relevant words

Evaluation

Choose five words from the vocabulary of government and politics and use them in sentences.

Assignment

Reading assignment

• Countdown in English by Evans, pages 147 to 148.

Weekend assignment

Fill in the blanks in the following passage with one of the words in the brackets (democracy, executive, despot, legislature, voting, ballot, electoral, booth, party, vote, constituency, candidate, nominate, election).

In a ___________ system of government and ___________ president can very easily become a ___________ unless his ___________ refused to ___________ him for another term. Usually, ___________ is by ___________. Each is usually nominated in his ___________ by his party.

Theory

Write a letter to your father, who is in another country, telling him about the political situation of your country.

How do we approach literary appreciation?

The context of the text

One of the basic problems confronting readers of a text is the inability to fully appreciate the context, that is, the actual meaning and background conveyed by the writer, which can be literal or metaphorical. Here, the point of view of the writer must be taken into account, to have literal and metaphorical knowledge of the work. The content of any work of art centres on its plot and theme or central issues raised in the storyline.

The structure of the text

Structure refers to the organisation of text. It is also known as the format of any work of art, that is, the way it is presented by the writer, his use of diction and its effectiveness, as well as the techniques used. All these constitute the structure.

The poetic devices employed in the text

Sometimes, we do not get the correct meaning of a word in a text until we have decided whether it is used literally, that is, according to its basic original meaning, or metaphorically, which means applying one form of meaning to another. Hence, most writers make use of both literal and metaphorical words when writing. Readers therefore need a good knowledge of diction and the figurative devices adopted by the writer, as a way of appreciating the text.

The themes of the text

The theme means the central message conveyed in any piece of writing. A proper understanding of the theme in a text is very important, and it is a necessary tool for a good and detailed appreciation of the text itself. The theme of a text must not be mistaken for the subject matter, which may only be implied after a proper reading of the text.

Evaluation

1. Discuss the approaches to literary appreciation.
2. How important are the rudiments of literary appreciation?

What are the concrete issues in literary appreciation?

The concrete issues in literary appreciation are the essential ingredients for an objective and apt understanding of any particular work of art. These are:

1. The plot: the storyline, which must be very detailed.
2. The theme: the central issues raised in any work of art.
3. The style: the technical devices and the way the language is structured. A style is the manner in which the writing is done, which can be classical, down-to-earth, simple or difficult.
4. The mood: the feeling of the writer when writing. The reader must fully appreciate this to understand the plot and characterisation.
5. The diction: the effective use of language to carry the theme, plot and mood of the writer.
6. Literary devices used: these must be appropriate so as not to confuse the reader. They must allow the reader to understand the work of art.

General evaluation and revision questions

1. List and explain the concrete issues in literary appreciation.
2. Explain the significance of the concrete issues in literary appreciation.

Assignment

Weekend assignment

1. ‘To drag your father from his farm is as difficult as dragging a child from his mother’s breast’ illustrates (a) metaphor (b) personification (c) simile (d) amplification
2. When a poem has no regular rhyme scheme, it is called (a) prose (b) a dramatic verse (c) a lyrical verse (d) a blank verse
3. A poem without a regular rhyme is referred to as (a) a blank verse (b) free verse (c) Solomonic verse (d) traditional verse
4. ‘How can he compare our church outing with theirs? After all millions of people attended ours while very few people were seen at theirs,’ illustrates what device (a) paradox (b) oxymoron (c) hyperbole (d) comparison
5. When one work of art attempts to imitate the style of another work mockingly, we describe the newer work as (a) parody (b) innuendo (c) pun (d) farce.

Theory

1. Discuss the importance of literary appreciation.
2. How relevant is the historical and socio-political background in appreciating a particular work of art?

What is a formal letter?

Formal letters are letters we write to people in their official positions. These people are normally those we do not know personally, who hold official positions in establishments, schools, business houses, etc. Even when we know them personally, the rule demands that we still write impersonal or official letters to them.

Formal letters can be in the form of applications for admission or employment, requests for casual leave by staff in offices, official queries and replies to them, letters by students to the heads of their schools, letters to the local government chairman asking for amenities for local communities and other such topics.

Features of a formal letter

1. Writer’s address and date
2. Receiver’s address
3. Salutation
4. Heading or topic
5. Body of the letter
6. Complimentary close

Format of a formal letter

3, Fredrick Close,
Martins Avenue,
Lagos.
16th July, 2010

The Commissioner,
Ministry of Education,
Lagos

Dear Sir,

Expansion Programme for Baptist College

Body

Yours faithfully,
(Signature)
John Silas

Evaluation

Write a letter to the Minister of Works in your country complaining about the deplorable condition of the roads in your area and the effects this has on the lives of your people.

What is an informal letter?

Informal letters are private or personal letters. They are letters we write to people who are very familiar to us, such as our parents, relatives, friends, classmates and other people with whom we have close relationships.

Features of an informal letter

1. Writer’s address and date
2. Salutation
3. Introduction
4. Body of the letter
5. Complimentary close

Format of an informal letter

5, Biodun Street,
Alakuko,
Lagos,
16th July, 2010.

Dear Eunice,

Body

Yours sincerely,
Bukky.

Evaluation

You have been staying with your elder brother for some time and a misunderstanding has ensued. Write a letter to your father giving at least three reasons why you feel you can no longer live with your brother.

What are adverbs and adverbials?

An adverb describes the action of a verb, such as how, where or when it is done.

Examples:

• He frowned angrily.
• The eclipse will occur soon.

The main function of adverbs and adverbial phrases is to modify verbs. They also modify adjectives, other adverbs and prepositional phrases.

Functions of adverbs and adverbials

1. Modifier of a verb
   • Mary solved the problem quickly.
   • John visited Musa at Kebbi.
2. Modifier of an adjective
   • Peter is very tall.
   • James is far more handsome than Silas.
3. Modifier of another adverb
   • Bunmi runs extremely fast.
   • He works hard enough to pass his exams.
4. Modifier of a prepositional phrase
   • The girl slapped Tom right in the face.
   • We are quite on time for the party.

Evaluation

• Exercise, Question 1, Page 214, Countdown to English.

Reading assignment

• Consonant Clusters

General evaluation

Comprehension: The Dynasty of Ketu

1. What two sources of information about the names of kings of Ketu are mentioned in the text?
2. What inducement was there for the herald to remember accurately and fluently the names of past Alaketus?

Structure

State the grammatical functions of the underlined expressions.

1. He left the letter where it could be easily seen.
2. Because he was wrong, he apologised.
3. To secure a seat, he arrived at the stadium.

Assignment

Weekend assignment

• Revision and Tests Part 1, Page 60, Effective English.
• Exercise, Question 2, Page 214, Countdown to English.