Hey Charlie,
I just thought I'd let you know that I got that job over at the magazine. It sucks that I don't hear from you. You should wright me sometime. Anyway, this job is going to be awesome. There's lots of cool stuff to do, and it's right up my alley with all that English I did in College. We should catch up sometime at dinner.
-Josh
Dear Dr. Souder,
I am e-mailing to inform you that I received the job at Such-N-Such Magazine. I appreciate your recommendation with the editor, and I really look forward to my first day. The articles of the publication are interesting and entertaining, and there is always something to occupy my time. The editor is exactly like you said he would be, and his enthusiasm for the job is admirable. I hope later we can discuss this during your office hours.
Yours truly,
Joshua Edgecomb
What I found out was that in the first letter, to my friend Charlie, I am a lot less formal. He isn't necessarily interested in what the publication does, or who my boss is. The purpose of the letter is mostly just to touch ground and to allow that conversational aspect of my life into his life. To let him know what is going on, and to establish that commonplace for us later on.
With Donna, it is a lot more formal. I noticed I used substantially more descriptive adjectives, and more description in general. I gave the publication a name, rather than leaving it ambiguous, and with that, I gave life to the job, rather than just stating I had it. Establishing ethos is a monumental step in writing to your peers, and to someone you are more formally engaged.
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There are major differences in the two e-mails. Good job understanding the differences, how do you think kiros plays into the differences? It seems to me that Donna is more in a position to care about details, like the publication name and the genre of the articles. Your friend charlie is in a different situation, and therefore he has different interests. People change their tone and style to conform to their audience, sometimes subconsciously. Good job recognizing it and using it to get your message across.
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