Letters from our readers

They do this in many ways. Often they tell you directly what they think. Sometimes, however, they make their points indirectly. This is especially true when they are frustrated or when they feel something is very wrong or unfair. In such situations, letter writers often use satire or add sarcastic comments to the criticisms they make.

This means you have to be careful when you read a letter in Postbag. A letter which appears to be praising something may actually be saying the opposite. For example, if a reader talks about Bangkok's "wonderful transportation system", you should immediately be suspicious since you know the present system is far from wonderful.

The letter below contains examples of both sarcasm and satire. Can you find them.

I'm sure you quickly understood that the writer was unhappy about motorcyclists using footpaths intended for pedestrians. He was especially angry about a policeman who recently almost ran into him with his motorcycle. He showed his anger right at the beginning by sarcastically using the word thrill which is normally used in a positive way. He wasn't thrilled. He was frightened.

What about the satire? Think about why the writer mentioned a noodle vendor in his letter. Why, according to the writer, might a policeman be chasing a noodle vendor? Because the vendor might not have paid his monthly fees. To whom? To the policeman, of course. But why would a policeman collect a monthly fee from a noodle vendor? Because selling noodles on the street is illegal in many parts of Bangkok.

But isn't a policeman's job to enforce the law? Yes, it is and that is the writer's point. Can you see that sometimes such indirect criticism is much stronger and more effective than direct criticism?

Of course not all letters contain sarcasm or satire. In fact, most letters are quite straightforward and some of them offer praise instead of criticism. But people tend to write to a newspaper more often when they are upset than when they are satisfied. That's human nature.

Below are suggestions for reading the letters you will find in Postbag.

Reading Postbag letters

Consider each of the follow as you read Postbag letters, especially the ones I have included for you to read in this lesson.

• Consider what the writer's purpose is in writing. Is the writer making a complaint, for example, or praising something? Perhaps the writer is making as suggestion or giving a warning. Then again the writer may simply be making an observation without offering any opinion at all. And perhaps the writer has more than one purpose.

  Finally, some writers have no serious purpose at all. They write to the newspaper just to make a joke and they fool the many readers who think they are serious. You will see an example of this in the letters I have chosen for you to read.

• * Consider what evidence the writer uses in support of his or her opinion. Some writers offer only very little evidence and use mainly emotion to try to persuade Postbag readers. Don't let that convince you.
• Consider carefully how the writer makes his or her points. Are they direct, i.e., does it mean exactly what is says? Or does the writer really mean something else, using satire or sarcasm, for example? Perhaps there is a mixture with some direct comments and some sarcastic comments.

If you and your students want a change from the stories you find in textbooks - or even the stories in the Bangkok Post, for that matter - our letters to the editor section, known as Postbag, is a good place to look for material. There you will find opinions and observations from ordinary people on everyday subjects that your students can easily identify with. This lesson gives your students a taste of what they will find.

It also gives them some important suggestions on how to read the letters they see. Unlike much of the reading they have done before, letters to the editor often express strong opinions and they don't always mean what they appear to mean. Satire and sarcasm are common and students often completely miss the point the writer is trying to make.

For this reason, I have suggested in this lesson that your students spend some time considering the writer's purpose in writing a letter to the editor of the Bangkok Post. They should particularly look to see if the points are made directly, in a straightforward manner, or if they are more indirect - perhaps meaning exactly the opposite of what the writer says.

Since many letters are really short persuasive essays, it is also important that your students learn to evaluate the evidence the writer uses to support his or her position. Sometimes there is very little evidence and the argument is largely an emotional one.

Finally, not all letters to the editor are serious. Letters from the mythical Edith Clampton, for example, are simply for fun. They are so ridiculous that readers should quickly see through them, but they fool a lot of people and "her" letters often generate a number of angry replies. I have included an Edith Clampton letter in this lesson. See if your students recognise that it is not serious.

I suggest you work with your students through the example letter I have given in my introduction. Then I suggest you have them read the eight letters in the exercise in small groups, using the suggestions I have given in my introduction. If time is short, you could assign one letter to each group, but I suggest you have your students read at least half of the letters - all of them if possible - so that they can see the various purposes and writing styles commonly found in the Postbag section.

Once again, I have only defined a limited number of words. By this point in the term, students should be reasonably adept at guessing words from context and the material in this lesson gives them lots of opportunity to practice.

Next week: Final examination

•This lesson was prepared by Acharn Terry Fredrickson, BA Stanford, MA (TESL) University of Minnesota, Manager of the Educational Services Department at the Bangkok Post and general editor of this programme.