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• 1 2018-03-21T00:50:24-07:00 The Plight of the Colonists 2 plain 2018-03-21T00:51:30-07:00

  Erika P. Coker

  
  This poster explores the pragmatics of epistolary communication, and in particular the use of politeness strategies when making requests in the context of the Depression-Era Palmer Colony. To do so, this poster examines a letter written by Inez Huseby, the wife of one of the registered colonists. In her April 30, 1939 letter, Inez submits her application for an ordinary job that became much-coveted in light of the difficult economic conditions many of the colonists continued to face. On a broader scale, this poster contextualizes the letter in three ways: first, by explaining the more immediate historical context of the Palmer Colony and the conditions experienced by the colonists themselves; second, by expanding that context out to the governmental New Deal policies that created the colony; and third, through a linguistic analysis of the way requests are made in Inez’s letter. Such a letter is an example of a face-threatening act, making this a case study in the pragmatic values of the Palmer Colony. I found that in her letter, Inez uses on-record requests. This can be seen when Inez says “kindly believe me when I say the children and I really need some support, and I’d do anything in the line of work, before I’d ask for help.” Inez presented an on-record request made with redressive indirect language meant to accommodate negative face. Overall, the letter is exemplary of the ways in which colonists had to adapt their use of language to maintain relationships in a small community.

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  Erika P. Coker is pursuing Baccalaureates of English & History.
  This piece was selected by Professor Jennifer Stone.