Rhetorical Moves in the Application Letters of Indigenous People and Cebuano Job Applicants

Abstract:

This study analyzed the rhetorical moves present in the application letters of Indigenous People (IP) and Cebuano job applicants applying to a state university in a province in Mindanao, Philippines. Using Upton and Connor’s (2001) Coding Scheme, this study revealed that there are 7 common moves employed in the IP writers’ application letters which amounts to a general rhetorical order, while 5 common moves were employed in the Cebuano writers’ which also amounts to a general rhetorical order. This study also observed the interplay of cultural traits as they surface in the writing styles of the IP and Cebuano writers. IPs in Bukidnon are exposed to different cultures but they still practice and integrate their own culture, to which accounts that though exposed to an English writing convention, they would still cling to their own way of writing. They exhibit a proclivity for employing indirect communication strategies, demonstrating a preference for the expression of their thoughts in a manner that is both highly personal and characterized by a cyclical nature. Cebuanos, on the other hand, possess a sense of ‘Garbo’ which displays their strong pursuit to dignify their social identities by striving hard for status through education or hard work which also regulates their public behavior to conform with the standard set of behavior, to which assumes that Cebuano writers tend to display their strong pursuit to be better, say, in writing classes, to dignify their status in the academe by way of following a standard set of conventions in which they are expected to follow.

Keywords:

Contrastive rhetoric, rhetorical moves, Indigenous community, Cebuano community, job application letters

Citation: Nafiseh Zarei and Michael John Tagadiad (2023). Rhetorical Moves in the Application Letters of Indigenous People and Cebuano Job Applicants. Horizon J. Hum. Soc. Sci. Res. 5 (2), 60–70. https://doi.org/10.37534/bp.jhssr.2023.v5.n2.id1226.p60