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Business Communication Quarterly
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Implication versus Inference

Analyzing Writer and Reader Representations in Business Texts

Daphne A. Jameson

Cornell University

The narrative concepts of the implied author and implied reader elucidate how business texts represent writers and readers. It is important, though, to distinguish carefully between writers’ implications and readers’ inferences. Instructors should contrast implied versus inferred writers and readers, provide multiple ways to comprehend these concepts, and illustrate them with examples (e.g., those provided in this article from Citigroup, Andersen, and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia). The meaning-as-event analytical method, from reader-response narrative theory, reveals specific language features through which business texts manifest readers and writers. To help writers plan and readers analyze such texts, instructors may use the teaching suggestions, sample assignments, prewriting heuristics, and evaluation criteria provided in this article.

Key Words: implied reader • implied writer • inference • narrative • reader-response theory

Business Communication Quarterly, Vol. 67, No. 4, 387-411 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/1080569904270989
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