Presupposition

Presupposition

This relates to the assumptions writers often make about the things they’re writing about, what they’re referring to. We need to ask ourselves if our reader is liable to understand concepts or organisations we refer to which have not previously (or subsequently) introduced in the text. We call this: "presupposition", or making assumptions about "given" information.

E.g. If we feel that the reader may be unsure of what the Hospital Authority is, we might need to add à

"Sources in the Hospital Authority, the branch of government dealing with nurses' terms of service, report that …

Task 8: Clarify the jargon terms or acronyms in the following:

a) "So far, LEGCO has passed 98% of the government’s proposed legislation"

b) "UNESCO has recognised HKU as a lead centre in language education"

c) "Max Weber argued that capitalism had its roots in the Protestant ethic"

Answers: See Delicacy Notes for suggested improvements in language delicacy.

Summary of features of delicacy