On 2010-02-01 08:10 , Morris Galloway wrote:
"I suggest" versus "Perhaps we could proceed...."
One American's analysis.
Among general professionals in the central U.S.
If Boris Liberman is in upper management speaking to those in middle
management, then "I suggest" would have 10% more of the Imperative.
Among peers it would be perceived as an option awaiting the opportunity
for other options to be presented.
If used by middle management to upper management it might be considered
brash or bold.
good points, and in addition to regional and status variations, i think
your words' reception will vary within different corporate cultures and
when written versus spoken in person versus telephoned ...
in my own small, informal workplace, and as a consultant, i use "i
suggest" to signal: "please take my idea seriously, but i won't be
disappointed if another idea is selected"; i use less direct language
like "perhaps it would" when being more polite (generally with people i
know less well), or to signal tentativeness; but such polite forms can
also indicate frustration -- meanings can shift within the context of
tone and rapport, which i'd expect to be even more important when people
know English is not someone's first language
i tend to look at etymology when pondering such questions -- i see that
the Latin roots of 'suggest' mean "bring from below"; in my eyes, this
makes 'suggest' a good, humble term
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