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Anonymous Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
"Attempt"
I have a question regarding the use of the word "attempt." Here's a fictional example to illustrate:
Let's say that I make a formal, written request to a job applicant to contact me to arrange a job interview, and that I give the person an entire month to respond. And let's say that I am not aware of anything preventing the person from responding to me, that the method I use to make the request is standard protocol, that the request clearly explains how he can respond, and that the wording of the request gives the definite appearance that a response from the person is wanted. Also, let's say that if the person does contact me, I will proceed with arranging an interview of him. But let's also say that, despite the wording of that request, I actually don't want the person to respond, don't think he will, and that my real intent behind sending the request is to actually be able to disqualify the person after he doesn't respond.
Question: In this situation, would it be accurate to say that I "attempted" to accomplish an interview of the person? One one hand, the request would provide the person every opportunity to contact me to arrange an interview, and would definitely satisfy any question about giving the applicant fair notice. But on the other hand, given that my real intent would be to disqualify the person rather than interview him, I'm not sure if the use of "attempt" would be accurate.
Let's say that I make a formal, written request to a job applicant to contact me to arrange a job interview, and that I give the person an entire month to respond. And let's say that I am not aware of anything preventing the person from responding to me, that the method I use to make the request is standard protocol, that the request clearly explains how he can respond, and that the wording of the request gives the definite appearance that a response from the person is wanted. Also, let's say that if the person does contact me, I will proceed with arranging an interview of him. But let's also say that, despite the wording of that request, I actually don't want the person to respond, don't think he will, and that my real intent behind sending the request is to actually be able to disqualify the person after he doesn't respond.
Question: In this situation, would it be accurate to say that I "attempted" to accomplish an interview of the person? One one hand, the request would provide the person every opportunity to contact me to arrange an interview, and would definitely satisfy any question about giving the applicant fair notice. But on the other hand, given that my real intent would be to disqualify the person rather than interview him, I'm not sure if the use of "attempt" would be accurate.
Top answer
You could say "I gave him an opportunity for an interview". Why did you have to do all that? Why didn't you just toss his application into the garbage?
- You could say "I gave him an opportunity for an interview".
- Why did you have to do all that?
- Why didn't you just toss his application into the garbage?
- Clive
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8 Answers
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You could say "I gave him an opportunity for an interview".
Why did you have to do all that? Why didn't you just toss his application into the garbage?
Clive
Why did you have to do all that? Why didn't you just toss his application into the garbage?
Clive
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CliveYou could say "I gave him an opportunity for an interview".Why did you have to do all that? Why didn't you just toss his application into the garbage?ClivePerhaps the potential applicant has a very strong supporter in the organization, and the HR person feels a lot of pressure to make an attempt at contacting them.
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It's actually not that simple, and perhaps the example I gave wasn't good enough. In the real situation, the meeting for which the person is requested is not voluntary but is mandatory. So as a new example, imagine if it were a teacher being called in front of a board to answer to claims of questionable conduct. And if the teacher doesn't respond or appear before the board, he could be fired for n
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Perhaps the potential applicant has a very strong supporter in the organization, and the HR person feels a lot of pressure to make an attempt at contacting them.
Yes, thanks, I had thought of that possibility, as well as of others. But I just wanted to know what the actual situation was,
Clive
Yes, thanks, I had thought of that possibility, as well as of others. But I just wanted to know what the actual situation was,
Clive
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It's actually not that simple . . .
Yes, you could say that an attempt was made.
What would you do if he argued that he did not receive the request to appear? And hired a lawyer?
Clive
Yes, you could say that an attempt was made.
What would you do if he argued that he did not receive the request to appear? And hired a lawyer?
Clive
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Thanks. In the real situation, the person could try to argue that he never received the request, and I guess there's no way to prevent that potential argument. But the request was sent to him at a legitimate email address (one he had used both before and after the request was sent) and there was nothing questionable about the method used to send the request. It was a request that he was fully expe
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You reasoning is very sound. But I would give the recipient a few days before declaring it an "attempt with no response. "
There is a chance that their email handler deposited your email in a spam folder. But that is not your fault. You did make the legitimate attempt, which can be traced through your email server.
There is a chance that their email handler deposited your email in a spam folder. But that is not your fault. You did make the legitimate attempt, which can be traced through your email server.
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I think much depends on the employment-related laws in the country concerned.
I'm not familiar with the legal details in Canada, but I wouldn't be surprised if a court ruled that it was unjust to take away someone's job for not reading or not responding to an email. The concept of due diligence means that you need to do what a r
I'm not familiar with the legal details in Canada, but I wouldn't be surprised if a court ruled that it was unjust to take away someone's job for not reading or not responding to an email. The concept of due diligence means that you need to do what a r
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