Abstract
For a petition letter to be effective, it must present the action needed to solve the problem to the right person, in the most convincing way possible. This is precisely what the second and third conferences will cover. This lecture examines everything involved in writing a letter of request: from identifying the person capable of solving the problem and the means of contacting them, to the choice of medium, language and wording of the appeal, including the use of scribes and messengers. We'll see that appeals generally included both a written and an oral element, and we'll analyze how these two components interacted. The important role of intermediaries and messengers will also be discussed, as well as the material aspect of petition letters and how the choice of material and how to use it is an integral aspect of the letter-writing process.
