0

I have seen people using P.S. at the bottom of emails for something related to the email content. Whenever I see that, I think that the email can easily be edited and rewritten without much effort. Does it make sense to use P.S. these days while drafting an email?

The answer to the question Is it appropriate to add a postscript to an email? does not make it clear when not to use P.S. The replier only highlights the situations when they use P.S.

I have searched the internet and found a wikipedia article on postscripts/post-scriptum, which actually supports my thought. In the comment section, I have explicitly stated that a postscript is an afterthought and should only be used for that in formal conversations. However, an email can be edited. So, do we really need to write P.S. in an email?

Most of the answers here are informal and state that you can end a note with something that doesn't fit in the content of an email. I believe that in informal communication, grammar and word choice may not matter as much because the other person has some idea of what is going on.

Ubi.B
  • 1
  • Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat. – MetaEd Jul 10 '18 at 17:02
  • Email? Letters have been 'easily ... edited and rewritten without much effort" since the days of word processors, so at least since the 70s. P.S.'s have managed to stay relevant since then, so the invention of email shouldn't change anything. – mcalex Aug 31 '18 at 07:20
  • @mcalex, word-processing existed in the 70s, but was not widely used until the 90s (i.e. until about the time when e-mail also became available to the public at large). It is true, though, that the OP's question applies to all electronically editable correspondence, not just e-mail. – jsw29 Apr 13 '23 at 16:08

2 Answers2

6

Yes, an email can be edited, but most postscripts don't do the same job as an edit, and haven't for a long time (at least with typed letters). Instead they're a way of mentioning something that doesn't really fit the flow of the email (or letter) but isn't worth a separate contact.

"P.S. Thanks for your help the other day" is a nice way to end an email on a positive note, for example (though you could easily start with that note. A minor request may also fit well in a P.S.

Whether it's actually post scriptum with automated email signatures is another matter.

P.S. An edit may actually be a waste of time, not just for the sender but also for the recipient, if they're expecting a quick response.

Chris H
  • 21,709
  • I wish you re-read my edited section. In informal setup what you say, I agree with it. In your given example, actually you can write "Thanks for your help the other day" and start you email and write content below. You don't need extra time to for that. – Ubi.B Jul 10 '18 at 11:43
0

I think so. Even in a photo caption on Instagram you may use it.

محسن رحمانی
  • 113
  • 2
  • 6