Deborah Tannen

Mothers and daughters do not speak different languages--but still often misunderstand each other, as they struggle to find the balance between closeness and independence. Both mothers and daughters want to be seen for who they are, but tend to see the other as falling short of who she should be. Each overestimates the other's power and underestimates her own. Tannen explains why a remark that would be harmless coming from anyone else can cause an...

"Required reading…sharp and insightful…lively and straightforward…a novel and sometimes startling analysis of workplace dynamics."-New York Times Book Review In her extraordinary international bestseller, You Just Don't Understand, Deborah Tannen transformed forever the way we look at intimate relationships between women and men. Now she turns her keen ear and observant eye toward the workplace-where the ways in which men and women communicate...

Deborah Tannen's #1 bestseller revolutionized the way men and women talk (and listen) to each other. Whether at home, at work, or elsewhere, the communication gap between the sexes can lead to troublesome misunderstandings. The problem dates back to childhood, when boys and girls learn to use language in distinctly different ways; years later, their adult efforts to talk often place them at cross-purposes, even when both are sincerely trying to communicate....

The following series of lectures draws on linguistics, or the scientific study of language, to show the many ways in which language has a profound effect upon human relationships. These lectures address the various aspects and implications of what Professor Tannen calls 'conversational style.' It also looks at the dynamics of specific situations such as the workplace and classroom where the role of conversational style is of particular importance....

The Argument Culture is about a pervasive warlike atmosphere that makes us approach anything we need to accomplish as a fight between two opposing sides. The argument culture urges us to regard the world--and the people in it--in an adversarial frame of mind. It rests on the assumption that opposition is the best way to get anything done: The best way to explore an idea is to set up a debate; the best way to cover the news is to find spokespeople...

Through research into the unique way women talk to one another, this validating and illuminating analysis of female friendship will help women lean into the comfort these powerful relationships offer and avoid the hurt feelings that come from common miscommunications.