Suzette Haden Elgin

Originally published in the 1980s, the Native Tongue trilogy is a classic dystopian tale: a testament to the power of language and women's collective action. In the second book of the series, a covert female agent is sent to break up the resistance. In the second volume of the Native Tongue trilogy, the time has come for L adan--the secret language created to resist an oppressive patriarchy--to empower womankind worldwide. To expand the language's reach, female linguists translate the Bible into L adan, and a group of Roman Catholic nuns are tasked to spread the language. But when outraged priests detect their sabotage, they send a double agent to infiltrate and destroy the movement from the inside. "This angry feminist text is also an exemplary experiment in speculative fiction, deftly and implacably pursuing both a scientific hypothesis and an ideological hypothesis through all their social, moral, and emotional implications." --Ursula K. Le Guin "A pioneering feminist experiment." --Literary Hub A welcome reminder of the feminist legacies of science fiction. . . . Explores the power of speech, agency, and subversion in a work that is as gripping, troubling, and meaningful today as it has ever been. --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Originally published in the 1980s, the Native Tongue trilogy is a classic dystopian tale: a testament to the power of language and women's collective action. In the stunning conclusion to the series, Earthsong imagines a completely new way of being. The interstellar Consortium of Planets has forsaken the irredeemably violent Earth, condemning the planet to economic and ecological chaos. As the Consortium prepares to euthanize the planet, women freedom fighters are offered one last chance to correct men's brutal nature and stop the planet's annihilation. In the final book of the Native Tongue trilogy, female linguists must once again come forward to ensure the survival of humanity. "This angry feminist text is also an exemplary experiment in speculative fiction, deftly and implacably pursuing both a scientific hypothesis and an ideological hypothesis through all their social, moral, and emotional implications." --Ursula K. Le Guin

Set in the twenty-second century after the repeal of the Nineteenth Amendment, the novel reveals a world where women are once again property, denied civil rights, and banned from public life. In this world, Earth's wealth relies on interplanetary commerce, for which the population depends on linguists, a small, clannish group of families whose women breed and become perfect translators of all the galaxies' languages. The linguists wield power, but live in isolated compounds, hated by the population, and in fear of class warfare. But a group of women is destined to challenge the power of men and linguists. Nazareth, the most talented linguist of her family, is exhausted by her constant work translating for the government, supervising the children's language education in the Alien-in-Residence interface chambers, running the compound, and caring for the elderly men. She longs to retire to the Barren House, where women past childbearing age knit, chat, and wait to die. What Nazareth does not yet know is that a clandestine revolution is going on in the Barren Houses: there, word by word, women are creating a language of their own to free them of men's domination. Their secret must, above all, be kept until the language is ready for use. The women's language, Láadan, is only one of the brilliant creations found in this stunningly original novel, which combines a page-turning plot with challenging meditations on the tensions between freedom and control, individuals and communities, thought and action.

This book includes material from 1st Dictionary and Grammar (1988) and merges it with new vocabulary created for the L adan website. Elgin died in 2015, but interest persists in the language she created in 1982, embodied in her SF "Native Tongue" series. L adan is a feminist constructed language created by Elgin to test the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis that the language one speaks influences the way one thinks, i.e., can a language expressing the views of women shape a culture? L adan includes morphemes that require speakers to own their own perceptions-words that indicate, for instance, whether a statement comes from personal observation, a trusted source, or an unreliable third party. Nowadays Elgin might argue that accusations of "fake news" would be impossible in L adan. This language also encodes speakers' intentions into their sentences, eliminating another form of micro-aggression, the rude comment that is passed off as "just a joke." All proceeds will go to the Science Fiction Poetry Association.

Originally published in 1984, this dystopian trilogy--"a pioneering feminist experiment"--is a testament to the power of language and women's collective action (Literary Hub). In 2205, the 19th Amendment has long been repealed and women are only valued for their utility. The Earth's economy depends on an insular group of linguists who "breed" women to be perfect interstellar translators until they are sent to the Barren House to await death. But instead, these women are slowly creating a language of their own to make resistance possible. Ignorant to this brewing revolution, Nazareth, a brilliant linguist, and Michaela, a servant, both seek emancipation in their own ways. But their personal rebellions risk exposing the secret language, and threaten the possibility of freedom for all. "This angry feminist text is also an exemplary experiment in speculative fiction, deftly and implacably pursuing both a scientific hypothesis and an ideological hypothesis through all their social, moral, and emotional implications." --Ursula K. Le Guin "A welcome reminder of the feminist legacies of science fiction. . . . Explores the power of speech, agency, and subversion in a work that is as gripping, troubling, and meaningful today as it has ever been." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

An instant cult classic, and groundbreaking forerunner to Margaret Atwood's "A Handmaid's Tale." Native Tongue Trilogy revealed to its audiences a frightening future world where the women of Earth are once again property.In Volume II of the trilogy, the women have at last decided to spread the language using the Roman Catholic church. But when a handful of priests discover the plot, they move to stamp it out with their own female agent, Sister Miriam Rose. But Sister Miriam has plans of her own. . . .

In "Earthsong," the trilogy's long-awaited finale, the Aliens have abandoned Earth, taking their technologies with them and plunging the planet into economic and ecological disaster. Devastated, the women decide to take their failed Laadan project back underground, desperately seeking guidance from their long-dead foremothers. The women discover an ingenious solution to the problem of human violence and seek to spread their knowledge-but has their final solution come too late?

For some employees, verbal abuse can be the everyday language of doing business. Defending yourself from these verbal abusers—calmly, professionally, and successfully—can be crucial to your on-the-job success. Nationally recognized linguistics expert and author Suzette Haden Elgin applies her acclaimed techniques for combating verbal attacks to common workplace situations. Powerful yet unthreatening, her proven strategies will help you recognize and defend yourself from verbal abuse—everything from casual obscenities and racist or sexist language to sarcasm, cutting jokes, and subtle put-downs. Richly illustrated with fully dramatizes scenarios and real-world examples, Dr. Elgin’s communication techniques will help you instantly take control of any verbal confrontation. You’ll also learn how to avoid “malpractice of the mouth” and sexual harassment; communicate sensitively and clearly with non-native English speakers; and project a strong, straightforward, and trustworthy image. You’ll find tips for handling sensitive issues via email and voice mail, advice on meeting the communication challenges that face home-based and virtual businesses, and plenty of “workouts” placed throughout the book to give you valuable opportunities to practice your new skills.The Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense at Work is your roadmap through the potentially career-threatening minefields of workplace communication.

As bestselling author Suzette Haden Elgin proves, you don't have to live your life on red alert. With her Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense techniques, you'll be able to respond clearly to hostile comments from others—or deliver necessary negative messages of your own—without sacrificing your dignity or principles. You'll learn to: *Keep domestic disagreements from escalating *Deliver criticism to coworkers, employers, or employees *Handle aggressive, negative comments about race, politics, or religion *Provide discipline without increasing hostility *Use language that reduces tension and creates rapport in every situation

Do you ever feel as if you and your child speak differentlanguages? Does your teenager fly into a rage when you ask a simplequestion? Does your toddler wage the Battle of Bedtime each night? Here's help from bestselling communications expert Suzette HadenElgin. As the mother of five and grandmother of nine, Dr. Elgin hasspent a lifetime talking with kids both personally andprofessionally. In this refreshingly direct and down-to-earth book,she shows you how to talk to your child about anything andeverything--positively, productively, and above all, peacefully.Her personal approach employs realistic parent/child scenarios anddialogues to illustrate how it is possible to have communicationwithout confrontation. Her techniques will help you: * Be a better listener * Speak firmly, yet compassionately * Spot early warning signs such as anger, sulking, and moodiness * Handle a wide variety of problems, from bedtime and bathtimeencounters to more serious issues such as self-esteem, teenpregnancy, and drug abuse * Give special attention to the needs of a technically savvy"cyberchild"

You can't say that to me! "Can't you do anything right?" "I can'tbelieve you would feed that junk to your child!" "What is this? Anddon't tell me it's a casserole, I already know that." "If youreally cared about me, you wouldn't behave this way." Soundfamiliar? Each of us occasionally feels the sting of veryunpleasant language from those who are closest to us--spouses,employers, friends, relatives. But frequent and repeated use ofunanswerable questions, scalding accusations, sarcasm,insinuations, and even icy silence is more than simply unpleasant;it is abusive, destructive, and frequently leads to escalatingarguments and physical violence. Suzette Haden Elgin, creator ofthe "Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense," has developed a unique andrevolutionary way to break the cycle of verbal violence andeliminate it from your life--without ruining your marriage, riskingyour job, or alienating friends or loved ones. Dr. Elgin shows youhow to neutralize verbal attacks and discourage future abusewith: * An 8-step program that helps you recognize the patterns of verbalabuse * Specific language techniques that enable you to avoid escalatingarguments and break the cycle of abuse using skills you alreadypossess * Questionnaires and diaries that help you analyze abusivesituations, evaluate your responses to them, and track yourprogress In this book Dr. Elgin proves that verbal abuse is not caused byhuman nature, but by language. She helps you discover that you arean expert in your own language, already highly qualified to solvethis problem for yourself, quickly and forever.

From Simon & Schuster, More on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense is Suzette Haden Elgin's guide to disarm verbal attacks at work, at home, and in-between.Designed to help you defend yourself in any verbal context, More on the Gentle Art of Verbal Self-Defense is your road map to becoming the cool, calm, and collected communicator you want to be.