Mom's Unforgiving Mirror

Biographical

Deborah Tannen, a professor of linguistics at Georgetown University, keeps a comprehensive, informative Web site that includes key biographical information, articles, interviews, descriptions of her books, a roster of scholarly publications, and much, much more.

Tannen speaks about her own sisters in this interview published on oprah.com.

Cultural

Does President Obama tailor his speeches for different audiences? Listen to what Deborah Tannen says about this possibility.

Deborah Tannen appeared on The Colbert Report. She discussed the way women communicate and are perceived, including Hillary Clinton.

These quotes by Tannen may provide fruitful ideas for essays.

Tannen discusses her book , You Were Always Mom's Favorite, on The Book Studio.

The Open Mind has archived a series of interviews with Tannen.

The Cincinnati Public Library has compiled a list of books that probe the mother/daughter relationship.

Bibliographical

This essay, "Oh, Mom. Oh, Honey.: Why Do You Have to Say That?" published in The Washington Post, explores ideas similar to those in “Mom’s Unforgiving Mirror."

Tannen writes about sisters' relationships, too.

For a selection of Tannen's scholarly articles, click here. You will notice distinct differences in language, tone, support, sentence structure, and similar features of the writing between these articles and the essay in the text. Consider why Tannen writes differently for a publication like The Washington Post than for the various journals on this list.

Read an excerpt from You Were Always Mom's Favorite and listen to Susan Stamberg's interview of Tannen.

For additional work by Tannen, see her official Web site, where she has provided access to several essays and interviews.