relationship between Athshe and the League of Worlds is portrayed as ambiguous. Whereas with planets such as Gethen in The Left Hand of Darkness the integration with the Hainish planets is seen as a good thing, Athshe is seen as changed for the worse both by the loggers and by being taught to kill their own species. The League eventually decides to isolate Athshe and limit all contact with it, a decision shown to have ambiguous overtones. Language and communication Language and linguistic barriers are a major theme in The Word for World Is Forest, something exemplified by the title. In contrast to other Hainish universe novels such as The Left Hand of Darkness, The Word for World Is Forest portrays a communication gap that the protagonists are never able to bridge. Both the native Athsheans and the loggers have languages that reflect their perceptions of reality, but they are unable to find a common language. In the native Athshean language, the word "Athshe" means both "forest" and "world", demonstrating the close link that the Athsheans have to the forest and their planet. It is noted by Lyubov that the Athsheans believe "the substance of their world was not earth, but forest". The language used by the Athsheans during conversations similarly show their interconnectedness and dependence on their ecosystem through the use of forest related metaphors. Similarly, the Athshean word for "dream" is the same as the word for "root". Athsheans have learned to exert some conscious control over their dreams, and their actions are dictated by both their dream experiences and their conscious non-dreaming thoughts. Thus their dreaming makes them rooted, something which is demonstrated through their use of language. The Athshean word for "god" is the same as the word for "translator", representing this role that "gods have" in their society, which is to interpret and translate their dreams into actions. Dreaming and consciousness The Word for World is Forest shares the theme of dreaming with the later Le Guin novel The Lathe of Heaven. Suzanne Reid stated that the novel examines the source and effect of dreams. The Athsheans teach themselves to consciously and actively control their dreams. This allows them to access their subconscious in a way that the Terrans are not able. The Athsheans follow a polycyclic sleep pattern with a period of 120 minutes, which makes it impossible for them to adapt to the