Is screaming vulgarities necessarily bad?

[anthropos]

Teachers and parents never like their children say vulgarities because it will be very rude and uncivilised for them to do so, and some of them have sexual meanings. Is saying vulgarities totally, completely bad?

 

(My phrasing sucks, but I think you know what I mean.)

[blike]

What do you mean "is saying vulgarities totally, completely bad?" It's bad because society deems those words rude or inappropriate, not because there's something intrinsically wrong with the words themselves. It would be interesting to see in two-hundred years how things have changed. Words we consider vulgar now may become the norm, and new ones will replace them.

 

I wonder if all societies have cursewords.

[Royston]

Teachers and parents never like their children say vulgarities because it will be very rude and uncivilised for them to do so' date=' and some of them have sexual meanings. Is saying vulgarities totally, completely bad?

 

(My phrasing sucks, but I think you know what I mean.)[/quote']

 

I think there is definitely more vulgar language on TV and film than say 30 years ago. I'm not sure this is a direct reflection on the audience becoming more vulgar. I think certain words need to stay vulgar as they lose conviction...they're needed to accentuate how angry you are, or how passionate you are about something.

 

I think it's down to social groups, and classes (as in middle / upper et.c). I think some schools would be very dissaproving of swearing in class, where others would take it more likely. I think a parent should realise their child is likely to swear and should educate them when it is appropriate rather than saying it's fundamentally wrong. You can't have your hands over their ears all the time, so it may confuse them why other people have the right to swear.

 

Some words blatantly have more conviction and are more vulgar than others, and there are still a huge majority that will get shocked by certain words especially coming from a child (I'm reffering to the older generation). So relative to the situation swearing can be very rude, or it can be necessary. So no...personally I think in some cases swearing isn't that bad, and it's up to you to gauge whether it's appropriate.

[Severian]

While at a Austrian ski resort in the Alps, I was amused by Germans singing along to songs in an bar in a rather nice (though 'rustic') hotel. One song came on called 'Alice' (I think that is the title) and the bar would sing along to one line in particular (in English) which was 'Alice? Who the f*ck is Alice?'. There was no feeling among the singers that what they were singing was in anyway rude or offensive, and even the older ladies in their 60's were singing along!

 

It made me feel slightly uncomfortable, but it made me see the illogicality of being offended by bad language.

[Phi for All]

There is a difference in my mind between vulgarity and expletive. Using profanity for it's shock value is vulgar and often covers the fact that the user is drawing attention away from a weak argument.

 

Expletives are only useful when they are occasional. When someone swears all the time it loses its meaning as an emphasis.

 

As Severian said, there is nothing about the words themselves that is bad. It's the intention behind their use that makes them bad.

[silentsailor]

I wonder if all societies have cursewords.

 

Yep. On the list of human universals, under "tabooed utterances" - http://condor.depaul.edu/~mfiddler/hyphen/humunivers.htm (that whole list is interesting, btw)

[beautyundone]

i find it funny. parents will let you say the more "mild" version of cuss words...

 

shoot = sh*t

gosh darnit = god d*mnit

heck = h*ll

friggin = f*cking

butthole = *sshole

etc etc etc...

 

they all mean the same thing... so why are some deemed worse than the others? who decided those words were "vulgar" words... afterall, they're just names for different things. if you use them in the right context, they shouldn't be offensive in the least.

[BenSon]

While at a Austrian ski resort in the Alps, I was amused by Germans singing along to songs in an bar in a rather nice (though 'rustic') hotel. One song came on called 'Alice' (I think that is the title) and the bar would sing along to one line in particular (in English) which was 'Alice? Who the f*ck is Alice?'. There was no feeling among the singers that what they were singing was in anyway rude or offensive, and even the older ladies in their 60's were singing along!

Yeah I know that song if you want to download it its by Dr Hook.

 

~Scott

[Dak]

friggin = f*cking

 

Frigging = vulgar present tense verb of female masterbation: eg, the man was wanking, and the woman was frigging.

 

It always makes me laugh when parents unknowingly teach their kids these 'ok' swear-word substitutes.

 

 

like 'feltch'.

[coquina]

Speaking of vulgar songs that have come into acceptance - "Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw" is right up there at the top.

 

I grew up around people who swear. Machine-shop lingo can turn the air blue. There was a time when I used profanity much more often than I do now. A couple of faux pas in polite company made me clean up my act.

 

If you hit your thumb with a hammer, an utter an "Oh, Sh*t!" it is much more acceptable than if the only modifier you use is "f*cking". If you have children and use the words around them, it is amazing how quickly they pick it up, and they have no clue that what they say is inappropriate. But, when parents who don't allow their children to curse hear it, your kid will be off the playlist. It's not fair to the child to limit his playmates because of your language choices.

[YT2095]

anyone remember the "Rodeo song"?

 

well it`s 40 below and I don`t give a f***, got a heater in my truck and I`m off to the Rodeoooo....

 

personaly I don`t like excessive swearing myself, but sometimes it Can be funny in certain types of Comedy if it`s used Cleverly.

[Skye]

The main problem with cursing is that it is usually preceded by something bad.

[beautyundone]

i just don't see what makes shoot any better than sh*t... you're saying the same thing... so what's the big deal?!?

[In My Memory]

Beautyundone,

 

gosh darnit = god d*mnit

heck = h*ll

I dont remember hearing in church "Heck is for people who dont believe in gosh"

[DQW]

Beautyundone' date='

 

 

I dont remember hearing in church "Heck is for people who dont believe in gosh" [/quote']So, you've not been listening carefully to the sermons at church, eh ? You'd better repent or you'll be cursed with eternal darnation !

[ecoli]

"Carving explitives into another's vehicle is a sign of trust and friendship" - Aqua teen hunger force

[Bettina]

In school, I have never heard a teacher, administrator, or the principal use vulgar language. None of our neighbors swear when talking to me or dad, and the kids I hang around with don't swear either. My dad doesn't use vulgar language, although I have heard him say some of the very mild ones when he breaks something.

 

I don't swear and never have. I use "dang" as the word for everything that I think needs emphasis. I don't hang around with people that swear either, only because it makes me feel uncomforable, and the person firing swear words at me surely doesn't respect me or other people. I have heard kids swearing in an ice cream parlor when families are in the next booth. That is low.

 

So, (IMO) I find that people who swear in mixed company or within earshot of people they don't know, show a lower intellegence than those mentioned in the beginning of my reply. Again, this is just my opinion.

 

Bettina

[ecoli]

what is a swear word? Nothing more then a word that expresses strong emotion about something negative that society has deemed bad.

 

Let's say I stub my toe. I could say "****, that hurt" or I could say "Darn, that hurt" In this case, both words mean practically the same thing. Why should one be more socially acceptable if the meaning is the same?

[Phi for All]

Let's say I stub my toe. I could say "****, that hurt" or I could say "Darn, that hurt" In this case, both words mean practically the same thing. Why should one be more socially acceptable if the meaning is the same?

It's your intent that makes the difference. If you use it intending to shock or demean, it's vulgar. If it's to underscore the fact that this stubbing of your toe hurts worse than any other ever, then it's expletive.

 

Use expletives too much and it's "the boy who cried ****!" syndrome. Social acceptance probably has more to do with degree than anything else. Society would forgive you quicker if you said "****!" after having both legs chopped off by a train than if you did after stubbing your toe. You're more justified in using such strong language in the former instance.

[anthropos]

During fifth grade, our class had a heated discussion, and my friend said something really stupid. We laughed and the teacher said without thinking, "Oh, don't bullsh*t!" We all stared at her O_O. There was an uneasy silence.