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| Cursing, Swearing, and Sailor Talk; Why is it considered "bad?" | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 19 2012, 09:17 PM (2,128 Views) | |
| J-Smack | Jan 19 2012, 09:17 PM Post #1 |
 
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If there's one paradox that irritates me in this world, it is the concept of "bad words." Here are my questions: How does a bad word become "bad" to begin with? Was this decided during the process of making the word; i.e. "let's make the word 'piss' but not allow people to say it." Or was it decided afterwards? And if this was the case, was there a vote upon it? How big was the jury? Who did it consist of? What were their qualifications? Hell, maybe they even decided before even making the word; "I want to make a word that nobody can say...okay, '*****' sounds good." I can do that; "schnarp." Now don't say that because it is designed to offend people. Why are synonyms acceptable to use in the place of a bad word? If someone says "screw that" everyone knows that they mean "***** that." Crap means *****, pee means piss, darn mean damn, butt means *****...there are quite a few of these. What makes "screw" better than "*****?" Letter count? Both end up in a good time, so I can't really see the difference. Same goes for "making love," "messing around," and "doing the naughty." And to add to that, poop that comes out of your butt looks exactly the same as ***** that comes out of your *****. I thought these words were bad because they offended people. Shouldn't synonyms (you know, words that mean THE SAME THING) be offensive as well? Or is it the sound that comes out of your mouth that's offensive. Well, gee, I get a lot more flack from saying ***** than belching. The thing that really blows this one out of the water though is the fact that other languages have words that sound similar to these that have "non-vulgar" definitions. "Phoque" (pronounced fawk in French) means "seal." So that just about settles that. We've established that it's generally not the word's meaning that's offensive already, because if we simply say "screw" instead of "*****" then it's all good. Now, we come to find that's it's not even the sound of the word that's offensive, because if I simply say I'm speaking French, then everything's okay there as well. So, what exactly is offensive about these words? Why are non-insulting words such as "*****" (crap) considered "vulgar," but insulting words such as "dumb" are not considered to be NEARLY as offensive as the former? We can call someone a moron, ugly, idiotic, slow, or dumb all day, and that would be considered LESS offensive than excusing yourself to take a *****. I'd rather know that the person had to defecate, personally. Consider this: would you rather your insecure child be called "dumb" to their face by their teacher or "pretty *****ing smart"? How does religion have anything to do with your vocabulary? I'll give Christianity as an example, since I'm the most familiar with this sect, being a Christian myself. First of all, the Bible does not go into specifics about what words are on the "naughty list." So, how do we know which words Jesus wouldn't want us to say? Well, referring back to the previous questions, I think he wouldn't want you calling people "dumb" or "ugly" or condemning atheists--to these people's faces OR behind their backs. As for words like "*****" and "piss" and "damn" and "hell?" Well, let's think here. The English language came to be around 700 AD, and that's not even modern English, which came in the 1500s. This happened MUCH later than the events of the Bible. In case you're not getting this, Jesus did not speak English, nor did the language even exist while he was alive. He would not have been able to tell his followers what version of the word "feces" they could and couldn't use because that word, nor any synonym in the English language existed at that time. So, you can rest easy, followers of Christ, you can actually say words like "*****" and "*****." But you might have to cut down on calling people "jerks," "idiots," "nut-cases," and "sinful atheists." Maybe we should take a look at ourselves before we judge. While I'm on this point, why is "witnessing" acceptable to do but not "swearing?" Yeah, you heard me right. Here's why I think this is messed up. The "witnesser" goes up to someone and asks if he or she was saved by Christ. Let's say the person says, "no, I'm a Buddhist." Generally, in this case, the witnesser decides that he needs to share the story of Christ with the person, and this is usually done to persuade the person to see things the witnessers way. In other words, the witnesser is saying "What you believe in, (the faith that you could possibly be putting your entire heart and soul into) is wrong, and you are going to hell unless you see things my way." Well, I would take this as a personal "***** you" if I was the one being preached to. No, you are not "saving" anybody; you are usually offending them. Lastly I want to know why the hierarchy of bad words is as it is. This is the condensed version to my understanding: 1. ***** (screw) 2. ***** (butthole) 3. ***** (crap) 4. ***** (female dog) 5. Bastard 6. Piss 7. Damn 8. Hell That's from most offensive to least offensive. I don't quite understand this. On American television, the top three are no-no's. Well, *****, those are the least offensive in my opinion. 4,5, and 7 seems to be the ones you can really hurt someone's feelings with. Calling people 4 or 5 is a pretty mean thing to do. Saying damn you to someone isn't very nice either. However, everyone *****s out of their *****, and everyone usually wants to ***** sometime in their life. To sum this up, a "word" should not offend a whole culture, unless it is a word used solely to hurt--such as a racial slur. Someone telling you that a word is bad is not a good reason to find it offensive for yourself. What if society decided that "love" is too riske? Would we really stop saying that one because they told us to? Words were turned into bad words because people wanted to be able to say something that was not socially acceptable. People are giving these words that power by viewing them as bad, when, in reality, there's nothing more bad about "*****ing" than "making love." It's the intent behind the word, not the word itself. Opinions? Edited by J-Smack, Jan 19 2012, 09:21 PM.
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Now, there's an idea. | |
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Jan 19 2012, 09:56 PM Post #2 |
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I think it's because some words imply a lot of negativity. Kind of like negative energy maybe. But I also think it depends a lot on how it's used and how a person processes it. Some associate more negativity with certain words than others. So it would vary too. |
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| + KingOfAllSaiyans | Jan 19 2012, 10:02 PM Post #3 |
 
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I've always wondered how a word becomes "bad" too. I mean no one would be offended if I said LAMP! everytime I stubbed my toe. But when I bring the F bomb its "WHAT DID YOU SAY??" Lol |
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Jan 19 2012, 10:04 PM Post #4 |
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I'll be honest. I didn't read the whole post. -_- But to sum up my opinion on cursing, I feel that any negative word that you aim at a person is considered a curse word, so that means that pretty much everyone is guilty of it. There should be no hierarchy, but some people find some words more offensive than others because of their meaning and connotation. As far as Christianity goes, my above statement still stands. The only word that the Bible ever specifically said was a sin is using the lord's name in vain. Aside from that, I believe that any offensive word that is used to put a person down, or any word that you think is morally wrong is considered a curse word and a sin. |
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| + KingOfAllSaiyans | Jan 19 2012, 10:10 PM Post #5 |
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In all honesty, the only words that I feel should never be used are slang terms for homosexuals, and any racist words. I cant stand them. Cuss words like B****, F*** or S*** dont offend me in anyway. |
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| + Pelador | Jan 19 2012, 10:13 PM Post #6 |
Crazy Awesome Legend
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Swear words are basic ways of expressing emotions though language. Usually consisting of ffffffs, pssss, shiiiis and csssss. Rudimentary sounds which can be used to express a variety of feelings. I don't know exactly why people find these words offensive or disgusting. There's no swear word which offends me. Perhaps their primitive derivatives are what annoy people? In other words, they are accociated with the language of cavemen and primitive humans. I don't really know. |
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Jan 19 2012, 10:15 PM Post #7 |
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If they are used to insult others, then they are offensive. |
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| + Steve | Jan 19 2012, 10:15 PM Post #8 |
Greetings. I will be your waifu this season.
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I totally agree. I don't get why people get so hung up over words, yes sometimes thye can be hurtful if it's to do with personal things But why are so many words considered horrible and overly offensive? They are just words! Look at TV as you said. Bad words are not allowed until later on so kids are in bed and don't get influenced. Have you ever watched daytime TV? I'll pick a programme...The Simpsons, have you ever really watched it? I mean really, there are a ridiculous amount of sexual references in it, in practically every episode. Kids aren't as stupid as people seem to think. But that's ok? A word that describes poop is HORRIBLE for children but making them hear about casual sex at a young age is totally fine? Let's face it you learn every bad word you're ever going to use in school, it's inevitable. Fair enough you should be respectful to people like teachers and figures of authority but barring serious threats there shouldn't be any punishment for chucking out an F word every now and then. Curse words can just become part of how you speak which is damn hard to change most people need them to convey how pissed off they are at things, swears sound angry shouting "fudge" when you stub your toe on the edge of a door doesn't quite let the anger and pain out as much as *****ING ow!! |
 Definitely not a succubus, fear not | |
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| + KingOfAllSaiyans | Jan 19 2012, 10:17 PM Post #9 |
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Quoted for the truth, sometimes just screaming the word F*** makes me feel so much better. :P Edited by KingOfAllSaiyans, Jan 19 2012, 10:18 PM.
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| + Pelador | Jan 19 2012, 10:19 PM Post #10 |
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Crazy Awesome Legend
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They use them to insult others because they need basic, short, sharp terms to express themselves. Precisly how they would have been used in prehistoric times. So if you swear a lot, you have something in common with an early human because you have a limited vocabulary. 
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http://www.youtube.com/user/jonjits | |
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| J-Smack | Jan 19 2012, 10:22 PM Post #11 |
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I personally think that people who do not use these words have a limited vocabulary. This could be how Newspeak started in 1984; let's keep picking words that you shouldn't say. |
Now, there's an idea. | |
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Jan 19 2012, 10:23 PM Post #12 |
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Lol, I don't understand this theory at all. |
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| + Pyrus | Jan 19 2012, 10:27 PM Post #13 |
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I don't find any word "bad". It's simply part of the language. But I suppose some would say I'm biased because I swear like a sailor unless I'm around family or something, out of respect. Edited by Pyrus, Jan 19 2012, 10:28 PM.
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| POOHEAD189 | Jan 19 2012, 10:32 PM Post #14 |
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I'll be honest. I used to cuss alot. But now I use the word fruit. Example: What the fruit!? Fruit Fruiting Fruiter! With the fruit over the fruit berry apple cherry FRUIT! Its good for parties and small children. Edited by POOHEAD189, Jan 19 2012, 10:38 PM.
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| Tha gaol agam ort. <3 | |
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| J-Smack | Jan 19 2012, 10:49 PM Post #15 |
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That was simply theoretical about the 1984 thing. If you've read it, it would help you understand. I'm saying the more words society deems as "bad," the less words we have to choose from to say. If that continues, it could possibly lead to the situation in Orwell's novel (language-wise.) The first statement was saying that never using "bad words" limits your vocabulary (speech-wise.) I mean, I'm not saying it's a bad thing if you don't use them, just that avoiding using a word that perfectly describes a situation or thing somewhat limits your expressive capabilities |
Now, there's an idea. | |
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