What I’m Really Trying to F*@#ing Say

Dear Lowdown:

Why are swear words swear words?

- Mesfin Mulu (Chicago)


Dear Mesfin:

Ever since a young age, everyone has always been told what words you can and cannot say. Why is “patootie” totally acceptable when “ass” isn’t? Certain words have become forbidden, considered illicit, and deemed disrespectful by society. The words aren’t necessarily created in order to be malicious, or bad, but instead society decides a word is unacceptable. Often times swear words actually have entirely different meanings, but instead alternate taboo meanings are thrust upon them. Swear words allow people to express themselves passionately when censored vocabularies fail them. A passionate “fuck you” can be a lot more satisfying when compared to a well articulated and thought out insult.

Although many swear words have dual meanings that are often times completely free of vulgar connotation, they adopt new meanings as societies search for more spirited ways of expression. Shit, which is synonymous to feces, has a much greater power than its counterpart and has adopted even more meanings as it has been used more and more in various vulgar ways. “There’s feces everywhere” simply sounds comical when compared to “there’s shit everywhere,” which clearly shows a greater strength of reaction to the situation. “Ass,” which initially was synonymous with donkey, has now adopted a completely different meaning and vulgar connotation. Instead of transporting their goods on an ass, people now spend all day on their lazy asses. Although the latter usage of the word “ass” has nothing to do with its original meaning, the word has evolved to be more commonly used in taboo context. Swear words usually vary greatly between different languages and cultures. In Spanish, “tu erés la leche,” has roughly the same meaning as “you are the shit” in English, but the phrase literally translates to “you are the milk.” Swear words in one language become words of perfectly virtuous meaning in another. Even between cultures sharing the same language some swear words seem to be lost in translation. In the United States the word “bloody” has absolutely no foul connotation, while in the UK it is considered to be one of the foulest means of expression. Societies determine what are considered to be swear words, seemingly independent of any form of reason. Words gain these stigmas simply because of the satisfaction that eventually arises from saying them with such a foul connotation. The taboo meanings eventually stick to the words because of natural human excitement. A sort of exhilaration or even relief is felt when one expresses themselves. This feeling is only strengthened by the use of more dramatic words, often times in the form of swearing. Through this excitement, societies gain what is almost on addiction to the use of foul words, forever replacing their previously innocent denotations.

Although swear words all serve the same purpose of more furvent human expression, they are divided into three different forms: dysphemistic, idiomatic, and cathartic swearing (About Profanity Use Among Americans). The opposite euphemism, dysphemistic swearing is when a mild word is replaced with a more unpleasant one. This form of swearing is considered to be negative because it creates unpleasant images and can be used to degrade others (About Profanity Use Among Americans). A good example of this is intercourse – the polite might say ‘canoodling,’ but those of a cruder tongue may say ‘fucking.’

Idiomatic swearing, unlike dysphemistic swearing, is rather innocent. Idiomatic swearing is often times meaningless and is frequently used in an unnecessary fashion to fit into a certain lifestyle (About Profanity Use Among Americans). So when it isn’t actually necessary for a guy to say ‘that girl is so fucking hot,’ it may make his ‘bro’ think that he’s cooler. The use of Idiomatic swearing helps people to express themselves by forming a public persona through their uncensored language or simply helps them to fit in. Cathartic swearing is similar to idiomatic swearing in that it is not harmfully directed at anyone. Cathartic swearing is when words burst out of the mouth as a form of impulsive reaction to something (About Profanity Use Among Americans). For example, if you were to fall over, break something important and/or expensive, or to accidentally inflict pain upon yourself, you may use this type of swearing.

Societies create swear words in order to have means of fervent expression without complexity. The forbidden nature of these words makes the emotion behind them seem stronger than that of more innocent synonyms. By having these more dramatic swear words, people are able to feel as if they are expressing themselves more clearly when they cannot do so with exemplary vocabularies. Swear words provide an easy-way-out and supply many with the means to express themselves without actual thought processing. People can only truly be accepted into a society when they can communicate their feelings to others, and for many people, this is more easily achieved through the use of swear words. Instead of using expressive language, individuals can rely upon swears to help them convey their emotions. As swearing becomes more acceptable within a society, more people become content with a lower level of vocabulary. This lowered expectation of vocabulary ultimately reflects a societies’ general lack of emphasis upon intelligence and education. Because people become reliant upon swear words to express themselves, they loose interest in a seemingly inherent need to discover means to express themselves through expressive language. By becoming dependent upon swear words, a society gives up on the o-so-difficult task of learning a language. Overall, swear words are used by people to be understood by others and to fucking fit into a society who’s intelligence is slowly butchered and dumbed-down by the lackadaisical usage of swearing.


Sincerely,

Jess Yackey


















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"HowStuffWorks "How Swearing Works"" Howstuffworks "People" Web. 23 Nov. 2010.
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Ripley,, By Kimberly. "About Profanity Use Among Americans | EHow.com." EHow |
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