There is no such thing as a "CURSE WORD"

McKayMachina

So, in my opinion, there's just no such thing as profanity. This includes bad words, curse words, cuss words, swear words, derogatory names or labels, etc.

Here's my reasoning:

1. Language evolves. Words that were considered profane in the past might now just be part of the average, politically-correct Westerner's vocabulary. Words like panties, sexy, *kitten* (in "bad word" context), hell (in "bad word" context), slut, etc. Now, they might not be NICE words. But they are, in no way, considered profanity.

Even the hugely-illegal FCC (Federal Communications Commission...first amendment anyone?) won't require these words to be bleeped out of network TV shows or music on popular radio. (I'm not 100% familiar with the strength of the FCC's grasp on media these days, so those statements might need expansion/correction.)

But, at one point in time, those words could get you killed. As in sentenced to death by a court of law.

2. Context! Everything is up for interpretation. This is especially true for languages like English with which we speak more in slang than anything else most days. I know very few people who use language MOSTLY CORRECTLY. I'm sure many of you would like to pick out each grammatical error in this post alone. But, I've never ONCE been accused of having a vocabulary or an understanding of language that leaves something to be desired. I respect and adore language. I suppose that's why I think it's more powerful than a handful of petty cultural, fluid social norms.

3. Religion! I can't get into it here too deeply because the internet is full of people who get offended if you talk about their god or gods. But it IS worth mentioning that one way to control the thoughts of the masses is to control their language. Have you ever learned a second language? Don't you find that, while most of the time you THINK IN your first language, some words just implant themselves in your mind in that second language and you have to struggle to think of its relevant alternative?

A super-accessible version of this would be learning, at a very young age, the word PASTA. Now, when you go to an Italian restaurant are you going to ask, "What kind of NOODLES does that come with?" Or will you just inquire about the style of PASTA? In fact, you might think it odd if your waiter were to ask you, "What kind of NOODLES do you want with that?" I, for one, would give my tablemates a cocked head and raised eyebrow, mouthing the word "NOODLES?". :laugh:

This is just one of the ways the top world religions play a part in conditioning people to think a word is good or bad. Grace, joy, love, worship, purity are words one might see as GOOD. While words with a BAD connotation might be sin, hate, deception, violence, lust, etc. But why are these words good or bad? Because the church says so.

If you were raised with these words OUT of popular context, would that mean you swear? If I use the word "****" in mixed company to describe a body part because I grew up in a place where that word had no negative connotation and simply meant penis, would that mean I'm less eloquent than you? Or just less indoctrinated?

Anyway, I could talk about this forEVER but I won't bore you with a (taller) wall of text. I want to know what you all think and why. Come on. Play with me.

:drinker:

McKayMachina

Those stars would be the word C0CK.

taso42

Hell's bells McKay!

nerdyandilikeit

I may not give it quite as much thought, but I agree with you. Words have the meaning you let them have based on all those categories. I think this is especially true when people who see an issue brought up that's close to their hearts. They jump strongly on whoever brings it up, but when someone brings up another issue they don't relate as much to, the people jumping on that person are being too sensitive.

McKayMachina

lol@taso XD

@bron: YOU'RE 100% RIGHT! I guess it's "only human" to take offense to something personal. My boyfriend and I both use the word "retarded". (You and I have had this conversation before, I think.) I think it's funny. I would never say it, even jokingly (which is the only way I EVER use it) around a mentally handicapped individual, but some people, likely people close to a mentally retarded person, would say using the term EVER is vulgar, ignorant and hateful. I completely disagree!

That said, a cop walked into my work the other day wearing a shirt that said "RA-TARD" real big on the chest. The RA probably stands for something. Maybe he was RA in his college dorm. Maybe he really loves the Republic of Armenia. Or maybe he's just a hick who likes the way it sounds when making fun of his buddies. Either way, he was walking into my work to be fitted for a uniform for the Sheriff's Department. Not really a good choice. But, that isn't the worst of it. DIRECTLY after he walked in, so did a family whose adult son obviously has Down's. I spent the better part of an hour sneakily guiding each group around the store so that they'd avoid each other. I mean...we sell guns. Ya neva know! (lol) But, no, i just didn't want anyone to be offended. And i know the officer noticed the man. I wonder if it occurred to him what shirt he had on...

So, I get why there's a time and a place for certain pieces of language. But I don't think using "curse words" makes you a bad person or means your vocabulary needs work. I think it means you're using all the tools at your disposal.

Now, that's no reason to run around shouting obscenities just for the hell of it. But it IS reason not to censor yourself so you'll "get into heaven" or so people will think you're a "good guy" or whatever.

GasMasterFlash

While words with a BAD connotation might be sin, hate, deception, violence, lust, etc. But why are these words good or bad? Because the church says so.

What religion teaches that those words are bad? Many believe that those things in and of themselves are bad, but I don't know of any that believe that the words themselves are bad.

mrmanmeat

Too much to read.

LaMujerMasBonitaDelMundo

Welcome to my culture! :bigsmile:

Here we have many of those "curse" words that we use some of those as an expression or as a joke to our friends & not just when we are angry. Its more in the manner of usage. It can only become curse when you use it out of anger.

elcieloesazul

The way I see it, there's no difference between the "f-word" and the word "pizza." We GIVE words power. Anyone read Harry Potter? The more he SAYS Voldemort, the more he takes away the fear from the word, and the figure. :flowerforyou:

Farfourah

But I disagree with the title...there are curse words, I just don't care if you use em or not.

McKayMachina

While words with a BAD connotation might be sin, hate, deception, violence, lust, etc. But why are these words good or bad? Because the church says so.

What religion teaches that those words are bad? Many believe that those things in and of themselves are bad, but I don't know of any that believe that the words themselves are bad.

Yes, that is true. I just said that they have a bad connotation. Not that they're examples of profanity. I just can't spout a bunch of profanities here on the MFP boards because, ironically, it would get me in trouble. XD But it was a stretch to use those as replacements. Did you at least get my meaning?

dcsump2

The way I see it, there's no difference between the "f-word" and the word "pizza." We GIVE words power. Anyone read Harry Potter? The more he SAYS Voldemort, the more he takes away the fear from the word, and the figure. :flowerforyou:

Ha! :laugh:

McKayMachina

To anyone posting TL;DR type comments:

This is a discussion about LANGUAGE. That's PROBABLY gonna involve reading some actual words.

If you want pictures of kitties and boobies, may I suggest reddit?

:laugh:

GasMasterFlash

But I disagree with the title...there are curse words, I just don't care if you use em or not.

Agreed.

McKayMachina

But I disagree with the title...there are curse words, I just don't care if you use em or not.

Agreed.

Thank you for not quoting that ridiculously enormous and hardly relevant image.

Also, can you please tell me WHY you think "there are curse words"?

I'm really curious to hear this perspective.

Carl01

I bet if I were to tell ladies here they were a word that rhymes with hunt almost 100 % would be calling for my banning.

I am fine with that,no matter what anyone thinks there will be a constantly shifting paradigm of what is acceptable and what is not.
It is what is and wailing against it is like screaming about why there is air.

AABru

We give power to words by using them in or out of context...used in context, I can say "my b*tch ran across the street today," or "my b*tch is pregnant." But I could get shot saying "you are a b*tch". I find it offensive and hurtful when people use words out of context. Not that I don't occasionally curse (generally when I hurt myself--which is often--I'm not very graceful dammit), but I try really hard not to direct curse words at other people.

ChristineMarie89

true true also were all adults we have all heard/read the words before so if u don't like it y not move along its not like there are 5 yr olds reading on here xD

GasMasterFlash

Also, can you please tell me WHY you think "there are curse words"?

Whether you're talking about individual criteria for what is vulgar, or what they majority of the general population considers vulgar, there certainly are "curse words".

BCKS

:huh:

NathanJ79

"There is no such thing as profanity" is a silly statement. Profanity is profane words; profane is offensive. Offensive is subjective, some of us take offense more easily than others.

Slurs are almost always offensive because they take a bunch of people who are the same because of something they were born into (gender, sexual orientation, race, skin color, etc.) and lumps them all in the same bad boat. Or a condition such as a developmental disability. If someone were to call you (OP) a *kitten*, or, if that gets starred out, a negative variation on the word "prostitute", you would probably be offended. Maybe. Most slurs against women boil down to the same: that she's only good for sex. Even as a man, I find that offensive.

For general profanity, these are words that have meaning that have been perverted to be used as expletives. For example another word for women, was originally just a word for a female dog. That was the original meaning. People who know dogs typically want a male dog, unless they want a ***** to breed and make money. Male dogs are usually relaxed and chill, female dogs are territorial and moody. Calling a woman one is just attributing the characteristics of a female dog to a woman.

So I disagree that there are no words that are bad. However, I defer to what my mother taught me. That you use the language appropriate for your company. If you know somebody's going to be offended by a word, pick a different word unless there's no other word. My father's advice is a little differently. Do not use a word, he said, unless you know what it means. And then, only use it correctly.

McKayMachina

I bet if I were to tell ladies here they were a word that rhymes with hunt almost 100 % would be calling for my banning.

I am fine with that,no matter what anyone thinks there will be a constantly shifting paradigm of what is acceptable and what is not.
It is what is and wailing against it is like screaming about why there is air.

Haha. I reserve that word for especially cun+y ladies. I've actually only used it to describe two women in my life and, believe me, they deserved it. :laugh: But I don't hold back because it's not "appropriate." I use it sparingly because when I attribute that term to someone, the people around me know I mean business. It's another case of using a word for its power.

KharismaticKayteh

I definitely agree. I am a theist (some might speculate an unorthodox Christian, and I'm cool with that), and I attend a life group with my church fairly regularly. It was discussed a few weeks ago that vulgarities are wrong because... I don't know, 'cause God said so, I guess. While I do believe Jesus existed, and I do believe there is a god, I do not believe every single thing in the Bible because it is a *very old* set of books that has been translated *thousands* of times -- I have no doubt that there were people in power who manipulated it in some way for their own agenda.

Anyway, there are quite a few words that we consider vulgarities that were actually used in the Bible. I'm sure there's as many as six, but "*kitten*" and "piss" are the only ones I can think of. And "damn", of course. "Hell", but I don't think of that as anywhere near a swear. I got into an argument with someone over Facebook once because I said something about God, but I also used a swear word like "damn" or "*****" in my comment. She threw a fit because no one should *ever* use a swear word when talking about God. Truth is that what is considered a swear is based not only upon language, but upon culture. Americans and Brits speak roughly the same language, but in British English, the word "bloody" is seriously about as foul as the American English "****ing" -- I have no doubt that will be censored, but you probably know what word I mean (hint: I often type it as "fawkin'").

Words should not really be taken so harshly or offensively. People shouldn't get upset because a word is considered unpleasant. Honestly, that's the criteria for what makes a word a vulgarity or a swear. You just wait -- one day, words like "menstruation" and "bile" will also be swear words.

Edit: Someone brought up a valid point about how to use such words. I do believe a word like those listed becomes more offensive when used *at* a person in a negative connotation. That being said though, any word becomes offensive when used with a negative tone. If someone is arguing with me about a social justice issue and I tell her she is a raging feminist, then I have used feminist with a negative connotation, but no one would say that I was swearing, I don't believe.

McKayMachina

"There is no such thing as profanity" is a silly statement. Profanity is profane words; profane is offensive. Offensive is subjective, some of us take offense more easily than others.

Slurs are almost always offensive because they take a bunch of people who are the same because of something they were born into (gender, sexual orientation, race, skin color, etc.) and lumps them all in the same bad boat. Or a condition such as a developmental disability. If someone were to call you (OP) a *kitten*, or, if that gets starred out, a negative variation on the word "prostitute", you would probably be offended. Maybe. Most slurs against women boil down to the same: that she's only good for sex. Even as a man, I find that offensive.

For general profanity, these are words that have meaning that have been perverted to be used as expletives. For example another word for women, was originally just a word for a female dog. That was the original meaning. People who know dogs typically want a male dog, unless they want a ***** to breed and make money. Male dogs are usually relaxed and chill, female dogs are territorial and moody. Calling a woman one is just attributing the characteristics of a female dog to a woman.

So I disagree that there are no words that are bad. However, I defer to what my mother taught me. That you use the language appropriate for your company. If you know somebody's going to be offended by a word, pick a different word unless there's no other word. My father's advice is a little differently. Do not use a word, he said, unless you know what it means. And then, only use it correctly.

Your parents sound awesome. I think I'm gonna have to side with your dad on that one.

Thank you VERY much for this reply. It was thoughtful and illuminated some things I didn't get into. You're right about the title being silly. It was sensationalist so people would read my thread. :laugh: But, subjectivity aside, I still feel like it's true, silly or not.

:drinker:

McKayMachina

I definitely agree. I am a theist (some might speculate an unorthodox Christian, and I'm cool with that), and I attend a life group with my church fairly regularly. It was discussed a few weeks ago that vulgarities are wrong because... I don't know, 'cause God said so, I guess. While I do believe Jesus existed, and I do believe there is a god, I do not believe every single thing in the Bible because it is a *very old* set of books that has been translated *thousands* of times -- I have no doubt that there were people in power who manipulated it in some way for their own agenda.

Anyway, there are quite a few words that we consider vulgarities that were actually used in the Bible. I'm sure there's as many as six, but "*kitten*" and "piss" are the only ones I can think of. And "damn", of course. "Hell", but I don't think of that as anywhere near a swear. I got into an argument with someone over Facebook once because I said something about God, but I also used a swear word like "damn" or "*****" in my comment. She threw a fit because no one should *ever* use a swear word when talking about God. Truth is that what is considered a swear is based not only upon language, but upon culture. Americans and Brits speak roughly the same language, but in British English, the word "bloody" is seriously about as foul as the American English "****ing" -- I have no doubt that will be censored, but you probably know what word I mean (hint: I often type it as "fawkin'").

Words should not really be taken so harshly or offensively. People shouldn't get upset because a word is considered unpleasant. Honestly, that's the criteria for what makes a word a vulgarity or a swear. You just wait -- one day, words like "menstruation" and "bile" will also be swear words.

Heck yes! Actually, I'm pretty sure there are still pockets of America where people think the word menstruation is vulgar. :laugh:

P.S.: Kudos to you for using your own brain instead of employing half-dead church-think. :drinker:

GasMasterFlash

P.S.: Kudos to you for using your own brain instead of employing half-dead church-think. :drinker:

Just as people's own opinions can be influenced by lay philosophers and writers, what is wrong with someone's opinions being influenced by religious teachings? Not everyone that subscribes to religious tenets is a mindless drone.

Farfourah

But I disagree with the title...there are curse words, I just don't care if you use em or not.

Agreed.

Thank you for not quoting that ridiculously enormous and hardly relevant image.

Also, can you please tell me WHY you think "there are curse words"?

I'm really curious to hear this perspective.

First, we're having a discussion about the fact that curse words exist. We know what they are.
Second,you don't use em in certain situations. When you're at a wedding, funeral, getting interviewed for a job etc....
And lastly I wouldn't want my kids using the words until they're age appropriate. A two year old shouldn't know what *kitten*, cnut, dcik, pu$$y mean...and they shouldn't say them until they're maybe in their teens. For that matter, I wouldn't want my daughter or son if I ever have em, to know what a vagina or penis is until they're like 45.

Shannon023

I bet if I were to tell ladies here they were a word that rhymes with hunt almost 100 % would be calling for my banning.

I am fine with that,no matter what anyone thinks there will be a constantly shifting paradigm of what is acceptable and what is not.
It is what is and wailing against it is like screaming about why there is air.

I told you, I hate that pet name!

AABru

I bet if I were to tell ladies here they were a word that rhymes with hunt almost 100 % would be calling for my banning.

I am fine with that,no matter what anyone thinks there will be a constantly shifting paradigm of what is acceptable and what is not.
It is what is and wailing against it is like screaming about why there is air.

Haha. I reserve that word for especially cun+y ladies. I've actually only used it to describe two women in my life and, believe me, they deserved it. :laugh: But I don't hold back because it's not "appropriate." I use it sparingly because when I attribute that term to someone, the people around me know I mean business. It's another case of using a word for its power.

Laughing to myself...had a student ask me what this word meant this past week (I teach high school)...COULD NOT believe he didn't know! When I told him all he could say was: "She called me a vagina? What is the male equivalent? Cuz that is what I will call her for the rest of the year."

McKayMachina

But I disagree with the title...there are curse words, I just don't care if you use em or not.

Agreed.

Thank you for not quoting that ridiculously enormous and hardly relevant image.

Also, can you please tell me WHY you think "there are curse words"?

I'm really curious to hear this perspective.

First, we're having a discussion about the fact that curse words exist. We know what they are.
Second,you don't use em in certain situations. When you're at a wedding, funeral, getting interviewed for a job etc....
And lastly I wouldn't want my kids using the words until they're age appropriate. A two year old shouldn't know what *kitten*, cnut, dcik, pu$$y mean...and they shouldn't say them until they're maybe in their teens. For that matter, I wouldn't want my daughter or son if I ever have em, to know what a vagina or penis is until they're like 45.

Okay. Now that you've explained WHAT your opinion is, would you mind sharing WHY you feel that way?

Because, to me, all those situations you just listed are arbitrary cultural phenomenon. Thoughts?

chanstriste13

sure there is.