Watch your fucking mouth, there’s asshole kids on this shit.
Ah yes. Point well taken SatansMaggotyCumFart.
None of that shit's a fucking swear though, you bastard!
Jesus, I literally replied this in my head before clicking.
English is my second language, and culturally where I'm from swearing is pretty normal and nobody gives a fuck anyway.
It's only swearing because at some point someone decided it was bad language, and if you pay close attention, a lot of them go with "taboo" topics like sex and religious items. And then everyone proceeds to substitute them like fuck/fudge, shit/shoot, bitch/bench which IMO, you might as well have said it, everyone knows that what you were thinking.
Language is language and sometimes a good choice of colorful expletives is what drives the meaning. Getting offended by swears is a sign of fragility of the mind.
nobody gives a fuck
OOOOOOOOHHHH!!!!! You said a bad word!!! I'm telling mom!!!
People honestly get offended by someone having a different opinion these days even. Fragile minds everywhere. Or perhaps more like fragile egos.
Swearing is actually normal for all people.
Any word can be classified as a "swear" or "bad" word. That's how language works.
There is nothing wrong with using a word that is deemed a cuss word. The actual "bad" part is always the context the word is used in.
If you smacked your foot into a chair accidentally and you called the chair a Bastard, you used the expletive correctly. But if you walked into work one morning and walked by your boss and said to him, "Good morning you Bastard.", that's going to get you in trouble. The context matters.
You can make any word a cuss word in the context you use it. You can ask a person if they like Bananas, "Are you a banana eater?".
Or you can accuse a person, "What kind of a sick banana eater are you? What is wrong with you?", 'banana eater' is now a bad phrase/thing.
Context in language always matters, regardless of the taboo of a word/phrase.
Words only have power over you if you let them. Language is to be used, enjoyed and laughed at.
You can't entirely remove a word from it's main meaning and there's a reason all popular swear words are negative or taboo things, fuck, damn, hell etc
Well gosh darnit the study of etymology is gonna want a word (hehe) with you. a faggot used to be an old unpleasant woman who was like baggage, as difficult to carry around as a bundle of sticks which was also called a faggot. Brits smoke fags.
Literally is another example. Through use, it now has a secondary definition which is exactly the opposite of its primary one. (figurative, emphasis)There are less popular examples but your premise as i understand it is just wrong friend
I didn't say the main meaning can't change, just that you can't remove it from said meaning by using it in a different context
just that you can’t remove it from said meaning by using it in a different context
I'm afraid i don't follow (no sarcasm). Can you elaborate?
The main meaning of a word can change, but at any given time, you can't use the word in a different context, and expect how people receive it to be completely divorced from its current main meaning
This is true, which is why context matters.
Like if you love a song so much and say, "That's sick!", people might think you mean "ill" and assume something negative.
Because I don't let prudes tell me what I can and can't say unless they're paying me.
Because words have different weight for different people. I feel like Americans are so sensitive about words like "fuck" (and many other words). Here in the Netherlands I grew up with much more liberal use of swear words. So to me it's way less harsh to say "fuck this rain" or something, it's just a way to communicate my feelings about the rain, just like I'd say "kutweer" in Dutch. Saying it in a more eloquent way, i.e. "this rain is pretty suboptimal" would not accurately convey my feelings.
Americans are so sensitive about everything...
Except violence, supposedly.
I'm american, so I obviously wouldn't know. Overseas travel is fuckin expensive....
"Fuck" and "kut" don't have the same weight and it's as simple as that. I can go around saying "kanker" everything and I won't feel a thing, because Dutch isn't my mother tongue.
Kwalitatief Uitermate Teleurstellende regen
From a historical perspective, it's stranger that swearing isn't normal for some people; it seems to be a universal feature of human languages throughout history and around the world.
The exact swear / taboo words vary of course, but in general it does seem like just about every culture ever has had and used swear words.
Many "bad words" have roots in other countries or cultures and are a half translation, this is why many words are labeled bad or rude, when they really mean "that's an immigrant word" or foreigner slang.
Because I'm Australian, swearing is my religion
Oi, cunt, hope you have a great fucking day!
Oi cunt, take this fucking priceless crystal Orb off me. I wanna go swim with the 'gators, ya?
I've read that swearing is the sign of an honest person.
Studies have shown that swearing makes dealing with pain easier.
Never swearing is as weird as swearing constantly. They're words, they have meaning and context.
A number of women I know would rather use any word besides "moist", it's quite funny.
What about "sopping"?
I'll try dropping it at Thanksgiving dinner, I'm giving even odds that I get asked to leave, especially if combined with moist.
I have random stupid hangups and for who knows why profanity is one of them. I'm fine with it. I barely notice when others use it. But I just can't. It doesn't sound right in my context or in my voice.
Of course I hate my own voice with a fiery passion, but that's another hangup.
As I understand it, shit, piss, and fuck were common words in Old English. When the French-speaking Normans invaded the Anglo-Saxons, they made the people and their language lower class, crude and dirty. Defecate, urinate, and fornicate were substituted as the proper way to speak. This was a way to continue oppressing a conquered and occupied group of people. These views have persisted for hundreds of years and been adopted by various groups over time. Something to consider when you find yourself viewing the words others use as crude.
Based on this history, you might also see why saying "pardon my French" is ironic as fuck.
Most large towns had a street where prostitutes gathered, often called Grope Cunt Lane
I mean there's was a difference in the language of the rulers and the ruled, which is why this difference came to the language.
That's why the foods you eat are mutton, pork, beef, etc whereas the animals are sheep, pig and cow.
The former words only refer to the meat of the animal, because that's what the French rulers were served.
So I'm not disagreeing with anything you've said, just elaborating on the cause-effect relationship.
Who the fuck is asking and why the fuck should I care if they care?
Don't be such a fucking twat, you cunt. /s
It’s even weirder when people self-censor memes , posts, and whatnot. Like F*CK. You’re allowed to swear on the internet, people!
It seems to me this became a thing when social media algorithms started downranking content with profanity in it. It's weird when people do it elsewhere.
People just repost form other places without a second thought.
i've seen possibly one of more egregious example of this like three days ago. gopro video of a trench warfare, cameraman (ukrainian) shoots two intruders (russian) one of which has no face attached by the end of video with bits of it dripping to the ground. audio track is bleeped out and subtitles are **** out too for some reason
or anything involving youtube, or gods have mercy if that nipple hating son of a bitch zuckerberg notices something. then you can say goodbye to your account
They're good words, bret
Fun fact! Swearing actually reduces pain perception, thus increasing pain tolerance. There are scientific benefits to swearing.
That's fuckin awesome!
Do we know why?
No fuckin clue.
Well shit, I was hoping for an answer.
Shit my ass up sideway, no titting idea...
Yes.
What the fuck do you mean?
Why not? Why is it not normal for you? Science shows it reduces stress. Lol
You give the word power and meaning by viewing it certain way. To me cuss words have no power they are meaningless. equivalent to a simple filler word. Others around you might give power to cussing, but then why is it your fucking problem that they choose to be simps for a word?
I'm from New Jersey, it's weird if I don't swear. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
We don't call it the Jersey accent for nothing.
I moved away from NJ a long time ago, but I definitely brought swearing with me.
That's just cultural outreach.
Why the fuck wouldn't they shitting be?
Part of it must be upbringing. I couldn't bring myself to even say the words hate and stupid because they were treated as just as bad as fuck, but since I've moved out and live with a woman who casually swears, it's rubbed off on me.
Because life fucking sucks, unless I'm in a church I'll swear all the fuck I want, life is tortuous enough already, let me have that. And right now I'm angry.
This question is exactly backwards. Everything should be normal to say unless there's a specific reason NOT to say it. So OP, what is your specific reason for thinking people SHOULDN'T say swear words?
I read the Bible for a living.
There are verses that say not to swear or curse.
James 5:12
Leviticus 19:12
Ecclesiastes 10:20
Romans 12:14
Proverbs 30:10
Matthew 26:74
Take a further look and i think you'll find those passages don't mean what you think they mean. On biblehub look at the most up to date translations, and look at the commentaries section - https://biblehub.com/james/5-12.htm
I see…I just don’t prefer profanity over normal language.
Ah, now THAT is a valid reason!! We all have our own preferences, and by itself that's totally fine
Thanks.
I've noticed that words that are considered "profanity" tend to be vernacular words that express negative emotions (pain, anger, frustration, etc). The fact that these words are considered profane seems a bit unhealthy, because it limits our ability to verbally express how we are feeling internally. Nevertheless, I think some people might use these words too often. If one is cursing every other word all the time, then it's a bit like "crying wolf" once they use it when they're actually experiencing a strong negative emotion.
Profanity is a part of normal language.
I disagree. Lots of swear words are just derogatory ways of referring to people. I don't think it should be normal for those words to be said
Well clearly you agree with me, not disagree, because you have a specific reason for why you think they shouldn't be used.
Secondly, you're misunderstanding what swear words are. It includes insults, but that isn't what a swear word is. Swear words at least as often don't even refer to people, as in "fuck! I stubbed my toe!" and "damn I'm late for work again". And in fact very often they're used as positive words, as in "shit i love that tv show!" and "that motherfucker really knows how to play the bass!"
You said the question should be backwards. I disagree
You think random words should be not said for no reason?
Also, you didn't respond to the main part of my point
What part
Because we grew up poor.
Laws that turn swearing into legal liability are a form of class warfare.
Where is swearing not normal? I don’t live in a preschool. It’s the 90’s. We have internet and everything now. I can say the “fuck” word.
Seriously, this question is exactly backwards. Everything should be normal to say unless there's a specific reason NOT to say it. So OP, what is your specific reason for thinking people SHOULDN'T say swear words?
Sorry to burst your bubble, but it's not the 90's anymore, it's 2024.
Sorry, I was in a coma. I hope nothing bad happened after the 90’s. I’d hate to wake up in 2024 and learn basically everything is kind of shittier except portable music players and street food.
As others have mentioned, for me I sometimes use it as just filler (part of natural language). Alternatively, I can use it to add emphasis or to exaggerate.
Some people are sailors. Others are not.
Technically not a sailor, but I've worked on ships enough for it to have a noticeable effect on my English vocabulary.
STORY TIME
15ish years ago I was on a ship in Brazil on a steady rotation. It was a two vessel operation, and I had to pay the other ship a visit for some technical work.
Onboard there was this petite older catholic lady who showed me around where my cabin was, where to find linen and all that. She spoke English with a heavy accent, but it was fine, and I had no problem understanding her. It quickly became apparent that she'd learned most of her English in this environment. Think about the accent of Conzuela from Family Guy: "...and here is the bathroom for when you have a massive shit." Those words came as unexpected as a suckerpunch and I really struggled to keep a straight face.
Every time I see a thread posted by this user I grab my popcorn.
Generally, the internet (aka the rest of the world) is too harsh for this person's devotion to Christianity. That's like 99% of these threads.
There's nothing wrong with a devotion to Christianity. My mother gives sermons and she's one of the coolest people I know. But that's not what this is.
This is a person whose worldview was shaped by conservative values presented as Christian values. They see a world that doesn't fit what they were taught, and they try to understand it as best they can. It's a constant back and forth on whether to accept the world as God designed it or to try and block out parts that conservatives don't like.
Case in point: The bible doesn't say shit about swearing. It talks about insulting, with an example being "fool", but nothing about swearing.
Point taken, but I still think you're giving this guy way too much credit lol.
I am guessing op is mid teens, raised in faith. Nothing wrong with that but it explains a bit of the breathless naivete'. At least they're curious! Maybe we'll see em shitposting in c/athiesm in a few years.
OP made a post (since deleted) where he talked about watching so much anime about zombie girls, he started to actually fall in love with them, but then he realized that zombies are brought to life by necromancy and necromancy is Not Very Christian, so he then swore off all anime.
Nah, I can't take OP seriously at all lmao.
Lol the more i learn the more i definitely don't want to flame op, so precious. If we could just help steer them safely towards the loving ned Flanders/high School coach-type and away from all them mass shooter hate pits i would be sooo happy
I remember that post. They mentioned disliking zombification, but the damn show is called Zombieland Saga, so that should not have been a surprise. They also mentioned trans people, and one of the girls is explicitly shown to be trans in episode 8. I have my suspicion about which one was the actual problem for them.
There is just enough genuine curiosity in OP that I believe, or genuinely hope, they are slowly starting to disentangle conservative teachings from Christianity. They're in a pit, both curious and afraid of what lies outside of it. I want them to get out of it. I want to believe they can be saved.
Yes, I may be being too optimistic. But I still hope.
I don't swear in my native language (Romanian), but I do in English. I can't explain why...
My friends gifted me a T-shirt that said "I can't say fuck in Romanian" for my birthday a few years ago.
As a Romanian this is accurate
Wait, i bet you guys have great swear words. Tell me some good ones. I'll swear in Romanian and you can sweae in English
Why is it not for some people? Serious question - seems like a few mixed in here and there would be the norm but I’m not sure tbh. But just based on movies, tv, etc, that’s what I’m accustomed to hearing. And real life too.
Why do some people hide their view on things behind rhetorical questions? People, man. There's a billion different ways to people it up. People man ...Being all different n stuff!
Swearing is viewed as a bad thing mainly because of religion, particularly anything puritanical. It's the equivalent of taking the lords name in vain for some people. When I was in 3rd grade, I said dammit after dropping my coat instead of putting it on a hanger. I learned that word really early cause my mother had been using it since she was 3. My friend heard me and told the teacher, a nun, who pulled me aside and said cursing is never, ever, okay and that it's taking the lords name in vain even if you don't say Jesus or God or whatever. Also said Dammit was one of the worst ones.
So I agree with others here. The question should not be, "Why is cursing normal for some people?" It should be the opposite. Curse words are just words. They don't have power like religion states. They're just words. To whomever doesn't curse, stop letting just words have power over you. They don't fucking matter.
The funny thing is that when Christ was over turning the money changers tables in the temple he was cursing at them to get out.
True. But they've never let examples of why their reasoning is flawed to keep them from believing those things.
Fucked if I know.
I love that especially in the land of free speech swearing is so much frowned upon. Exactly my kind of humour.
They are used to it and if you try you can get used to it too.
Swearing is like yelling. If you do it often it lessens its effect. My father in law yelled all the time so if he yelled it was just par of the course. My brother swears constantly in casual conversation. I yell or swear and people take notice but not many have witnessed it.
I mean, even Chaucer in the Canterbury Tales poked fun at the nun for her frequent oaths "by saint Loy" IIRC.
Sonic? Or Sonic 2? Because that underwater level made my heart race as a KID! Imagine the damage it could do to me now as an ADULT!!! I mean, I'm not elderly or anything, but I just don't want to risk a heart attack.
I had to go take a heart pill because I can hear that music in my head.
Fuck is just another word
Hey! Not sure if anyone's still here, but here's a serious answer:
TL;DR: everyone perceives swear words differently, and swearing can be used for purposes other than to insult someone directly
Swear words serve a purpose in language just like every other word. People, or at least many English speaking people that I've encountered, tend to consider rude language/swearing to be superfluous speech, words that can and in some cases should, be removed from the language. That's a misconception. The point and purpose of swear words is to be taboo and rude. If these words didn't exist, they would likely be substituted by something else, because from a sociolinguistic perspective, our society right now has evolved to need a linguistic way to express the things that are conveyed with swearing, even if it's really bad things like racism, disdain, threats of violence.
Now, one of the interesting things about swear words and rude language in general is that everyone perceives these words with a different severity. Some people feel comfortable with saying "cunt" for one reason or another. For example, Australian and British English speakers tend to be more comfortable with that word than American English speakers. For other people, even minced oaths can be considered rude, such as saying "darn" instead of "damn" or "fiddlesticks" instead of "fuck". It could also have to do with background or identity, like women calling each other "bitch" can be considered less severe than a man calling a woman a "bitch". Or someone who's deeply religious could object to the use of "hell" while someone who isn't might not even consider it rude.
Lets get back to the purpose of swearing. Swearing can have many different uses, such as showing you're part of an in group. Imagine a group of women working in a auto body shop together for example. In order to signal to each other that they're comfortable around each other, they might refer to each other as their "bitches". But that doesn't mean that a customer can come in and say "hey bitch I need new headlights": they're not part of the group, they haven't earned that privilege. Swearing is also a rite of passage. Adults get to swear, but we consider a sign of a good upbringing in the English speaking world as a child that does not swear. Throughout all these uses, there's a through line of flaunting social expectations. Swearing can be used to damage and berate and humiliate, of course, but a lot of swearing is done with subtext. "Hey, you're my friend, this is a relaxed environment, of course you're not going to think when I say a rude word that I'm insulting you" or "I'm feeling such a strong emotion right now that the only words that fit that are very rude".
I also think that as our society moves away from more structured and rigid social roles, swearing is getting more acceptable since we in general are more tolerant of deviations from the norm.
Edit: I've obviously only scratched the surface, since this is a broad and complex topic.
swearing is pretty normal in austria. I know a few people who don't swear and it's even somewhat weird.
Grew up around actual sailors
They don't give a fuck? You can hear em, moan and yuck
Because swearing was strictly forbidden in my household and i picked it up in late high school and early college partially as an act of defiance.
I made friends also more interested in content and quality of thought than on politeness and that was dope AF.
Now it's part of my lexicon, just a casual turn of phrase.
"Ay yo, that shit is fire" conveys the same sentiment as "Wow! That's really cool."
I'm a mechanical engineer and a writer. Words are words. They have meanings and those meanings change over time and with context/audience.
People who don't ever swear feel repressed to me. It's a weird vibe. Not a fan.
I swear I don't know..
I don't know. Swearing isn't in my day to day vocabulary. I think i just grew out of it. It has it's place, especially for comedy purposes. But if i hear people swear a lot i feel the same way as when i see people spit on the floor. Kinda gross and unnecessary.
They do it a lot so it loses the negative weight.
Gets people's attention.
Because the cunts at social media companies want to censor every fucking thing. I don't want to swear, but I am forced to do so In order to fill the chasm left by any large company deciding to be thought police and robbing us of our ability to use colorful language.
Also the way words "retard" and "retarded" sound is funny, so I opt to use them any time I need to refer to someone or something stupid.
Everything has its place - swearing is great for communicating intense emotions.
But for me, swearing for no reason just makes you appear overly-dramatic, or that you have a limited vocabulary and don’t know a more useful word. I’ll probably ignore half of what you say.
Plus y’all are ruining swearing. If everyone is rebelling against social convention, then rebelling against social convention no longer has value. What’s the point of swearing being normal? It no longer has any power or purpose
Fuck if I know.
Watch your fucking mouth, there’s asshole kids on this shit.
Ah yes. Point well taken SatansMaggotyCumFart.
None of that shit's a fucking swear though, you bastard!
Jesus, I literally replied this in my head before clicking.
English is my second language, and culturally where I'm from swearing is pretty normal and nobody gives a fuck anyway.
It's only swearing because at some point someone decided it was bad language, and if you pay close attention, a lot of them go with "taboo" topics like sex and religious items. And then everyone proceeds to substitute them like fuck/fudge, shit/shoot, bitch/bench which IMO, you might as well have said it, everyone knows that what you were thinking.
Language is language and sometimes a good choice of colorful expletives is what drives the meaning. Getting offended by swears is a sign of fragility of the mind.
OOOOOOOOHHHH!!!!! You said a bad word!!! I'm telling mom!!!
People honestly get offended by someone having a different opinion these days even. Fragile minds everywhere. Or perhaps more like fragile egos.
Swearing is actually normal for all people. Any word can be classified as a "swear" or "bad" word. That's how language works. There is nothing wrong with using a word that is deemed a cuss word. The actual "bad" part is always the context the word is used in. If you smacked your foot into a chair accidentally and you called the chair a Bastard, you used the expletive correctly. But if you walked into work one morning and walked by your boss and said to him, "Good morning you Bastard.", that's going to get you in trouble. The context matters.
You can make any word a cuss word in the context you use it. You can ask a person if they like Bananas, "Are you a banana eater?". Or you can accuse a person, "What kind of a sick banana eater are you? What is wrong with you?", 'banana eater' is now a bad phrase/thing.
Context in language always matters, regardless of the taboo of a word/phrase.
Words only have power over you if you let them. Language is to be used, enjoyed and laughed at.
You can't entirely remove a word from it's main meaning and there's a reason all popular swear words are negative or taboo things, fuck, damn, hell etc
Well gosh darnit the study of etymology is gonna want a word (hehe) with you. a faggot used to be an old unpleasant woman who was like baggage, as difficult to carry around as a bundle of sticks which was also called a faggot. Brits smoke fags.
Literally is another example. Through use, it now has a secondary definition which is exactly the opposite of its primary one. (figurative, emphasis)There are less popular examples but your premise as i understand it is just wrong friend
I didn't say the main meaning can't change, just that you can't remove it from said meaning by using it in a different context
I'm afraid i don't follow (no sarcasm). Can you elaborate?
The main meaning of a word can change, but at any given time, you can't use the word in a different context, and expect how people receive it to be completely divorced from its current main meaning
This is true, which is why context matters. Like if you love a song so much and say, "That's sick!", people might think you mean "ill" and assume something negative.
Because I don't let prudes tell me what I can and can't say unless they're paying me.
Because words have different weight for different people. I feel like Americans are so sensitive about words like "fuck" (and many other words). Here in the Netherlands I grew up with much more liberal use of swear words. So to me it's way less harsh to say "fuck this rain" or something, it's just a way to communicate my feelings about the rain, just like I'd say "kutweer" in Dutch. Saying it in a more eloquent way, i.e. "this rain is pretty suboptimal" would not accurately convey my feelings.
Americans are so sensitive about everything...
Except violence, supposedly.
I'm american, so I obviously wouldn't know. Overseas travel is fuckin expensive....
"Fuck" and "kut" don't have the same weight and it's as simple as that. I can go around saying "kanker" everything and I won't feel a thing, because Dutch isn't my mother tongue.
Kwalitatief Uitermate Teleurstellende regen
From a historical perspective, it's stranger that swearing isn't normal for some people; it seems to be a universal feature of human languages throughout history and around the world.
The exact swear / taboo words vary of course, but in general it does seem like just about every culture ever has had and used swear words.
Many "bad words" have roots in other countries or cultures and are a half translation, this is why many words are labeled bad or rude, when they really mean "that's an immigrant word" or foreigner slang.
Because I'm Australian, swearing is my religion
Oi, cunt, hope you have a great fucking day!
Oi cunt, take this fucking priceless crystal Orb off me. I wanna go swim with the 'gators, ya?
I've read that swearing is the sign of an honest person.
Studies have shown that swearing makes dealing with pain easier.
Never swearing is as weird as swearing constantly. They're words, they have meaning and context.
A number of women I know would rather use any word besides "moist", it's quite funny.
What about "sopping"?
I'll try dropping it at Thanksgiving dinner, I'm giving even odds that I get asked to leave, especially if combined with moist.
I have random stupid hangups and for who knows why profanity is one of them. I'm fine with it. I barely notice when others use it. But I just can't. It doesn't sound right in my context or in my voice.
Of course I hate my own voice with a fiery passion, but that's another hangup.
As I understand it, shit, piss, and fuck were common words in Old English. When the French-speaking Normans invaded the Anglo-Saxons, they made the people and their language lower class, crude and dirty. Defecate, urinate, and fornicate were substituted as the proper way to speak. This was a way to continue oppressing a conquered and occupied group of people. These views have persisted for hundreds of years and been adopted by various groups over time. Something to consider when you find yourself viewing the words others use as crude.
Based on this history, you might also see why saying "pardon my French" is ironic as fuck.
Most large towns had a street where prostitutes gathered, often called Grope Cunt Lane
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gropecunt_Lane
I mean there's was a difference in the language of the rulers and the ruled, which is why this difference came to the language.
That's why the foods you eat are mutton, pork, beef, etc whereas the animals are sheep, pig and cow.
The former words only refer to the meat of the animal, because that's what the French rulers were served.
So I'm not disagreeing with anything you've said, just elaborating on the cause-effect relationship.
Who the fuck is asking and why the fuck should I care if they care?
Don't be such a fucking twat, you cunt. /s
It’s even weirder when people self-censor memes , posts, and whatnot. Like F*CK. You’re allowed to swear on the internet, people!
It seems to me this became a thing when social media algorithms started downranking content with profanity in it. It's weird when people do it elsewhere.
People just repost form other places without a second thought.
i've seen possibly one of more egregious example of this like three days ago. gopro video of a trench warfare, cameraman (ukrainian) shoots two intruders (russian) one of which has no face attached by the end of video with bits of it dripping to the ground. audio track is bleeped out and subtitles are **** out too for some reason
or anything involving youtube, or gods have mercy if that nipple hating son of a bitch zuckerberg notices something. then you can say goodbye to your account
They're good words, bret
Fun fact! Swearing actually reduces pain perception, thus increasing pain tolerance. There are scientific benefits to swearing.
That's fuckin awesome!
Do we know why?
No fuckin clue.
Well shit, I was hoping for an answer.
Shit my ass up sideway, no titting idea...
Yes.
What the fuck do you mean?
Why not? Why is it not normal for you? Science shows it reduces stress. Lol
You give the word power and meaning by viewing it certain way. To me cuss words have no power they are meaningless. equivalent to a simple filler word. Others around you might give power to cussing, but then why is it your fucking problem that they choose to be simps for a word?
I'm from New Jersey, it's weird if I don't swear. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
We don't call it the Jersey accent for nothing.
I moved away from NJ a long time ago, but I definitely brought swearing with me.
That's just cultural outreach.
Why the fuck wouldn't they shitting be?
Part of it must be upbringing. I couldn't bring myself to even say the words hate and stupid because they were treated as just as bad as fuck, but since I've moved out and live with a woman who casually swears, it's rubbed off on me.
Because life fucking sucks, unless I'm in a church I'll swear all the fuck I want, life is tortuous enough already, let me have that. And right now I'm angry.
This question is exactly backwards. Everything should be normal to say unless there's a specific reason NOT to say it. So OP, what is your specific reason for thinking people SHOULDN'T say swear words?
I read the Bible for a living.
There are verses that say not to swear or curse.
James 5:12 Leviticus 19:12 Ecclesiastes 10:20 Romans 12:14 Proverbs 30:10 Matthew 26:74
Take a further look and i think you'll find those passages don't mean what you think they mean. On biblehub look at the most up to date translations, and look at the commentaries section - https://biblehub.com/james/5-12.htm
I see…I just don’t prefer profanity over normal language.
Ah, now THAT is a valid reason!! We all have our own preferences, and by itself that's totally fine
Thanks.
I've noticed that words that are considered "profanity" tend to be vernacular words that express negative emotions (pain, anger, frustration, etc). The fact that these words are considered profane seems a bit unhealthy, because it limits our ability to verbally express how we are feeling internally. Nevertheless, I think some people might use these words too often. If one is cursing every other word all the time, then it's a bit like "crying wolf" once they use it when they're actually experiencing a strong negative emotion.
Profanity is a part of normal language.
I disagree. Lots of swear words are just derogatory ways of referring to people. I don't think it should be normal for those words to be said
Well clearly you agree with me, not disagree, because you have a specific reason for why you think they shouldn't be used.
Secondly, you're misunderstanding what swear words are. It includes insults, but that isn't what a swear word is. Swear words at least as often don't even refer to people, as in "fuck! I stubbed my toe!" and "damn I'm late for work again". And in fact very often they're used as positive words, as in "shit i love that tv show!" and "that motherfucker really knows how to play the bass!"
You said the question should be backwards. I disagree
You think random words should be not said for no reason?
Also, you didn't respond to the main part of my point
What part
Because we grew up poor.
Laws that turn swearing into legal liability are a form of class warfare.
Where is swearing not normal? I don’t live in a preschool. It’s the 90’s. We have internet and everything now. I can say the “fuck” word.
Seriously, this question is exactly backwards. Everything should be normal to say unless there's a specific reason NOT to say it. So OP, what is your specific reason for thinking people SHOULDN'T say swear words?
Sorry to burst your bubble, but it's not the 90's anymore, it's 2024.
Sorry, I was in a coma. I hope nothing bad happened after the 90’s. I’d hate to wake up in 2024 and learn basically everything is kind of shittier except portable music players and street food.
As others have mentioned, for me I sometimes use it as just filler (part of natural language). Alternatively, I can use it to add emphasis or to exaggerate.
Some people are sailors. Others are not.
Technically not a sailor, but I've worked on ships enough for it to have a noticeable effect on my English vocabulary.
STORY TIME
15ish years ago I was on a ship in Brazil on a steady rotation. It was a two vessel operation, and I had to pay the other ship a visit for some technical work.
Onboard there was this petite older catholic lady who showed me around where my cabin was, where to find linen and all that. She spoke English with a heavy accent, but it was fine, and I had no problem understanding her. It quickly became apparent that she'd learned most of her English in this environment. Think about the accent of Conzuela from Family Guy: "...and here is the bathroom for when you have a massive shit." Those words came as unexpected as a suckerpunch and I really struggled to keep a straight face.
Every time I see a thread posted by this user I grab my popcorn.
Generally, the internet (aka the rest of the world) is too harsh for this person's devotion to Christianity. That's like 99% of these threads.
There's nothing wrong with a devotion to Christianity. My mother gives sermons and she's one of the coolest people I know. But that's not what this is.
This is a person whose worldview was shaped by conservative values presented as Christian values. They see a world that doesn't fit what they were taught, and they try to understand it as best they can. It's a constant back and forth on whether to accept the world as God designed it or to try and block out parts that conservatives don't like.
Case in point: The bible doesn't say shit about swearing. It talks about insulting, with an example being "fool", but nothing about swearing.
Point taken, but I still think you're giving this guy way too much credit lol.
I am guessing op is mid teens, raised in faith. Nothing wrong with that but it explains a bit of the breathless naivete'. At least they're curious! Maybe we'll see em shitposting in c/athiesm in a few years.
OP made a post (since deleted) where he talked about watching so much anime about zombie girls, he started to actually fall in love with them, but then he realized that zombies are brought to life by necromancy and necromancy is Not Very Christian, so he then swore off all anime.
Nah, I can't take OP seriously at all lmao.
Lol the more i learn the more i definitely don't want to flame op, so precious. If we could just help steer them safely towards the loving ned Flanders/high School coach-type and away from all them mass shooter hate pits i would be sooo happy
I remember that post. They mentioned disliking zombification, but the damn show is called Zombieland Saga, so that should not have been a surprise. They also mentioned trans people, and one of the girls is explicitly shown to be trans in episode 8. I have my suspicion about which one was the actual problem for them.
There is just enough genuine curiosity in OP that I believe, or genuinely hope, they are slowly starting to disentangle conservative teachings from Christianity. They're in a pit, both curious and afraid of what lies outside of it. I want them to get out of it. I want to believe they can be saved.
Yes, I may be being too optimistic. But I still hope.
I don't swear in my native language (Romanian), but I do in English. I can't explain why...
My friends gifted me a T-shirt that said "I can't say fuck in Romanian" for my birthday a few years ago.
As a Romanian this is accurate
Wait, i bet you guys have great swear words. Tell me some good ones. I'll swear in Romanian and you can sweae in English
They can be quite... creative :) Here's a nice overview: https://utopiabalcanica.net/2019/12/05/20-ingenious-ways-to-use-pla-in-the-romanian-language/
Sã-mi bag pula! Saved! Thanks a lot
Swearing Is Good for You
Why is it not for some people? Serious question - seems like a few mixed in here and there would be the norm but I’m not sure tbh. But just based on movies, tv, etc, that’s what I’m accustomed to hearing. And real life too.
Why do some people hide their view on things behind rhetorical questions? People, man. There's a billion different ways to people it up. People man ...Being all different n stuff!
Swearing is viewed as a bad thing mainly because of religion, particularly anything puritanical. It's the equivalent of taking the lords name in vain for some people. When I was in 3rd grade, I said dammit after dropping my coat instead of putting it on a hanger. I learned that word really early cause my mother had been using it since she was 3. My friend heard me and told the teacher, a nun, who pulled me aside and said cursing is never, ever, okay and that it's taking the lords name in vain even if you don't say Jesus or God or whatever. Also said Dammit was one of the worst ones.
So I agree with others here. The question should not be, "Why is cursing normal for some people?" It should be the opposite. Curse words are just words. They don't have power like religion states. They're just words. To whomever doesn't curse, stop letting just words have power over you. They don't fucking matter.
The funny thing is that when Christ was over turning the money changers tables in the temple he was cursing at them to get out.
True. But they've never let examples of why their reasoning is flawed to keep them from believing those things.
Fucked if I know.
I love that especially in the land of free speech swearing is so much frowned upon. Exactly my kind of humour.
They are used to it and if you try you can get used to it too.
Swearing is like yelling. If you do it often it lessens its effect. My father in law yelled all the time so if he yelled it was just par of the course. My brother swears constantly in casual conversation. I yell or swear and people take notice but not many have witnessed it.
I mean, even Chaucer in the Canterbury Tales poked fun at the nun for her frequent oaths "by saint Loy" IIRC.
Because fuck you, that’s why!
Try playing Sonic the Hedgehog some more and expressing how it makes you feel.
Sonic? Or Sonic 2? Because that underwater level made my heart race as a KID! Imagine the damage it could do to me now as an ADULT!!! I mean, I'm not elderly or anything, but I just don't want to risk a heart attack.
I had to go take a heart pill because I can hear that music in my head.
Fuck is just another word
Hey! Not sure if anyone's still here, but here's a serious answer:
TL;DR: everyone perceives swear words differently, and swearing can be used for purposes other than to insult someone directly
Swear words serve a purpose in language just like every other word. People, or at least many English speaking people that I've encountered, tend to consider rude language/swearing to be superfluous speech, words that can and in some cases should, be removed from the language. That's a misconception. The point and purpose of swear words is to be taboo and rude. If these words didn't exist, they would likely be substituted by something else, because from a sociolinguistic perspective, our society right now has evolved to need a linguistic way to express the things that are conveyed with swearing, even if it's really bad things like racism, disdain, threats of violence.
Now, one of the interesting things about swear words and rude language in general is that everyone perceives these words with a different severity. Some people feel comfortable with saying "cunt" for one reason or another. For example, Australian and British English speakers tend to be more comfortable with that word than American English speakers. For other people, even minced oaths can be considered rude, such as saying "darn" instead of "damn" or "fiddlesticks" instead of "fuck". It could also have to do with background or identity, like women calling each other "bitch" can be considered less severe than a man calling a woman a "bitch". Or someone who's deeply religious could object to the use of "hell" while someone who isn't might not even consider it rude.
Lets get back to the purpose of swearing. Swearing can have many different uses, such as showing you're part of an in group. Imagine a group of women working in a auto body shop together for example. In order to signal to each other that they're comfortable around each other, they might refer to each other as their "bitches". But that doesn't mean that a customer can come in and say "hey bitch I need new headlights": they're not part of the group, they haven't earned that privilege. Swearing is also a rite of passage. Adults get to swear, but we consider a sign of a good upbringing in the English speaking world as a child that does not swear. Throughout all these uses, there's a through line of flaunting social expectations. Swearing can be used to damage and berate and humiliate, of course, but a lot of swearing is done with subtext. "Hey, you're my friend, this is a relaxed environment, of course you're not going to think when I say a rude word that I'm insulting you" or "I'm feeling such a strong emotion right now that the only words that fit that are very rude".
I also think that as our society moves away from more structured and rigid social roles, swearing is getting more acceptable since we in general are more tolerant of deviations from the norm.
Edit: I've obviously only scratched the surface, since this is a broad and complex topic.
swearing is pretty normal in austria. I know a few people who don't swear and it's even somewhat weird.
Grew up around actual sailors
They don't give a fuck? You can hear em, moan and yuck
Because swearing was strictly forbidden in my household and i picked it up in late high school and early college partially as an act of defiance.
I made friends also more interested in content and quality of thought than on politeness and that was dope AF.
Now it's part of my lexicon, just a casual turn of phrase.
"Ay yo, that shit is fire" conveys the same sentiment as "Wow! That's really cool."
I'm a mechanical engineer and a writer. Words are words. They have meanings and those meanings change over time and with context/audience.
People who don't ever swear feel repressed to me. It's a weird vibe. Not a fan.
I swear I don't know..
I don't know. Swearing isn't in my day to day vocabulary. I think i just grew out of it. It has it's place, especially for comedy purposes. But if i hear people swear a lot i feel the same way as when i see people spit on the floor. Kinda gross and unnecessary.
They do it a lot so it loses the negative weight.
Gets people's attention.
Because the cunts at social media companies want to censor every fucking thing. I don't want to swear, but I am forced to do so In order to fill the chasm left by any large company deciding to be thought police and robbing us of our ability to use colorful language.
Also the way words "retard" and "retarded" sound is funny, so I opt to use them any time I need to refer to someone or something stupid.
Everything has its place - swearing is great for communicating intense emotions.
But for me, swearing for no reason just makes you appear overly-dramatic, or that you have a limited vocabulary and don’t know a more useful word. I’ll probably ignore half of what you say.
Here’s relevant documentation
Plus y’all are ruining swearing. If everyone is rebelling against social convention, then rebelling against social convention no longer has value. What’s the point of swearing being normal? It no longer has any power or purpose