What exactly is wrong with swearing?

I don't know what western country you live in, but as far as my own is concerned, we swear all the time as well, and in many different ways. I'm given to understand that only a fragment of the socio-economic spectrum of the population would shy away from using swear words in common life situations. Swearing has been trivialized in such a fashion, that most of the time, no one actually uses them with their original meaning in mind.

So yeah... I don't see swearing as being reprehensible at all, and few people in my surroundings would correct me about this, save from my grandparents perhaps.

 

I don't know... Maybe it's just my upbringing, or where I grew up (Glasgow, Scotland, notorious for it's language) but swearing has never really offended me. And I do use it quite regularly. Although, I just feel that some words should be used in certain situations. swearing may not be appropriate around children, but nor is it appropriate in a serious, professional conversation. Like with your doctor or something.

But as a comedy implement? I cannot possibly tell a joke or a story without dropping the F word. It just comes naturally to me. By the time I hit age 10, my dad was doing it around the house to express himself. And once I hit 16, I used it just as freely as he did. It just felt natural.

But honestly, I don't see what's wrong with swearing. I use it quite a lot in my writing, and I've had a couple of characters who've been unable to speak a line without dropping some sort of swear.

 

I have no f*cking problem with swearing. After all, I am a liberal millennial studying in the arts field, which is well-known for being "full of liberalism". If my life were a movie, most of the dialogue would have to be censored to keep it in the PG-13 rating bracket.

I am totally comfortable with dropping the F-bomb. With saying sh*t. I am not comfortable, however, with using the word c***. Because of where I'm coming from, I object to that word, as it's usually used on women. I don't like that.

Though I don't object to (most) swearing, I do know people who do--most of my family. They object to it on religious grounds, which makes sense. I mean, the New Testament does have several verses about keeping your speech pure. I try to put a filter on it when I'm around them, mostly out of self-preservation rather than anything else. (My paternal grandmother might just murder me if she could hear some of the things I've said.)

Outside of the realm of religion, I honestly have no idea why some words are so offensive. Most of them are just synonyms for words we use without qualms. What's the point?

 

I used to have a bad foul language habit. Picked it up in the military. Took me a long time to divest myself of it effectively.

Anyways, on the larger point, the reason that swearing is often considered bad is because it violates certain community norms.

Now community norms can be good, bad or indifferent, but there are social consequences for violating them. You get to chose whether or not you want to suffer those consequences when you act.

There are lots of community norms that don't have a rational, scientific or other specific basis, but there is an argument that they do fulfill a purpose.

It also depends on how you value the feelings or sensibilities of the people around you. That, once again, is a personal decision you have to make.

 

I personally try to avoid swearing. I don't have a perfect record in that regard, but generally I don't like it. There are a few reasons for that. It's partly because of my religion and how I was raised, but also because- quite frankly- I think it's beneath me. It sounds coarse and unpleasant, and I don't think it really adds anything of value to conversation nine times out of ten. I tolerate it from my friends, though they know I don't care for it and try to reign it in when I'm around. However, if I meet you and you open with a bunch of swear words right off the bat, I will immediately form a very low opinion of your intelligence and decide I want nothing to do with you. I tend to write people off pretty quickly, which can be a flaw or an asset depending on the situation.

 

Swearing is an art form. It can be delightful or maddening, depending on who is using it.

 

I've heard somewhere before that swearing is just a poor attempt at adding shock value to their speech by those who are limited in their lexicon.

I do swear, and I consider my lexicon to be fairly well-developed, but I think this statement does have some level of truth to it.

 

I have an extensive vocabulary. One of the things I did when I was bored as a kid was choose a random dictionary page and read all the entries on it. This sounds like a terrible idea to current me, but hey--when you're a kid with ADD, you'll do anything to keep from getting bored.

Anyway, I use a huge variety of words in my everyday speech. But I reserve swear words for when normal words don't quite pack the same punch.

Only expletives sound right to yell when you've stubbed your toe.

 

I see absolutely no problem with it. I don't care what words the French found offensive 400 years ago, I couldn't care any less what is considered offensive now. I have no regard whatsoever for any other social conventions or expectations either. As long as they have a well-developed vocabulary otherwise, as overusing any word is irritating, I see no reason why a 4 year old can't say "I'm tired of this ****ing shit" if they damn well are. Then again, I grew up in a family where we call each other bitches and assholes as a compliment. My only exception to the rule is when following a social convention is more directly beneficial to me or a loved one than not doing so. I feel no shame whatsoever unless I fail in my goals.

 

[video=youtube_share;8ZP3AXgdkq0]https://youtu.be/8ZP3AXgdkq0[/video]

As the episode from which this clip comes from above indicates it could be you bald, fat, yellow neighbor that teaches them to swear.