“The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.” – Walter Bagehot
Ask most people what constitutes a swear, and you will get a pretty standard list of words, with maybe one or two differences. Of course, if you ask someone younger, you might get words such as “jerk” or “idiot,” as opposed to more vulgar words from the older crowd. But in all seriousness, in a world where a hit song (Forget You) uses the F-word sixteen times, exactly what constitutes a swear anymore?
To find the answer to this question, one needs to look within the American culture. I can remember being in fifth grade during a school event in which World War II veterans came in to speak with students. Something that really struck me at that age was what the old army engineer assigned to my table said, “Well, there’s one thing about the army… I’ve never heard such swearing in my life.”
Obviously during war, in which one’s life is at risk, there is a propensity to turn up the “naughty” in language. But in modern times, it seems like swearing is a much more accepted method of communicating even when your life isn’t at risk. When professors integrate swearing into their lectures, everyone’s interest perks up and people might even giggle like little children at some of the mildly inappropriate things said.
The definition of “swear,” according to dictionary.com is, “To use profane oaths or language.” But if a “swear” is defined as indecent and obscene language, how can it be used so commonly in everyday speech?
Swearing appears to be an accepted part of communication, whether to express disgust, or just spice up language. But as such, it is used sparingly, and is not to be overused. The idea of “swearing” being a bad thing can be seen in “A Christmas Story,” in which Ralphy drops the “F-dash-dash-dash” word and is forced to chomp on a piece of soap for his transgression.
In more recent times, the punishment associated with the “swear,” especially socially, appears to have shifted to racial slurs. Whereas in older days racial slurs were an accepted part of speech, now they are rejected. The same veteran who commented on the bad words being thrown around in the army probably heard racial slang being thrown around daily and thought nothing of it. Just look at how people idolize comedians like Daniel Tosh for throwing around bad words, with mild non-P.C. terms used. But then look at someone like Mel Gibson or Michael Richards (Kramer from “Seinfeld”), who both used racial slurs and were instantly vilified for going “too far.” It seems like the social stigma attached to racial slurs and swearing has switched from what it was, say, forty years ago. I’m not saying this is a bad thing, but it is interesting nonetheless.
Whether or not swearing will remain and continue to be an integral part of communication has yet to be seen, but for now, I look forward to the next episode of Tosh.0 to hear the juvenile humor made up of tastefully inappropriate language.
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