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Author Topic:   why are bad words bad words?
DC85
Member (Idle past 370 days)
Posts: 876
From: Richmond, Virginia USA
Joined: 05-06-2003


Message 16 of 26 (101709)
04-21-2004 9:59 PM
Reply to: Message 8 by Dan Carroll
04-21-2004 10:41 AM


B!tch might not have been the best example.... hmmmm
ok why do some words have for impact then others?
for instance a$$.
If you call someone an A$$ hole they take more offence to it then Butt hole(although both offencive)... why is this? Why does the word A$$ have more meaning?

This message is a reply to:
 Message 8 by Dan Carroll, posted 04-21-2004 10:41 AM Dan Carroll has replied

Replies to this message:
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 Message 19 by Dan Carroll, posted 04-22-2004 10:25 AM DC85 has not replied

Riley
Inactive Member


Message 17 of 26 (101781)
04-22-2004 3:28 AM
Reply to: Message 16 by DC85
04-21-2004 9:59 PM


I think b*tch is a good example, because while it undoubtedly began as a straightforward semantic curse ("you are of low manners and intelligence and I'd not be surprised to see you copulating in the street or rolling in excrement") it's now almost exclusively a vocal performance. Calling someone a b*tch is, well, calling them a b*tch. Just as sh*t and f*ck, while retaining their original meanings have become all purpose intensifiers.
Our American cursing is rather unimaginative, I think, partly because a large segment of the populace is so easily offended that the same clichd words serve over and over. And they are almost all short, with just a couple of polysyllabic exceptions. Plus they're heavy on the fricatives (if I've got that right) which can be drawn out and performed as a vocal explosion.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 16 by DC85, posted 04-21-2004 9:59 PM DC85 has not replied

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Dan Carroll
Inactive Member


Message 18 of 26 (101813)
04-22-2004 10:15 AM
Reply to: Message 17 by Riley
04-22-2004 3:28 AM


quote:
Our American cursing is rather unimaginative
I think it's best to ask the moderators nicely first, but...
Please, admins... may I please engage in some really creative swearing to prove this wrong?

"As the days go by, we face the increasing inevitability that we are alone in a godless, uninhabited, hostile and meaningless universe. Still, you've got to laugh, haven't you?"
-Holly

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 Message 17 by Riley, posted 04-22-2004 3:28 AM Riley has replied

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Dan Carroll
Inactive Member


Message 19 of 26 (101815)
04-22-2004 10:25 AM
Reply to: Message 16 by DC85
04-21-2004 9:59 PM


quote:
If you call someone an A$$ hole they take more offence to it then Butt hole(although both offencive)... why is this? Why does the word A$$ have more meaning?
Couldn't tell you exactly. But I'd guess it's the same reason as the other words. It's just been used in a fiercer context enough times that now, the standard context is the fierce one.

"As the days go by, we face the increasing inevitability that we are alone in a godless, uninhabited, hostile and meaningless universe. Still, you've got to laugh, haven't you?"
-Holly

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 Message 16 by DC85, posted 04-21-2004 9:59 PM DC85 has not replied

Mespo
Member (Idle past 2875 days)
Posts: 158
From: Mesopotamia, Ohio, USA
Joined: 09-19-2002


Message 20 of 26 (101839)
04-22-2004 11:54 AM


Poetic Cursing
TechnoCore writes:
If you are to insult someone, I think longer words or even sentences have a better effect!
My wife and I once lead a high-school age church youth group. We challenged them to come up with more imaginative curses and oaths than the standard four letter word variety.
"May a thousand fleas infest your armpits."
(*wiggle your fingers rapidly*)
"What's that?"
"It's a hundred of these" (*extend middle fingers of both hands*)
(:raig

Replies to this message:
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Loudmouth
Inactive Member


Message 21 of 26 (101909)
04-22-2004 5:33 PM
Reply to: Message 20 by Mespo
04-22-2004 11:54 AM


Re: Poetic Cursing
Ahhh, a meaningless topic. Good popcorn for the evo soul!!
quote:
My wife and I once lead a high-school age church youth group. We challenged them to come up with more imaginative curses and oaths than the standard four letter word variety.
"May a thousand fleas infest your armpits."
(*wiggle your fingers rapidly*)
"What's that?"
"It's a hundred of these" (*extend middle fingers of both hands*)
For us secular beer drinkers, such insults will only make people laugh at you. Curses that take too much thinking end up making you look like a British Royal at a cockfight. The beauty of the f-bomb is that it can be used as a noun, verb, adjective, and an adverb. Or, all by itself to exclaim your extreme dissatisfaction. What other 4 letter, one syllable words can convey so much emotion? None that I have run into. Try losing 10 bucks on a game of 8-ball and telling your opponent to "roll around in piles of his canine's excrement" and prepare to be ridiculed. It is better, and correct I might add, to yell out "You MF, no way can you beat me two games in a row" in order to have a chance to win your money back. Of course, your youth group probably doesn't play money games before or after meetings, so just file this under information you will never use.
(to everyone) As to why God is taken out of goddamn is simple. By inserting God you are taking the lords name in vain, while damn by itself is not taking the Lord's name in vain directly, just some diety in general. That's the way I understand it anyway.

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Mespo
Member (Idle past 2875 days)
Posts: 158
From: Mesopotamia, Ohio, USA
Joined: 09-19-2002


Message 22 of 26 (101922)
04-22-2004 6:10 PM


Poetic Cursing - Youth Retreat
Loudmouth writes:
Of course, your youth group probably doesn't play money games before or after meetings, so just file this under information you will never use.
You're right Loudmouth. Since these kids didn't have much money, they had to resort to strip poker at the youth retreat. So their expletives relating to sexual anatomy were ususally prefaced with "Holy".
(:raig

Replies to this message:
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Riley
Inactive Member


Message 23 of 26 (102093)
04-23-2004 2:08 AM
Reply to: Message 18 by Dan Carroll
04-22-2004 10:15 AM


Unimaginative Cursing
Dan, I've no doubt it can be done, nor that you could provide some quality examples, but it's lost on the population at large. Although I agree with Loudmouth that the simple direct approach does have its uses.
Wish I still had a copy of Henry Beard's "How to Talk Dirty in Esperanto" from the golden age of National Lampoon.

This message is a reply to:
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macaroniandcheese 
Suspended Member (Idle past 3918 days)
Posts: 4258
Joined: 05-24-2004


Message 24 of 26 (115866)
06-16-2004 8:34 PM
Reply to: Message 22 by Mespo
04-22-2004 6:10 PM


Re: Poetic Cursing - Youth Retreat
that's an interesting church...

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 Message 22 by Mespo, posted 04-22-2004 6:10 PM Mespo has not replied

coffee_addict
Member (Idle past 467 days)
Posts: 3645
From: Indianapolis, IN
Joined: 03-29-2004


Message 25 of 26 (115904)
06-16-2004 10:57 PM
Reply to: Message 1 by DC85
04-20-2004 2:35 PM


In east asia, the really really bad words are the ones that insult your parents or your ancestors. In fact, it's not really that bad if you insult somebody directly. Why this is so is beyond me.

The Laminator

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by DC85, posted 04-20-2004 2:35 PM DC85 has not replied

Replies to this message:
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custard
Inactive Member


Message 26 of 26 (115920)
06-16-2004 11:44 PM
Reply to: Message 25 by coffee_addict
06-16-2004 10:57 PM


For those interested, this book does a pretty good job delving into the etymology and use of English swearing:
Swearing: A Social History of Foul Language, Oaths, and Profanity in English, by Geoffrey Hughes.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 25 by coffee_addict, posted 06-16-2004 10:57 PM coffee_addict has not replied

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