Lets talk about swear words!

[dead man walkin]

Dear literature buffs: English is not my first language, so naturally I have a lot of questions about certain words...and for some reason obscenities are what I would like to discuss in this thread. :-)

Ok, so why is "sh*t" considered more obscene than "crap"?

Also, how did the word "*ss" (donkey) acquire its two entirely different meanings?

[kevinthediltz]

S*it just sounds harsher I guess.
As for *ss, I think it was originally meaning a donkey (stubborn, stupid, mean).
Good questions though.

[Virgil]

Why is it that one learns a foreign language that one seeks out the profane words first? :lol:

[librarius_qui]

English isn't my first language either, but the same thing happens in Portuguese and, I believe, in every language.

Meaning varies. And written word has, sometimes, different effects than spoken. In LitNet, as well as any forum and internet communication -- a kind of (very) new way of "speaking" --, there's a great deal of spontaneous ways of speech. Some half swearings come about. Some of these seem not to sound that offensive to a reader, because they/we read it as if someone were speaking to us.

Even so, sometimes I'm reading something someone's writing, and I .. put a different word in the place, as I speak with myself, while reading. I use "blast" a lot, instead of any swearing, I try to make my interjective locutions with "heavens" or "blast" mainly (in Portuguese, I use "céus", which means "heavens", and "raios", which means lightning, literally, and goes fine like "blast" ... And I use "droga" for "damn", which isn't exactly a swearing, but a curse, as I understand, and it's to be used when something goes really bad ... :rolleyes~).

As I said, I believe in every language, similar phenomenons, happen.
This is what I think.

It's a very good topic, though! :thumbs_up
It'll help people think a lot, and ... make their expression through written word more ... thought.~

lq


----
Ps. getting the chance for it, I'd like to ask any English speaker, if he will, to correct me in anything wrong or weird I may come to say in English. Specially phrasal verbs. I've been finding it particularly difficult, some times, to let them flow, and any help will be welcome. I ask you to do it with discretion, though, through pm, unless it'll help others, so as not to stray discussions away, and such. -- Thanks.

[Niamh]

Why is it that one learns a foreign language that one seeks out the profane words first? :lol:

Because sometimes thats the first thing they learn. :p

[JBI]

English swearwords suck, but from my understanding, French ones are far more fun, since they haven't completely lost their umph. In truth, outside of formal writing, in Canada almost all swear words have become somewhat mainstream. I have professors who use them, and many literary minds use them regularly. In truth, it's scary - what happens when swearwords become mainstream? Does that mean we need new ones?

[librarius_qui]

I think you don't have to worry about that ...

Why do you need to swear, anyway? :rolleyes~

[metal134]

Dear literature buffs: English is not my first language, so naturally I have a lot of questions about certain words...and for some reason obscenities are what I would like to discuss in this thread. :-)

Ok, so why is "sh*t" considered more obscene than "crap"?

Also, how did the word "*ss" (donkey) acquire its two entirely different meanings?
The story behind why English swear words are swear words is that they where a regular part of the Saxon language, but when the Normans invaded, they considered the Saxons to be an inferior people, thus to behave like or emulate them them was seen as degrading. Hence, why people sometimes say, "Pardon my French" after swearing.

[Stargazer86]

Why is it that one learns a foreign language that one seeks out the profane words first? :lol:


haha how true!!

I think it's interesting to see in any language what is culturally considered obscene as opposed to other words. It gives you a feel for the language and culture. It can be regional even if you speak the same language.

dead man walking really does have a good question there though.

I remember some of my very first Spanish words included well...the bad ones :P

Same with ASL..those signs are so graphic...some of them are pretty funny

[NikolaiI]

I remember I asked one of my literature teachers in school if she had read Hearts in Atlantis, which I had just read and really liked. And she said she liked the story, but that the somewhat excessive use of swear-words was not necessary and not in good taste, so to speak. I probably swore at times when I was younger, but now I don't at all and it bothers me a little bit when others do. It's not really that it offends me so much, as just that almost invariably when someone uses those words, they are saying something very ignorant, and ignorance is just a little offensive.

[librarius_qui]

indeed, when people (around me) swear, they are expressing rage (and usually beating on keyboards like fools) ... I think that I suffer because of the excessive rage.

The choice of words is the most ... obscene, usually. (There must be some sort of explaination for this ...)

Maybe they're calling "Eros", or some deity like this, once most people live for such god, in a choice of words and thoughts, and behaviours. (It sounds a bit absurd, but it crosses my mind, honestly ...)

[NikolaiI]

indeed, when people (around me) swear, they are expressing rage (and usually beating on keyboards like fools) ... I think that I suffer because of the excessive rage.

The choice of words is the most ... obscene, usually. (There must be some sort of explaination for this ...)

Maybe they're calling "Eros", or some deity like this, once most people live for such god, in a choice of words and thoughts, and behaviours. (It sounds a bit absurd, but it crosses my mind, honestly ...)

Hahaha, beating on keyboards will not help anything! :)

[librarius_qui]

Hahaha, beating on keyboards will not help anything! :)

you tell me! lol!!~

" :crash: " ( :D )