The Making of a Subject: How Men and Women Curse Differently
Cussing. Swearing. Cursing. Blasphemy. These are just a few of the many words that are used to define profanity. As taboo language, profanity holds a powerful position in our society. Throughout the various languages in this world, there are almost always words that are considered to be taboo. These profane words have a different place in the minds of people than those that fill their daily lexicon. The way that these words are used is often very different that day to day words and they have come to hold a special place in the minds of the users of language. They may sound welcoming to some and offensive others depending upon the way they are used, the person who is using them, and …show more content…
From name-calling on the playground to hate speech, profanity is used as a tool of tongue that is far from benign. What crosses one’s lips does not simply disappear into the ether. Profanity is rather a deeply profound and commanding speech act that brings with it a complex and detailed history of oppression relegated through lenses of class, sexual difference, race, disability and a slew of others. Rather than enunciate and reify identity categories, profanity as an institution of thought rather gestures toward an embedded, or implied, historical context. While those contexts and meanings are often unknown to the user themselves, profanity nevertheless carries with it the historical burden of realistic scars. It is for these reasons that profanity comes packaged with the signs related to sexual difference, race, and class. This paper is an attempt to show the ways in which profanity is used differently among men and women, and the significance of its difference in relation to systems of sexual difference, particularly in the US. Wherever the research may sway from a US-based context, it is simply due to …show more content…
Profanity consists of taboo words that are used to express powerful emotions (Stapleton, 2010). Swearing has been defined as the usage of language in which the expression: (i) refers to something that is taboo or stigmatized in the person who is using the profanity’s culture, (ii) is not intended to interpreted in it literal form, (iii) can be used to express strong attitudes or emotions (Andersson&Trudgill, 2007). It is the combination of these various factors that allow for what is being said to be expressed with an even greater power than one that does not utilize profane language. This means, that there are instances in which profanity can be a useful
Cussing. Swearing. Cursing. Blasphemy. These are just a few of the many words that are used to define profanity. As taboo language, profanity holds a powerful position in our society. Throughout the various languages in this world, there are almost always words that are considered to be taboo. These profane words have a different place in the minds of people than those that fill their daily lexicon. The way that these words are used is often very different that day to day words and they have come to hold a special place in the minds of the users of language. They may sound welcoming to some and offensive others depending upon the way they are used, the person who is using them, and …show more content…
From name-calling on the playground to hate speech, profanity is used as a tool of tongue that is far from benign. What crosses one’s lips does not simply disappear into the ether. Profanity is rather a deeply profound and commanding speech act that brings with it a complex and detailed history of oppression relegated through lenses of class, sexual difference, race, disability and a slew of others. Rather than enunciate and reify identity categories, profanity as an institution of thought rather gestures toward an embedded, or implied, historical context. While those contexts and meanings are often unknown to the user themselves, profanity nevertheless carries with it the historical burden of realistic scars. It is for these reasons that profanity comes packaged with the signs related to sexual difference, race, and class. This paper is an attempt to show the ways in which profanity is used differently among men and women, and the significance of its difference in relation to systems of sexual difference, particularly in the US. Wherever the research may sway from a US-based context, it is simply due to …show more content…
Profanity consists of taboo words that are used to express powerful emotions (Stapleton, 2010). Swearing has been defined as the usage of language in which the expression: (i) refers to something that is taboo or stigmatized in the person who is using the profanity’s culture, (ii) is not intended to interpreted in it literal form, (iii) can be used to express strong attitudes or emotions (Andersson&Trudgill, 2007). It is the combination of these various factors that allow for what is being said to be expressed with an even greater power than one that does not utilize profane language. This means, that there are instances in which profanity can be a useful