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View Full Version : Why are curse words so bad?


Warped Mindless
2008-05-11, 01:28
I just don't get it? Why are words like "fuck" considered so bad? Their just words! I believe that words arnt bad but the way you use them can be. For example, I see noting wrong with saying "shit" but calling someone a "shit head" can be bad. Why is it that people think curse words are bad?

Bleeding_Fetus
2008-05-11, 01:35
Because then we wouldn't have curse words, they'd just be words.

60051
2008-05-11, 01:36
Cause they reflect taboos, ideas and things looked down upon by society.

/thread?

Warped Mindless
2008-05-11, 01:52
Society needs to pull its head out of its ass sometimes.

BillGatesJR
2008-05-11, 02:19
Why are they even called "curse words" in the first place? The words may refer to obscenities and other vices, but you aren't actually inflicting a curse on somebody or something by using the words.

the phantom stranger
2008-05-11, 12:37
From the Marxist viewpoint swearing is the linguistic manifestation of the legacy of slavery, humiliation, and disrespect for human dignity.

Bubba Ho Tep 420
2008-05-11, 15:54
From the Marxist viewpoint swearing is the linguistic manifestation of the legacy of slavery, humiliation, and disrespect for human dignity.

marx is a faggot

beergoggles
2008-05-11, 18:07
I use the phrase "fucking cunt" sometimes. It seems to offend people the most.

Masero
2008-05-11, 18:19
It's another stigma that has been placed on society to try to bridle our languages and keep us "pure".

Even religiously, it doesn't speak much about actual cursing. But then again, when religions were being formed, I'm quite sure they didn't give a fuck what you said, as long as you didn't defame or demoralise amother person. But the minds have been twisted, again and again, and people re-word and re-think and try to justify why they find it wrong.

If I called you a shithead, it would be wrong. If I stubbed my toe and yelled SHIT! that's being frustrated and in pain.

I don't think there should be a stigma on cussing, but rather a stigma on using them to attack other people.

MR.Kitty55
2008-05-11, 19:32
They're not. The things the represent are and when people want to express themselves in extreme situations they like to use curse words...

Of course there is so much nonsense behind them like what makes shit worse than crap which is worse than poop? Nothing, just people telling you they are...And if you think about it if I say "I like the F-word" everyone thinks of the word "fuck" so its really the same thing as saying it...But like I said it doesn't really make sense.

23
2008-05-11, 19:54
marx is a faggot

No, Lenin/Stalin/Brezhnev/Zedong are faggots.

"The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles."

You can't tell me that's faggotry. That is absolutely respectable.

dagnabitt
2008-05-11, 20:48
Cunning linguists.

Warped Mindless
2008-05-11, 21:51
I Believe this should be moved back to hummanties because its a debate on why or why not these "curse words" are bad.

anon99989
2008-05-11, 23:20
Tradition. Our parents told us they were bad, and their parents told them they bad, and so on

thedotmaster
2008-05-13, 06:43
Cause they reflect taboos, ideas and things looked down upon by society.

/thread?

This.

shuu
2008-05-13, 09:27
No, Lenin/Stalin/Brezhnev/Zedong are faggots.

"The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles."

You can't tell me that's faggotry. That is absolutely respectable.

you're a fag

plumplibnus
2008-05-15, 04:21
http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h7/plumplibnus/DSC00038.jpg

Crash2108
2008-05-15, 04:25
Why are they even called "curse words" in the first place? The words may refer to obscenities and other vices, but you aren't actually inflicting a curse on somebody or something by using the words.

Damn you.

--Cr@sh

Ljudska
2008-05-15, 04:41
why are dollar bills worth more than what they're printed on?

irresponsible activist
2008-05-15, 22:02
To show you that you don't truly have freedom of speech.

asdfghasdfgh
2008-05-15, 22:25
You can swear at university professors. They swear at you and get on with the lecture. Its amazing.

Fuck high school.

irresponsible activist
2008-05-15, 22:27
You can swear at university professors. They swear at you and get on with the lecture. Its amazing.

Fuck high school.

Why fuck high school when you can fuck school high?

wolfy_9005
2008-05-19, 15:37
cause they fucking curse people u dumb shit.

happy?

didnt mean to make it so personal though......hehe

BillGatesJR
2008-05-19, 16:58
cause they fucking curse people u dumb shit.

happy?

didnt mean to make it so personal though......hehe

But there is no such thing as curses. If you honestly believe that then you have no grounds to call anybody a dumb shit.

didnt mean to make it so personal though......hehe

Walking Man
2008-05-25, 03:22
Lies we tell our kids
http://www.paulgraham.com/lies.html
I love this guy's essays

And I quote : "Adults have a certain model of how kids are supposed to behave, and it's different from what they expect of other adults.
One of the most obvious differences is the words kids are allowed to use. Most parents use words when talking to other adults that they wouldn't want their kids using. They try to hide even the existence of these words for as long as they can. And this is another of those conspiracies everyone participates in: everyone knows you're not supposed to swear in front of kids.

I've never heard more different explanations for anything parents tell kids than why they shouldn't swear. Every parent I know forbids their children to swear, and yet no two of them have the same justification. It's clear most start with not wanting kids to swear, then make up the reason afterward.

So my theory about what's going on is that the function of swearwords is to mark the speaker as an adult. There's no difference in the meaning of "shit" and "poopoo." So why should one be ok for kids to say and one forbidden? The only explanation is: by definition."

(Also good)
What we can't say
http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html

steve-o13
2008-05-26, 00:19
Words arn't bad. It is the context in which you use them.

irresponsible activist
2008-05-28, 01:03
Words arn't bad. It is the context in which you use them.

Shut up, steve-o.

Fza
2008-05-28, 07:20
Shut up, steve-o.

Don't post here if you have nothing to contribute.

Lies we tell our kids
http://www.paulgraham.com/lies.html
I love this guy's essays

And I quote : "Adults have a certain model of how kids are supposed to behave, and it's different from what they expect of other adults.
One of the most obvious differences is the words kids are allowed to use. Most parents use words when talking to other adults that they wouldn't want their kids using. They try to hide even the existence of these words for as long as they can. And this is another of those conspiracies everyone participates in: everyone knows you're not supposed to swear in front of kids.

I've never heard more different explanations for anything parents tell kids than why they shouldn't swear. Every parent I know forbids their children to swear, and yet no two of them have the same justification. It's clear most start with not wanting kids to swear, then make up the reason afterward.

So my theory about what's going on is that the function of swearwords is to mark the speaker as an adult. There's no difference in the meaning of "shit" and "poopoo." So why should one be ok for kids to say and one forbidden? The only explanation is: by definition."

(Also good)
What we can't say
http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html

Excellent post.

But the main reason I think is good manners, a lot of people see children as their own accomplishments. Having well mannered children is something to be proud off in their opinion. Something parents can gloat about, like a bigger car than your neighbour.

irresponsible activist
2008-05-28, 21:11
Don't post here if you have nothing to contribute.


Yea, I failed to see that this wasn't in HB or SG, I apologize.

If there were no 'curse' words, then there would be no 'good' words.

Ed Lister
2008-06-04, 05:41
Because they make baby Jesus cry.

BillGatesJR
2008-06-05, 21:01
Because they make baby Jesus cry.

Well I'd imagine religion isn't always the reason the words are supposedly bad. I mean, even atheist families would not want their little children to pick up that kind of language. That is why the issue is so confusing to me.

Masero
2008-06-06, 00:24
Well I'd imagine religion isn't always the reason the words are supposedly bad. I mean, even atheist families would not want their little children to pick up that kind of language. That is why the issue is so confusing to me.

Because somewhere along the line, we let some jackass tell us what's right and wrong and then blindly followed him.

Even in religion, there are low periods where people have had to go "I need to make a decision".

But with cussing, we just decided "Oh, this person said it, it must be true". And I'm gonna go out on a limb and say the europeans were the ones who let that happen. Good going, guys.

Fza
2008-06-06, 07:01
But with cussing, we just decided "Oh, this person said it, it must be true". And I'm gonna go out on a limb and say the europeans were the ones who let that happen. Good going, guys.

Because cursing in non-western societies is perfectly acceptable?

Don't say stupid shit.

Masero
2008-06-06, 08:43
Because cursing in non-western societies is perfectly acceptable?

Don't say stupid shit.

Sorry, I should've used the rolling eyes smiley to denote my sarcasm.

...fucking asshole. :mad:

Fza
2008-06-06, 08:53
Sorry, I should've used the rolling eyes smiley to denote my sarcasm.

...fucking asshole. :mad:

Didn't you get the memo, curse words are bad!

*cries*

ff420
2008-06-06, 18:57
It's the same as good manners. It is not proper etiquette to eat with your elbows on the table at a nice restaurant, doing so does not hurt any one, it's just not socially correct.

hazode
2008-06-06, 18:59
It's the same as good manners. It is not proper etiquette to eat with your elbows on the table at a nice restaurant, doing so does not hurt any one, it's just not socially correct.

I really wanna say GTFO Acolyte. But I'm not going to, becuase you seem a good acolyte

BillGatesJR
2008-06-06, 19:49
I really wanna say GTFO Acolyte. But I'm not going to, becuase you seem a good acolyte

Oh come on hazode, we were all acolytes at one time and you know it.

hazode
2008-06-06, 21:15
Oh come on hazode, we were all acolytes at one time and you know it.

I said that once and was flamed :(. But to be honest, quite a lot of acolytes always speak in that stupid MSN or text speak. It annoys the fuck out of me.

Masero
2008-06-07, 04:49
Didn't you get the memo, curse words are bad!

*cries*

It's okay, Sugar. I'll still love you.

Agent 008
2008-06-07, 10:50
"Curse words" come from religion.

Example: In England, saying "God blind me!" or "Blind my eyes!" was considered a curse and the Church wasn't happy with it. To get around that, "Blimey!" was invented.

Ed Lister
2008-06-07, 11:51
I said that once and was flamed :(. But to be honest, quite a lot of acolytes always speak in that stupid MSN or text speak. It annoys the fuck out of me.

Would you like a ladder to help you dismount from your extremely tall horse?

hazode
2008-06-07, 16:59
Would you like a ladder to help you dismount from your extremely tall horse?

Yes please.

eXo5
2008-06-11, 15:18
I just don't get it? Why are words like "fuck" considered so bad? Their just words! I believe that words arnt bad but the way you use them can be. For example, I see noting wrong with saying "shit" but calling someone a "shit head" can be bad. Why is it that people think curse words are bad?

i can't even really agree with this... there's some words that just are pleasant to the societal ear anymore, common sense tells us this, .

yeah they're just words but they have significant meaning and there's the view that to 'respect' the word mother fucking individuals feel the need to not use them so often so that their severity can be like manifested in appropriate situations still. :D

btw this is a stupid question...

Masero
2008-06-11, 19:46
I just don't get it? Why are words like "fuck" considered so bad? Their just words! I believe that words arnt bad but the way you use them can be. For example, I see noting wrong with saying "shit" but calling someone a "shit head" can be bad. Why is it that people think curse words are bad?

Okay fine... now that the cat is out of the bag...

The answer to your question...

BECAUSE YOU TOUCH YOURSELF AT NIGHT.

/thread

ViperX202
2008-06-12, 02:55
I just don't get it? Why are words like "fuck" considered so bad? Their just words! I believe that words arnt bad but the way you use them can be. For example, I see noting wrong with saying "shit" but calling someone a "shit head" can be bad. Why is it that people think curse words are bad?

because society makes them bad...

Misfit
2008-06-12, 03:26
It's a sign of disrespect to whomever you are using the curse word to/in front of. Kind of like flipping someone off.

Ed Lister
2008-06-12, 11:19
It's a sign of disrespect to whomever you are using the curse word to/in front of. Kind of like flipping someone off.

Drink bleach. Darwin's waiting kiddo.

BillGatesJR
2008-06-12, 18:35
It's a sign of disrespect to whomever you are using the curse word to/in front of. Kind of like flipping someone off.

I'd have to disagree if you are generalizing about using any curse words at all. Yes, a person can be offended at my foul language if I were to drop something and break it for instance, however I was not showing a sign of disrespect to that person. Even if the person was truly offended, anyone with rational thought is going to know that it was not the intent of the foul language and just dismiss it as normal behavior, after all that person has more than likely used such words at some point in the past. It isn't really a way to justify swearing, but hopefully you can see the point I'm trying to make.

However, if I said "Fuck you" then that would be a different story.

vazilizaitsev89
2008-06-15, 01:06
marx is a faggot

this.

TetrisHydraCanOfBeanOil
2008-07-03, 21:15
marx is a faggot

Agreed.

StoopidN00b
2008-07-12, 09:44
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7e9dDGui8YQ


This

grusomhat
2008-07-12, 09:45
Why fuck high school when you can fuck school high?

Why to go high school, when you can go to school high.

SirGillroyJenkinstheThird
2008-07-12, 10:00
To show you that you don't truly have freedom of speech.

right. because you'll be arrested if you say "fuck"

also, why go to school when you can get high

Stainless
2008-07-19, 09:44
To all those who say they reflect ideas and taboos society looks down upon, why aren't their synonymous words also "swear words"?

Practically everyone I know hates the word "cunt", yet are totally fine with the term "vagina". But they mean the same thing. So logically, either vagina is as bad as cunt, or cunt is as fine as vagina.

CharChar
2008-07-20, 09:02
society looks down upon me shitting, fucking, and my ass?......doesn't all of society fuck, shit and have a ass also?

grusomhat
2008-07-21, 06:15
society looks down upon me shitting, fucking, and my ass?......doesn't all of society fuck, shit and have a ass also?

Please learn to spell. "Arse"