Swearing

MillerCross

It doesn't bother me, per se. I mean, even I swear. And I swear a lot. My problem is when people do it so gratuitously. It's like...I dunno. It loses its charm, so to speak. Not to mention that 9 times out of 10, it's either an internet tuff guy or someone going out of his way to be offensive (Which overlap a lot, of course)

Forzare

Schitzo

Moderation man. Moderation is key.

And no, I'm not gonna pothole to "precision f strike", that's for losers.

Bee

I've met like two people who swore in a way that actually qualified as a precision f strike, one wasn't a troper, and the other was bright enough to realize potholing it makes you look like a douche.

glennmagusharvey

I try to minimize my use of swearwords and it still comes out to too much.

In other news, though, TF2 should create a Jarate variant called the "**** You Bottle".  See it in action here:

Icalasari

^ ...What the hell did I just watch?

LouieW

Yep, I am not a big fan of gratuitous swearing either. I might not see a point in cursing at all, but the argument that swearing is necessary to express certain strong emotions seems pretty weak to me when people swear so often that it is tough to figure out their meaning just from those words.

On a somewhat related note, does anyone else think it is pretty silly when people laugh at swears in the juvenile "he/she said a dirty word" kind of way?

Flyboy

Forzare wins the thread.

AXavierB

IJBM when children swear because they think it makes them edgy/mature, then grow up and realize everyone does it.

chihuahua0

I'm also of the "Moderation is Key" camp, especially when if comes to writing.

For reference, I recently wrote a s-bomb in my current story when the protagonist realizes something really wrong with him. However, that was the very first time I had use that word in any story that I had written to memory. Really, I'm going to wait until I release that precious f-bomb everywhere, because it needs the right situation to have the biggest emotional explosion.

Oh, and I don't curse in Real Life, either. It doesn't make me sound intelligent.

Bee

I tend to be much, much more sparing about swearing in my creative writing than in speaking or general communication.  Used properly, swearing can work really, really well, but unless you're writing an inner-city ghetto or a warzone or something it takes a very delicate touch.  I was fortunate enough to have a classmate in my theater class several years ago who was very good about writing it the right way, and I have her to thank for the way I look at the subject.

DYRE

I used to try to avoid swearing in real life not because I was particularly opposed to it or even just because I thought it was rude, but just because when I was a kid I didn't swear because I was a kid, and after a long enough time of that it just seemed like it'd be weird to suddenly start.  Actually, I still feel weird about swearing in real life conversation, though at least usually I'm comfortable about doing it if I'm quoting something or whatever...  usually...

On the internet I swear though because internet!me shouldn't be the same as meatspace!me.

TheConductor

IanExMachina

I swear but not too frequently, certainly not every other word.

In writing the swearing has to feel natural I think as sometimes it just comes over as forced if not natural.

Also I'll add a video about Stephen Fry's views on swearing:

Waltzy

If I'm your friend, you will quickly see that I have like the worst potty mouth ever, in person.

This was my main worry about working with the kids in the daycare, but in truth it is much much harder to remember not to say the word "hate".

IanExMachina

^

Why don't/can't you say hate?

Waltzy

We're just not allowed to use that word around them for some reason. Something about it being too hurtful blah blah.

Also, "poop" and "butt" are words we have to tell them not to say.

All Nines

-eyebrow raise-

"Hate" I can understand, since it's a rather strong word for kids to be using. But forbidding "poop" and "butt" seems extreme, and certainly unrealistic.

IanExMachina

I'd agree with forbidding 'poop' and 'butt' but mainly as I don't car for those words at all.

captainbrass

^ There are perfectly good alternatives British English alternatives to those words anyway, although I doubt you'd want to encourage nursery age kids over here to run around saying "poo" and "bum". I bet a lot of them do, though. 

I remember reading a kids' version of the Bible clearly written by Americans when I was little. No word of a lie, one of the characters describes another as a "dirty bum". I thought it was the funniest thing ever, although I was a bit shocked at the harsh language they'd let in the Bible.

IanExMachina

^

Yeah I prefer the BritEng ones but I still wouldn't go round encouraging it their use at a nursery school. 

(Although I think they'd get said anyway in an informal manner 'sit your bums down for story time' or the like).

Icalasari

I still don't get the hate for Hate. It's a perfectly reasonable word

captainbrass

^ Well, I'm not Waltzy, but I assume it's because very young kids are likely to use the word "at" each other ("I hate you!") as opposed to about something ("I hate spinach!"), so it's more problematic.

Still, it does come across as a bit hugboxy. Sooner or later, those kids are going to have to cope with people saying they hate them.

Waltzy

To be fair, they only ever really say "poop" or "butt" during snack time to try and gross each other out, so that's the only time we have to blow the whistle, or if they're calling each other those words. If they're like "teacher I pooped" or "my butt got hurt" that's acceptable.

I have mixed feelings on the hate thing myself. My first day volunteering I caught some flak for reading a sentence FROM A KID'S BOOK that read "Just like you, I hated getting boo boos" and was told to change the word in advance next time, which I thought was just a tad ridiculous. Who doesn't hate getting boo boos?

captainbrass

^ Yogi Bear.

Waltzy

Haha, no, it wasn't Yogi Bear. It was like a mother/daughter bonding book called "Just Like You".

IanExMachina

Try loathe instead then

Scythemantis

Wow, I've never heard of "hate" being called too strong a word for kids.

Are we supposed to teach children to simply feel NOT POSITIVE about getting injured, now?

JHM

Doesn't preventing kids from saying things that aren't actually offensive pretty much guarantee that they'll say them more in the long run?

Bee

Only if you do it in a needlessly overbearing way that they resent.