The Seven Dirty Words - not for the easily offended

Great Debates
1

Not sure where I should put this, so mods please move it if it belongs elsewhere. This is also very tangentially related to the “retarded” thread here in GD as well.

I came across a couple of things recently that got me thinking. I’ll explain them first, then my thinking, and then start the “debate”.

First was a letter to the editor at the Hartford Courant. Writer was complaining that the Courant was now printing the full word “shit” in some of its articles (which I found as a surprise). I had noticed that magazines like TIME and some other mainstream had started printing that word as well over past couple of years, but didn’t think it extended to newspapers (esp. in a smaller city in mild old Connecticut).

Second was two days later, driving home listening to the local rock n roll station, and Cypress Hill’s “Insane in the Membrane” came on. They naturally bleeped (or more appropriately ‘blanked’) the words “shit” and “fuck”, but I found it interesting that they also deleted the word “nigger”.

Now I could go in several directions here, but my train of thought went like this: A few decades ago George Carlin came out w/ his “Seven Dirty Words” routine, which focused on the words that the FCC wouldn’t allow on the air.

Now I’m not concerned here with the FCC, but I wondered what are now considered to be the “worst” words in the English language…and more to the point, what are YOUR seven dirty words (if you even have that many), in order of vulgarity, and why? Words that you don’t feel comfortable saying, or hearing in public, or want to see in your mainstream magazine or newspaper. And we’re talking public use here, not, for instance, what you and your S.O. might say to each other during sex.

The original words were “Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, Cocksucker, Motherfucker and Tits.” I think that some of these have now become more commonplace (a la the “shit” references above).

My list (of five):
[List=1]
[li]Motherfucker - too strong, although I may use it occassionally in anger.[/li][li]Cunt - I find this term offensive (I’m a guy btw)[/li][li]Nigger - makes me very uncomfortable to hear this word (I’m white, btw) - whenever I hear a white person use it, I immediately think “racist”.[/li][li]Fuck - so common now, but still a shock to see in print or hear out loud in a public place.[/li][li]Cocksucker - don’t hear this one much so maybe on list just out of default.[/li][/List=1]

As you can tell, my list isn’t very long…I’m not easily offended.

I’m not interested in just seeing a list of bad words for the sake of it. I’m really curious as to what words people think are taboo…what makes these particular words so awful to you. And is there some common list that we all agree on? And for you professional and amateur linguists out there, how do these lists change over time?

Not even sure there’s a debate here…

2

I’ve seen at least 2 episodes of PBS’s Frontline recently where they showed teen-aged kids saying “Fuck” several times, without bleeping it.

Personally, I think the whole notion of “taboo words” is, well, fucked-up. A lot of the pressure comes from parents groups who somehow think that if their kids don’t hear the Naughty Words when they’re little that they’ll grow up to be perfect little angels or something. (These are the same little kids who torture small animals, beat each other up, make fun of anyone who’s even slightly different, and make exaggerated “ew!” noises whenever somebody farts. Go figure.)

3

This sounds kinda like an IMHO post, but anyway:

I think it’s silly that “cunt” should be so offensive, but “cock” and “dick”, while vulgar, are not nearly so.

What is this? It seems to me that most, if not all, cultures treat female genitalia with an unnecessary amount of trepidation. It’s either embarassment about or fear of female sexuality, or the crazy notion that the family honor lies between the legs of its female members.

I vote that cunt be removed from the list.

4

I don’t know… I find that cunt is not just a name for the female genitalia, but a derogatory name. I think that’s why people find it offensive, not because of what it actually refers to.

5

Before I head out for a few hours…a couple of further thoughts:

I don’t think “cunt” as it refers to female genitalia is necessarily offensive; it’s how it’s used to describe a woman, e.g., “she’s a cunt”. Sort of reduces the woman to nothing more than her sexual genitalia. Maybe. Although it’s funny that saying “he’s a dick” isn’t nearly as offensive…barely registers on the “Offenso-meter”.

Tracer: You know, I use all these words w/ one exception often enough. And really, I don’t necessarily find them way offensive, I suppose.

What really got me thinking, to be honest, was how the word “nigger” got up there on my list. And why it was censored out of the song on the radio. How did that word, at least to me (and the radio station producers) become in essence one of the Seven Dirty Words?

6

Here’s one “official” list:

The Register: Rudest words in Britain (from the Broadcasting Standards Commission)

7

That’s exactly my point. References to female genitalia have a worse connotation. Calling a male or female a dick or prick is equally insulting, like calling them an asshole.

And a second point. Calling a guy a pussy is quite an insult, just as calling him a fag is an insult. These words imply some “feminization” of the male and therefore rate higher (according to my perceptions) on the “offense-o-meter.”

8

It’s interesting that swears are only so because society gives them meaning. They are, after all, just letters. Next year, calling a surfer dude a “Biff” might be offensive. Who knows?

IIRC, I learned that in the middle ages, referring to someone with by an animal description was very offensive. “You have the manners of a worthog,” e.g., would have been a harsh insult. Today we would laugh. Although referring to a freeloader as “just another snout in the public trough” does have an insulting elegance to it.

What I want, tho is a properly offensive term to call a “punk,” becuase “punk” just doesn’t have impact. Hoods, juveniles, adolescents, they’re all too wimpy. Try “Hey jerks! get off my car!” and see how much the thugs respect you.

9

Nekochan wrote:

Probably 'cause a cock sticks out for all the world to see, while a cunt requires more effort to be displayed.

Twat? I cunt hear you.

10

I think the word “punk” has just the right sort of ring to it. In my experience it almost always is the key word just before fists start to fly. But tensions have to be wound up just so before it’s use reaches maximum effect.

11

The whole idea of “bad words” I think is convuluted and stupid… after all, it’s the meaning behind the words which counts.
Some ideas (which the words represent) do not belong in public discourse, however.

My list, in order is as follows:

  1. cunt!
  2. motherfucker!
  3. fuck!

There are situations when these words perfectly relate the anger, frustration, fear, anguish that is being felt by the person who utters them: in situations like that, I believe there are no “bad” words.

The only times bad words really bother me is when they are used for no reason, or as filler for more-appropriate words, because the speaker has the vocabulary of a PUSSY. Ha-ha.

I’ve thought about this too: pussy and cunt both mean the same thing, but one (cunt) is far more derogatory than the other (pussy), IMHO. Why is this? It must be because the meaning behind cunt somehow represents more than solely the female genitals, or even ‘pussy’ to a lesser degree.

Shylock, this is a tough one… not for the faint of heart.
Hope I helped.

12

wrath, sometimes the satisfaction that we get out of letting fly with the vituperative nouns is strongly related to what we think it means.

If you hold in your mind the following definition (that I found on I hope I did this right), you may find “punk” to be a perfectly appropriate word to express disdain for those “yutes” who lean against your car.

  1. young homosexual partner: a young homosexual partner of an older man (archaic slang) (sometimes considered offensive)

For a bit more “impact”, you might try, “Hey, you goat-felching, squick-headed catamites! Get away from my car!”

Make sure your Adidas are laced up and tied properly, in case any of them know what you just called them. :smiley:

13

I prefer “dickweed.”

14

“Knobstick” is better IMHO

15

Do they bleep “fuck” and “cunt” from Sex in the City when it airs in the US?

Almost nothing is bleeped here if it’s broadcast outside of designated family viewing time, and it’s increasingly common to see “fuck” printed in even mainstream newspapers. With radio, it depends largely on the individual station.

I personally find the increasing use of derogatory terms in general (like skank, slut, etc), in the media more offensive than I do swearing.

16

reprise wrote:

No – but that’s because it’s shown on HBO, which is only available on cable and satellite TV, and then only for a monthly premium fee. Premium networks are not subject to the programming-content restrictions placed on broadcast TV stations by the FCC.

17

The New York Times just asked Carlin himself about the seven words in this past Sunday’s magazine section (available on-line here if you’re registered).

Setting aside Carlin’s view of rights and privileges, I think he has a valid point regarding usage becoming more common because it benefits someone for the usage to be common. For example, if a televised series can be seen as more “gritty,” “real,” or (worse) “hip” by incorporating these words into the dialogue, producers will often push the envelope as far as censors and sponsors will allow. This can tend toward desensitization and acceptance into more mainstream usage even outside entertainment media.

But then, the language has always evolved to accept formerly unthinkable epithets into common usage. Maybe it just happens much more quickly these days, with the saturation of uncensored material readily available. What might prove to be more interesting is the lengths to which one will need to go in order to properly offend someone in an era when the old curses become passé. :slight_smile:

18

Carlin was on the show called “the view” (shudders) and they asked which one was the worst of them all. Carlin said “c–k sucker.” (im too much of a wimp to write in that word)

19

There aren’t a lot of words I won’t say to friends or family - I’ve been known to call my mother an evil cunt or a damned bitch when she makes a mean move in Bridge. (Well, but you should see the way she plays!)

Of course, there are an awful lot of words I won’t say in public, and more still that I won’t say in a professional setting. But that’s out of consideration for other people’s sensibilities - or for their opinions of me, if it’s a work setting - not because I think the words are just inherently bad. Most of the ‘dirty’ words I won’t use are ones that are offensive to a group as opposed to a single individual. (With the exception of ‘cocksucker’ - I’ve been known to call my closest gay male friends that as an affectionate - and accurate, of course - nickname.)

Still, even given my penchant for avoiding the group-epithets, I found the list that Matt linked to interesting. How did Jew become an offensive word? I’m a Jew, and that’s how I describe myself. All there is to it. Or is it supposed to be an insult when applied to a non-Jew? If that’s the case, than I am insulted - but by the list, not by the term.

(This just in: my gentile loved one has informed me that she does in fact feel uncomfortable using the word Jew in a number of contexts. (Ex: ‘She looks Jewish.’) This makes no sense to me. Is it some weird goy thing?)

20

mattk - interesting that “prick” is on the list (and all the way up there at number 7!) whereas “cock” and “dick” aren’t. To my mind these three have always been much of a muchness.

I also like the fact that God is as 28 and Jesus Christ at 25 (up 1 from 26!) I’m not sure whether the appropriate comment should be the fact that Jesus is more offensive than God or surprise that they are there at all (and if you’re going to get religious - what no “damn”?).

This almost defines the word “arbitrary”.

pan