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If one word substitutes for many, the net result of banning that word would be to raise the vocabulary. Not saying anything about the validity of the argument,
by JamesBlair 15y ago
If one word substitutes for many, the net result of banning that word would be to raise the vocabulary.
Not saying anything about the validity of the argument, just that objection to it.
- sixbrx 15y agoYeah I think this gets at a core problem of some curse words - the problem with words like "fuck" is that in the mind of the speaker, when agitated or lazy or both, the word often seems like a useful substitute almost anyplace in a sentence, and the word-search algorithm ends happily at that node very easily out of habit. To the listener, it's just noise and usually makes the speaker seem like an idiot.
- eropple 15y agoThis is certainly true. Fuck is not a bad word, and is a word I use with abandon. But it can't be the go-to largely because of its versatility. Overuse makes it less flavorful. (I have had the privilege of working with some artists whose medium was profanity, and have been accused of it on occasion.)