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I never quite understood the obsession with keeping some language away from children that everyone uses themselves. The words are there because they are needed.
by OroPla 24d ago
I never quite understood the obsession with keeping some language away from children that everyone uses themselves. The words are there because they are needed. Walking the euphemism treadmill is a Sisyphus effort.
- BLKNSLVR 24d agoLet them build a decent vocabulary before exposing them to the words that replace all sorts of other words ;) I want them to be clever with how they use language. Or at least have the knowledge to be clever, if they apply themselves.
- OroPla 24d agoI heard of a study [1] claiming that people that swear more have a larger vocabulary in general, so your efforts might be counter-intuitive to your goal. Don't see how deprivation of some words leads to the knowledge of other words, either. Maybe if you interject and correct swear word usage by providing other words that would be a better fit. > Taboo word fluency is correlated with general fluency. > Taboo words comprise pejoratives and slurs. > Taboo fluency is correlated with neuroticism and openness. [1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S038800011400151X https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S03880...
- mitxela 24d agoThat's probably true for people who know the words but is it true for people who don't? I expect most people use most common words at about the same level of fluency. I know the word "computer". I expect people's "computer" fluency is correlated with their general fluency. Would teaching Victorian peasants "computer" increase their general fluency?