As Mormons, we are commanded not to swear, or take the name of God in vain. But me, I don't swear – simply because it's such an ugly thing to do, not just to obey the words of the Lord. My reasons go far beyond that of just "obeying the commandments".
This subject comes from several discussions I have had with my friends who have let their tongues slip a few times, and I finally said something about it. It's one of the few things I believe strongly enough in that changes people, apparently. I'm surprised at how my words have impacted certain people. So I will post these words here so that they can be spoken for a long, long time.
People tell me I can read others well. So here is what I read from a person who swears in their everyday vocabulary: lack of self-control, instability, stupidity, and hostility. People that simply throw in a swear to attempt at emphasis do not make me happy in the slightest. I'll try and illustrate my point with a couple of examples.
My dad is the infamous hot-head of the family, mostly on the road. I have heard him swear 3 times out of rage in my lifetime. Pure, uncontrolled anger. And I bet he regrets having his kids around to hear it. Whenever it happens, no one is happy. No one is uplifted. The only emotion shared is frustration and hatred.
That day that Jon Clark gripped Alexis' arm, he started spouting some obscenities. He had also swore at her in the past as well. He was trying to get his point across, or something stupid like that, by thinking the words would show us is pain. All it showed me was how desperate he was for us to listen, even though we had already made up our minds.
On the flip side, however, some curse words can be very well placed. These are extremely rare situations, though. They mostly occur in artistic works, such as movies, music, books, plays, or video games. Some of the most famous movie lines have curse words in them.
Shakespeare, The Beatles, Andrew Hussie, Edgar Allen Poe, and Solid Snake had their moments as well.
So to put the final nail in this, I think swear words are terribly used in society today since it's just tossed out like an everyday thing. It does not lift anyone's mood, and more often than not creates tension. However, it can be used artistically and used to create a strong scenario in artistic (or very rarely, real life) scenarios.
Hussie has a lot more than just moments, I'm sure. His writings are definitely not for those sensitive to language. Once you get past it all though, the guy really knows how to cuss. One of the best ways to cuss is to use a vulgar term RIGHT NEXT TO an eloquent one. Like for example, "Today was effing frabjous. Calloo callay, mofos. That effing Jabberwocky is gonna be mortified as all crap when he sees my vorpal dong," or something like that. It's meant to be funny and it almost makes me wish I was comfortable with swearing so I could make the people laugh by saying such things.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I have a hard time taking people seriously when they use swears. You're right, Matt, it sounds like they just aren't in control anymore. I'm not exactly sure what switches in their heads that makes them forget that people are more likely to listen to someone who sounds reasonable. Where is the nobility in flipping your lid, exactly? How do people so easily forget that they look like morons, especially when they do this casually? Who has been going around telling kids, "Swearing is mothereffing cool y'all crapheads," and why are they being listened to? Swearing makes me feel nasty inside. It causes an unwelcome adrenaline rush for no athletic purpose.
Of course, Matt knows that I have a rule where if I'm reading something and there's a swear I just say it like it's no thing (with some exceptions). But only to be entertaining to others and to playfully push my luck around adults.
Probably the most epic read of A River Runs Through It ever.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe he made me skip that one page just because it had naked people. And then he ended up reading most of it anyway.
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