A racist slur can create pain comparable to a slap in the face.
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Research has disproven the saying ‘sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me’.
Olivia Colman in a scene from Wicked Little Letters.
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The film is part soap opera about neighbourly conflict, part cosy teatime detective story. And it’s also a showcase for some delightful swearing – my area of expertise.
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By the time children start school ‘they have the rudiments of adult swearing’, including about 40 taboo words.
Security guards separate guests on an episode of ‘The Jerry Springer Show’ titled ‘I am pregnant by my half-brother.’
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As ‘The Jerry Springer Show’ climbed the ratings ladder, the censorship bleep, which masked the slew of insults lobbed by warring guests, became a star of the show.
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It’s not just you – there’s a reason swearing is so satisfying.
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Swearing can raise our pain threshold.
When politicians swear we might think they’re simply overcome with emotion. But there’s often more going on behind the language they use.
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Politicians dropping the f-bomb tend to be seen as acting out of emotion, but the way we use taboo language is often about what we can accomplish by violating rules.
A ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ flag waves near the U.S. Capitol ahead of a House vote on the infrastructure bill.
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As political parties spar, insults and catchphrases are adopted, appropriated and reappropriated in a dizzying verbal arms race.
We can’t all be saints all the time.
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Drinking, swearing and social transgressions can lead to good things.
Kath and Kim (aka Jane Turner and Gina Riley): the suburban hornbags used swearing in clever ways in their 2002-2007 TV series.
Riley Turner Productions
Long regarded as guardians of morality, women who swore were often policed and punished. But whether protesting or parodying, they have used bad language in creative ways.
Using minced oaths became a habit in NBC’s The Good Place.
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From 16th-century playwrights to ‘The Good Place,’ wordplay has found clever ways to get around uttering profane and blasphemous language.
Lizzo’s hit songs include a lot of profanity.
Photo by Brent N. Clarke/Invision/AP)
A cognitive scientist observes that the words that bother college-age Americans today can cause harm.
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Dealing successfully with rudeness can help people develop resilience and confidence.
‘Ahhhh… That’s better!’
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As calls are made to ban swearing at work, in public and even at home, a linguist comes out fighting for harsh language.
Swearing can come more easily to people in their second language.
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Ethical decisions deliver less emotional impact when presented in a second language, study finds.
Science Oxford
But the British soon got the hang of profanity.
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It’s a multi-lingual effect.
Danny Lim, Sydney, was convicted of ‘offensive behaviour’ for a sign that referred to Tony Abbott and alluded to the c-bomb. The conviction was dismissed in August this year.
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Australia has a reputation for swearing. Yet this sits at odds with laws that criminalise offensive words.
How should you signal that you don’t want to be disturbed?
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Business Briefing: are our standards dropping in the workplace?
The Conversation 22,9 Mo (download)
Our workplaces are becoming less formal. But there were some advantages to the old formality.
Fiddlesticks, that’s hot!
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They can be b***y difficult people but politicians want you to know they give a ts, even if they sometimes talk b*****s.