tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post159816874829736668..comments2024-03-28T18:32:05.933-04:00Comments on bensozia: Swearing and Language ScienceJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01037215533094998996noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post-57013758417632994942015-01-25T18:31:53.522-05:002015-01-25T18:31:53.522-05:00@pootrsox
I do much the same thing, but with outd...@pootrsox<br /><br />I do much the same thing, but with outdated and obsolete swears, with a particular emphasis on layering.<br /><br /><i>"Consarn it!"</i> is great, because it's a corruption of "concern", which is itself a euphemism for "confound", and <i>none</i> of those are at all seen as "harsh" terms in modern parlance, despite once being so.<br /><br />I also enjoy making my own corruptions. "Gadzooks!" is normally used on its own, but I like to say <i>"Gad-zook it!"</i>. And this too is a corruption of an oath - originally "God's Hooks!", a reference to the Biblical crucifixion.<br /><br />I'm also a fan of using invented swears from various sources. Invoking any of the four names of the four-faced Martian semi-deity <i>"Grob / Gob / Glob / Grod"</i> from the ever amusing <i>Adventure Time</i> cartoon series is fun because it's so close to "god" that people tend to do double takes. Sci-fi classics like <i>"Frell"</i> and <i>"Frag"</i> are proud staples of my vulgarity diet. And I'm always looking for excuses to use the classic <i>"Shazbot!"</i> from Mork and Mindy.<br /><br />And I occasionally let fly with just the funny homophonic stand-ins, like <i>"Oh, fuzz!"</i>, but not nearly as frequently.<br /><br />Oh, and I dabble in swearing in other languages when I think I can get away with it. I avoid Spanish because I live in a region with too many speakers, but I can occasionally let slip with <i>"Scheiße"</i> and <i>"Merde"</i>, but only sparingly as German and French are not as rare here as they might be, and typically there aren't obvious cultural markers to tip you off as to who speaks them. And while most of the terms I know aren't swear, I picked up a bunch of Malay english slang that I absolutely adore - it's some of the most colorful, fun to say language I've ever heard.G. Verlorennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post-15164951987273351712015-01-25T14:52:39.194-05:002015-01-25T14:52:39.194-05:00Because I'm prone to "swear like a sailor...Because I'm prone to "swear like a sailor" and because I taught public high school where such language would no doubt have gotten me fired, I early-on trained myself to throttle swearing, and substitute acceptable language that contains the same fricatives and stops--<br /><br />e.g.<br /><br />Hot Fudge SUNDAE!<br />Mother of Pearl!<br />Simon Bolivar!<br /><br />And of course the usual "frikking" "frigging" and similar.<br /><br />Used to make the kids laugh out loud :) Which also served to defuse certain tense situations.<br /><br />And then, having taught Romeo and Juliet for so many years, I often was able to simple swear in Shakespeare-- "You whining, puling mammet!" etc.pootrsoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05975929246429466067noreply@blogger.com