My first encounter with a taboo word happened when I was four. I can remember it clearly. I was mad at my mom for some reason or another and I wanted to come up with an insult. I remember saying something like “You’re nothing but a mean horny person.” Of course, I had no idea what that word meant. I thought I had simply just added a “y” onto horn, and that it meant the same thing with or without the y. In my four-year-old mind, calling someone a horn was a good insult. And, it must have been a good insult, because my mom was completely outraged and threatened if I ever said that word again, I would have my mouth washed out with soap. Good insult? Mission accomplished, if it could illicit that sort of backlash.
Fast forward 21 years later, I have long since learned what the word horny means, and I understand why my mom looked so horrified when that word came out of her four-year-old’s mouth. But, since that incident, my mom and I have had multiple squabbles about a wide range of taboo words. Of course, none seem to spark an argument more so than when she hears me say one of the four most popular curse words in America today: Shit, Fuck, Damn and Bitch.
What is it about these words that bring out strong reactions in people? Are they “bad” words?
Well… I think that really depends on the situation.
A well known study, lead by Richard Stephens of Keele University in England in 2009, studied the effects swearing had on ones pain tolerance. In his first study he found that those who swore while dipping their hands into icy water were able to withstand the pain longer than those who didn’t. However, a follow up study in 2011 showed that those who swore excessively (more than 60 times a day) had the same pain tolerance as those who didn’t swear at all. It was those who swore only during the times of pain that were able to withstand it longer. For those who swore excessively, there was no difference between when they swore or didn’t swear because their brain had become immune to hearing curse words.
In 2011 a second study was done at the University of Arizona, which confirmed Stephens’ report that swearing eases pain. However, this study went one step further and looked at the social impact swearing would cause. They had women who were suffering from illnesses such as Breast Cancer or Rheumatoid Arthritis wear microphones and see how people reacted when they cursed. The findings were that those who swore received less help and support than those who didn’t swear.
This study was specific to women, and even more specific to women with some sort of illness. With any social experiment, it could be completely different results for a man. But, for this blog’s purpose, we’ll just go with the information we have and conclude, although swearing may help ease the pain, you may want to be careful who you choose to swear around and what swear words you choose to say. Plus, always remember, there is no practical added benefit to swearing excessively.
I would say I fall into line with these studies quite perfectly.
If I have a bad day at work, stringing together some choice swear words while talking about my day to my wife (who I swear would fit right in with a group of sailors), usually makes me feel exponentially better. However, I am not someone who casually drops an f-bomb because I can. I also know never to curse in front of my mom, and I try to be polite in public because you never know who might be offended.
But curse words interest me. The feeling of the word in your mouth as you say it. The power they have to lift your spirits when your day is lackluster. The general taboo nature of a one syllable word, that really packs a punch.
I think this is what inspired me to make a novelty set of curse word postcards. A set that will soon be available from Shiny Happy People Publishing. This set of four postcards come in bright, happy colors meant to help lift your spirits. And they wouldn’t be complete without a definition of the word on the back side - because how else will you know which choice word to use the next time you stub your toe?
Afterall - you don’t want to be excessive.
Cuss Word Postcards, available soon through Shiny Happy People Publishing.
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