Why swearing is good for you • Hacker News Board

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#81

Post by twelvedogs » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 1:35 PM UTC

coldtea wrote: post #56

siliconc0w wrote: post #16

Valorizing language is silly. I remember in like 5th grade they moved the goal posts on us and made 'sucks' a 'bad word'. I was so thoroughly confused. How did a previously okay word become bad? They're tools in a box. They aren't inherently good or bad - the intent and meaning created by them are what matters. I similarly think it should be impossible for a word to offend someone. I think it's possible for meaning t…

> I similarly think it should be impossible for a word to offend someone. I think it's possible for meaning to offend and really only if you respect the person enough to provide some weight to that meaning. Sure, it's usually not the word, but the meaning ("intent"). But seriously, if some stranger comes and tells you "fuck off idiot", e.g. in the supermarket isle, then you wont be offended, because you don't "respec…

that's actually pretty interesting, i wouldn't be offended by a friend saying it but a stranger saying would piss me off, but even then it's not so much the words as the intent, i'd be just as offended if they'd said "thanks" in a sarcastic way to some imagined slight.

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#82

Post by bobognib » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 1:38 PM UTC

astrodust wrote: post #44

justratsinacoat wrote: post #7

>While sometimes viewed as lazy or boorish, swearing actually requires substantial verbal facility and skill. When used correctly, in other words, profanity is expressively complicated I'm glad they pointed this out -- as I always say, swearing is the inevitable linguistic crutch of the inarticulate motherfucker. However, this article missed out on one of the more important beneficial aspects of swearing, namely pain…

Quentin Tarantino's characters do have quite the flair for using profanity. Those parts given to Samuel L. Jackson in particular always have such artful phrasing that at times it's arguably poetic. It's a case study in how a few words have wildly different meanings and implications depending on the context they're used in and how they're applied to the topic at hand. Even the delivery has a huge impact on their meani…

But Samuel Jackson's diatribe isn't spontaneous. It would definitely be an awesome skill if you can come up with artful insults on the spot.

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#83

Post by grkvlt » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 2:17 PM UTC

baku-fr wrote: post #75

omginternets wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ah, don't be so rough on the USA. We've got some colorful expressions of our own, especially in places like NYC, Texas and Philly. Now let me clear my throat and switch to French: Va te faire foutre grosse pute. Je te pisses à la raie [<- my personal favorite], sous-merde. Grosse cochonne. Enculé de pédé de sa mère la pute. Je t'emmerde. Je te nique ta race vieille pédale, nom de dieu de putain de bordel de merde de…

"T'es con comme un manche, tu pues du cul et ta mère suce comme un aspirateur." Frenchie here, that one got me giggling, well played.

"You're an idiot as a handle, you stink ass and your mother sucks like a vacuum cleaner."

Apparently. However, "You're an idiot as a handle!" may well become my go-to insult...

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#84

Post by grkvlt » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 2:22 PM UTC

whynaut wrote: post #20

siliconc0w wrote: post #16

Valorizing language is silly. I remember in like 5th grade they moved the goal posts on us and made 'sucks' a 'bad word'. I was so thoroughly confused. How did a previously okay word become bad? They're tools in a box. They aren't inherently good or bad - the intent and meaning created by them are what matters. I similarly think it should be impossible for a word to offend someone. I think it's possible for meaning t…

> I similarly think it should be impossible for a word to offend someone. I think it's possible for meaning to offend and really only if you respect the person enough to provide some weight to that meaning. This strikes me as curious, as offense is a feeling, and thus not much "thinking" must be involved. If by 'should be impossible' you mean everyone should not allow themselves to be offended, that is a very differe…

However, words do not exist in a vacuum. They have context when spoken or written. I suppose someone who was offended by the occurrence of the word "nigger" in the dictionary would be a little odd, but it would be quite normal for someone to be offended when called a nigger, or if someone described the president of the USA as that. In fact, I would not be surprised to find that my use of the word, even simply in this meta-discussion of its hypothetical usage, might offend someone...

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#85

Post by omginternets » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 2:35 PM UTC

grkvlt wrote: post #83

baku-fr wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"T'es con comme un manche, tu pues du cul et ta mère suce comme un aspirateur." Frenchie here, that one got me giggling, well played.

"You're an idiot as a handle, you stink ass and your mother sucks like a vacuum cleaner." Apparently. However, "You're an idiot as a handle!" may well become my go-to insult...

Yeah it's a weird one. Why a broom-handle? Nobody knows. Doesn't matter.

"Con comme un manche" is stronger than "idiot like a handle" might first seem. Bête is idiot whereas con is etymologically equivalent to cunt. Semantically, however, it conveys something closer to fucking retard. "Asshat", maybe? Too funny. There's nothing funny about having to deal with a con.

Edit: tangentially related, but [0] this prank call is pure comedy and swearing gold. If you speak French and you haven't seen it, you're missing out. If you don't speak French, you get to hear a Corsican accent and Mediterranean rage (starts around 1:25). 10/10.

[0] https://youtu.be/RaNFPcZc9pY

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#86

Post by FuckOffNeemo » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 2:39 PM UTC

vacri wrote: post #38

FuckOffNeemo wrote: post #23

My username checks out. Fuckin' oath swearing is good for you. I'm British, raised by an ex-military Grandfather turned Civvy Engineer who ate his cornflakes with a side of profanity and then I. As a young adult, I moved to Australia. I swear alot. Even for fucking Australians. It's the perfect stress release mechanism. 'Why the fuck doesn't that work? Why the fuck DOES that work?'

Well, 'fuck' is a linguistic universal joint - it's probably the most flexible word in the language.

We're all familiar with the history of the f word here?

https://youtu.be/FvPbxZmZxZ8

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#87

Post by omginternets » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 2:40 PM UTC

sbuk wrote: post #71

omginternets wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ah, don't be so rough on the USA. We've got some colorful expressions of our own, especially in places like NYC, Texas and Philly. Now let me clear my throat and switch to French: Va te faire foutre grosse pute. Je te pisses à la raie [<- my personal favorite], sous-merde. Grosse cochonne. Enculé de pédé de sa mère la pute. Je t'emmerde. Je te nique ta race vieille pédale, nom de dieu de putain de bordel de merde de…

You for got one, espece d'un branleur...

Espèce de branleur. Couillon, va...

;)

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#88

Post by soylentcola » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 2:55 PM UTC

mhurron wrote: post #12

I find it funny an article on swearing is going to be discussed on a site where the general users will deride you and hold you as unprofessional for swearing on it. Perhaps we should have an article on the healing power of humour next.

I've never seen anyone derided for tossing in the occasional expletive when describing extreme frustration, anger, joy, or other strong emotional reaction.

I think it's more just generally "dumb" and thoughtless swearing (or insulting/degrading comments directed at another commenter) that are frowned upon.

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#89

Post by dsfyu404ed » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 3:07 PM UTC

vacri wrote: post #38

FuckOffNeemo wrote: post #23

My username checks out. Fuckin' oath swearing is good for you. I'm British, raised by an ex-military Grandfather turned Civvy Engineer who ate his cornflakes with a side of profanity and then I. As a young adult, I moved to Australia. I swear alot. Even for fucking Australians. It's the perfect stress release mechanism. 'Why the fuck doesn't that work? Why the fuck DOES that work?'

Well, 'fuck' is a linguistic universal joint - it's probably the most flexible word in the language.

Coincidentally, it gets used a lot when interacting with literal universal joints:

Joint makes noise..."fuck"

Needle bearings get ground to dust..."fuck"

Clips won't come out..."fuck"

Cap is stuck in the yoke..."fuck"

Stuck cap explodes when you get it un-stuck..."fuck"

Yoke is bent while removing cap..."fuck"

New joint didn't come with clips..."fuck"

Clips that were laying around won't fit..."fuck"

Cap falls off when you don't want it to..."fuck"

Needle bearings come out during assembly..."fuck"

Joint + yokes exceed max operating angle near their max torque load...BANG "fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck" BANG,BANG,BANG,BANG,BANG,BANG, "FUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!!!

Re: Why swearing is good for you

#90

Post by grkvlt » Fri, Aug 05, 2016, 7:03 PM UTC

omginternets wrote: post #85

grkvlt wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"You're an idiot as a handle, you stink ass and your mother sucks like a vacuum cleaner." Apparently. However, "You're an idiot as a handle!" may well become my go-to insult...

Yeah it's a weird one. Why a broom-handle? Nobody knows. Doesn't matter. "Con comme un manche" is stronger than "idiot like a handle" might first seem. Bête is idiot whereas con is etymologically equivalent to cunt . Semantically, however, it conveys something closer to fucking retard . "Asshat", maybe? Too funny. There's nothing funny about having to deal with a con . Edit: tangentially related, but [0] this prank c…

Unfortunately, I don't speak French, so I wondered whether there was a translation of the video. As it turns out, YouTube has automatic sub-titling, and even automatic translation of sub-titles, from French into various languages - fortunately including English. But the text it produced, while entertaining in its own Dadaist way, was obscure and unhelpful. I guess machine translation still has a ways to go, particularly when dealing with enraged Corsicans!