Wednesday, October 5, 2011

The curse of the curse


I remember there was once a time when if I ever had the opportunity to visit another country, the first thing I would commit to memory was how to curse in that country’s language. As a kid there was nothing more shocking (or thrilling) than to hear your usually strait laced parents mouth a volleyful of curses when they discovered you had broken their favourite lampshade or record. Suddenly your vocabulary had grown exponentially when you were then able to repeat it in private with your friends in the school washroom.

Today swearing is as commonplace as using any old adjective in a sentence and everyone is doing it – kids, radio, movies, sports – it’s a veritable tsunami of F-bombs, shenzi’s and pumbavu’s. I could even swear (see what I mean) that I watched a cartoon the other day and the cuddly cartoon bear out of nowhere said b___t. Just watching a premier league football game and you don’t even have to lip read to literally hear what any footballer says when he misses that open goal. Our politicians, public officials (read councillors) even pastors are well known for hurling abuse and using profane language. In fact the curse of the curse has penetrated the corporate world at the highest level. To whit - Carol Bartz the former CEO of Yahoo on being fired a few months ago said in an interview afterwards ‘These people f___d me over.’ Ouch Ms Bartz. And don’t get me started on Facebook and Twitter where the lowest common denominator in terms of language is often on display.

I’ve read of something called ‘annoyance’ swearing where for example if at work you accidentally staple your finger to the paper and you mutter oaths under your breath. In fact scientists say this can be a healthy way for people to blow off steam. At one of my previous jobs had a way of not-not swearing by using substitutes. So if Jack gave an incredulous story about a clients behaviour we would say – ‘Shut the front door’ – get it?

When out in public we all need to be aware of whom we are around and what effect swearing will have on our personal brand. Just because it doesn’t offend your less than delicate sensibilities, does not mean everybody else feels the same way. Some might argue that conversing sans cursing takes away from their authenticity? Perhaps, but then it’s often a lazy way of speaking without having to think too hard of what to say. It’s difficult to imagine that anyone would be truly appalled about the use of foul language in any sphere in society. One can only imagine what is said behind closed doors in any high pressure setting be it a dressing room or a boardroom but why don’t we save those words for when we’re really ticked off or emotionally charged to give them more gravitas instead of the steady stream of foul language that litters every day sentences. And if you must, maybe even be a little more inventive. They say they don’t make them like they used too well they certainly don’t deliver an insult like Shakespeare (in Richard III) - 'Thou loathed issue of thy father's loins' _____ beat that!