Illustration by Cara Seccafien
Don’t ask people to stop swearing
By Jessica Berget, Opinions Editor
Swearing is a big part of who I am. It’s a great way to punctuate what you’re saying or to express yourself and your emotions, so why would I stop? Because someone asked me to? Fuck that.
As a writer, I know how much power words can have. When I cuss it’s because I feel that I’m using the right word to emphasize what I want to say or give more weight to it. I don’t swear for the sake of swearing; there is meaning behind my profanities.
Late and great comedian George Carlin once compared swearing to seasoning: “You don’t need paprika or oregano or a few other things to make a stew […] but you make a better stew. If you’re inclined to make a stew of that type, ‘seasoning’ helps.”
If I want to pepper in a few cuss words into my conversations, there’s nothing wrong with that. However, telling others not to cuss when they’re around you is something I take issue with.
I know a lot of people find curse words extremely offensive, which I don’t understand. Curse words are just words and they can’t hurt you. I think if you’re offended by profanities or the way someone talks, that’s your problem and you have no right to police what others say just because you don’t like it.
You have every right to ask the person politely to stop swearing, but they also have every right to tell you to fuck off. If you don’t like what someone is saying or how they’re saying it, you can walk away. No one is forcing you to stick around and listen to something you don’t like to hear. Honestly, when people tell me to watch my language, it makes me want to swear even more.
Another thing that bothers me is when people tell me not to swear because there are kids around. I don’t purposefully make a point to curse around children, so if I accidently do it then don’t hold it against me. With that being said, I don’t see a problem with a child hearing a couple of swear words now and then. If I’m having an adult conversation with an adult friend in an adult environment, of course I’m going to use adult language. I shouldn’t have to censor myself because a child is around. They’re going to hear it sooner or later anyway. People seem to get up in arms about not wanting to teach kids that swearing is okay, but I think as long as you teach your child about swear words and when it’s appropriate to use them, it shouldn’t be an issue.
It’s not okay to police others’ language, even when it comes to swear words. People curse for a variety of reasons, whether they’re upset, angry, happy, or just want to punctuate what they’re saying. If people want to use profanity once in a while, or even a lot, it’s not your business to tell them to stop. Ask yourself if it’s really worth getting upset over words.
