#284 - Cursing is Liberating

When venom is coursing through your embroiled veins, it feels good to let out an exultant fuck. In fact, you would be hard pressed to find any single word in the English language so versatile. Call us unrefined, but when you have such an effective expression that is so interchangeable simply by the tone and cadence with which it is spit, why reach into that bag of expletives for anything else? With fuck as the signature example, swear words can be some of the most impactful of all expressions—the exemplary embodiment of absolute emotion. They are the sprinkles to your sentences. The punctuation of your pronouns. The gravy on your mashed potatoes. And when you study how we might've arrived at this era of artful articulation, it seems plausible that this breakthrough gained momentum when the 1940's war children came of age a decade later. After having their mouths washed out with soap enough times in the cookie cutter order of row housing, they grew weary of the conservative austerity it took to defeat the Nazis, ready to adopt their rock and roll identity--ripe for a cultural rebellion. And rightfully accentuated by bad words in back alleys with cuffed jeans and cigarette fueled observations.  If you think about it, language is a peculiar vehicle for communicating. And since the advent of our grunts toward a more competent connection, shunned words have had a place on the periphery of the dictionary. And when it comes to the word fuck, why would you insulate the remark that pinpoints your fiery feelings when it specifically flavors your fervor? Doesn't It feel liberating to let it out. Just like a giant, breathy bong toke.