What's your opinion on swearing in front of kids?

[Tosh]

Ok, just wanted to know what you think.

Are you against swearing?
Are you against swearing in front of children?

Particularly if No and then Yes, Why?

 

[DaveC426913]

I dislike swearing (though that makes me a hypocrite, since I do).

I strongly frown upon swearing in front of children.


The reason for behaving ourselves in front of children is because it is all our responsibilities to set a good example - in all things, not just swearing.

 

[Tosh]

Ok, yeah, setting a good example. I really dislike swearing as well.

I don't think that makes you a hypocrite, many people do things that they think are wrong or dislike. Even if you were to tell others not to swear, and carried on swearing, that would also not be hypocritical. As long as you still believed that swearing was a bad thing. A hypocrite, is probably someone who is deceiving others by intentionally claiming something even though they themselves don't believe it or adhere (mentally) to it. Thats my definition...

It becomes a good reason not to swear in front of children. However if someone is asked not to swear, they generally retaliate quite badly. Maybe just the concept of being asked to change ourselves makes us feel like we would then be doing for that person; rather than ourselves. I dunno...

 

[DaveC426913]

However if someone is asked not to swear, they generally retaliate quite badly.

Depends on how mature they are and how reasonable the request. Societal manners deteriorate as personal rights come to the fore.

 

[Astronuc]

I dislike swearing (though that makes me a hypocrite, since I do).

Not a hypocrite, just human. I dislike swearing, but when I get pissed off I'll use a few choice words, but hopefully under my breath and out of earshot of others.

I strongly frown upon swearing in front of children.

Same here.

The reason for behaving ourselves in front of children is because it is all our responsibilities to set a good example - in all things, not just swearing.

Agree. It is a matter of self-control (maintaining one's composure) and setting a good example.

My daughter swears when she gets angry (usually at me), but I try to remain calm and in control.

I don't believe my son swears - at least I've never heard him.

 

[Huckleberry]

I swear like a sailor. There's something about being trapped on a ship with 3000 other guys that makes that kind of behaviour common. I've tamed my language a bit, but mostly because it's not appropriate in many cases outside the military.

I remember when I came home on leave and accidentally swore in front of my mother. I was a bit shocked at myself, but she didn't pay any attention to it. I realized how much difference the environment I am in influences the way I speak.

I'm averse to swearing in most company that I'm not familiar with, particularly women and children. I'll swear around a man if I know him slightly, a woman if I know her well, and never around a child. The first two only because I don't want to seem too offensive. I wouldn't swear in front of a child because it wouldn't seem appropriate to me for a child to swear in front of an adult, and I wouldn't want to encourage that behaviour. I don't particularly care if children know the words or swear among their friends, but I think it is very important for them to learn that type of language is only acceptable among their peers.

Haha, You should have heard the conversation I had at work last night. I spent most of the weekend watching George Romero flicks. Somehow the conversation at work turned into making a movie about zombies invading nude beaches. There were quite a few colorful metaphors thrown around.

 

[baywax]

Mother's favorite saying is "**** 'em if they can't take a joke."

If you want you're kids to be prepared for life teach them swear words along with the other not so nice bits about being an animal also known as a "human" among humans. The more familiar they are with swearing the less taboo it will seem. The more common place something is the less importance is holds. The less importance something has, the less it is noticed or held up as a tool for recognition. Of course, I don't mean kids that are in daycare or kindergarten or up to about grade 5. I mean, kids that are at a maturity level where they've learned that swearing is unacceptable to some people and are at an age where they can respect the wishes of other people. Of course, you'll be hard pressed to find many adults, let alone children, who have cultivated or learned that kind of respect for others.

 

[Astronuc]

Court Rebuffs F.C.C. on Fines for Indecency
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/05/business/media/05decency.html

WASHINGTON, June 4 — If President Bush and Vice President Cheney can blurt out vulgar language, then the government cannot punish broadcast television stations for broadcasting the same words in similarly fleeting contexts.

My children are aware the Bush and Cheney represent poor examples.

I don't even like movies with swearing so I avoid them.

 

[Evo]

Children are going to hear swear words. I remember something someone said once that swearing is only bad if you don't have the vocabulary to choose other words. I swear all the time, but at least I know other words.

 

[baywax]

Court Rebuffs F.C.C. on Fines for Indecency
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/05/business/media/05decency.html
My children are aware the Bush and Cheney represent poor examples.

I don't even like movies with swearing so I avoid them.

I tend to agree. When sensationalism demands the use of vulgarity, I don't support it. However, cultures that use swearing as a part of their colloquial heritage and are portrayed on film are sometimes worth knowing about. For instance, Pulp Fiction portrays something of that sort. However, if you've seen Saturday Night Fever or Grease, the absence of swearing in these scripts makes these films unbelieveable, fairytale like and 2 dimensional. I think the Shrek movies has more implied swearing in it than these films. The Lords of Flatbush or Good Will Hunting would be just as flat as Saturday Night Fever without the use of good old American vulgar colloquialisms.

 

[DaveC426913]

Watching Scarface would be a markedly different experience.

Apparently the count for the F-bomb is over 170 - that's well over 1 per minute.

 

[Moridin]

Swearing is one of the most ridiculous phenomena I have ever come across. The idea that some combination of sounds is intrinsically damaging or insulting to people is very strange. Words like **** (the f word) is considered 'bad' and words like 'dog' is not. The sounds made when pronouncing them are quite similar.

Apart from that, the only reason that the words used when swearing is considered 'bad' is because we have agreed that it is. They have also shifted over time. Using terms like 'chicken breasts' where probably really offensive say a century ago. A lot of them have their origin from religious taboo. In a sense, language is a stronger dogma that most things in society.

The most hilarious attempt to combat swearing is to try to make people use other words when expressing certain strong emotions. Over time, they will most likely be the 'new' words used when swearing. Instead of trying to make people switch words as moral language police, we could try to tackle the things that make people swear in the first place.

 

[Surrealist]

"Boobs" is a funny word. I get the feeling that word was invented as a joke. Like some smart-ass said to his friends, "Hey, guys let's go around calling breasts 'boobs', then sooner or later people will use this ridiculous word as if it is normal."

Concerning swearing in front of kids. I wouldn't swear in front of someone else's kids because every parent has their own set of guidelines for raising their children, and I don't want to accidentally interfere with the way someone else might be raising their kids. If I had kids, I would probably swear in front of them occassionally, not intentionally, but I wouldn't go out of my way to censor myself so it would happen from time to time.

Let's get to the heart of this question. Why are you concerned with swearing in front of kids? Is it because you think they should have a "proper" upbringing in a "proper" environment, or is it that you don't trust kids to not repeat what they hear at an inappropriate time? Would you swear in front of a full-grown adult who suffered from a mental affliction such that he or she had the "mind of a child"?

 

[baywax]

You get these stories about kids from 2 to 4 years old swearing in daycare. They don't know what it means or anything about the words they're using but they've heard it in dad's garage or when mom strips the plumbing with a pipe wrench and they repeat it in times that seem as stressful to them. Who is it hurting? The daycare worker? The other kids? Is it spreading the "disease of vulgarity"? Not really. But, it does hurt anyone who thinks the words are hurtful. And, just like we don't behave in ways that are not acceptable to people who don't know us, we tend to restrict our verbal behavior out of respect of what may be going on in another person's head. So, concerning children and swearing in front of them: if we restrict our verbage we lessen the chance of our kids offending someone we or they don't know. This way, the child is spared rejection and scrutiny where they might otherwise be subjected to it because of their "foul language". For **** sake they might even be spared a regimen of Ritalin or worse.

 

[Huckleberry]

Would you swear in front of a full-grown adult who suffered from a mental affliction such that he or she had the "mind of a child"?

That depends on the adult, his mental condition and the circumstances. I would probably take a few extra moments to weigh the situation in the case of someone with a mental affliction. Primarily I would be concerned that the person has enough reasoning to know when swearing is appropriate. If I hear them swearing at innapropriate times, and in an insulting behaviour, I would not swear in their presence. It really depends on the extent of their mental affliction. Otherwise, if it makes them comfortable to swear in my presence, I'm all for it.

I could curse up a storm with someone with tourrettes syndrome. That would be an interesting challenge I could have fun with.

 

[turbo]

Like the little kid in "A Christmas Story", my father had taken cursing to a high art and I had been exposed to it regularly, though with my strict Catholic upbringing, I learned what I could and could not say without problems. One big problem happened about at age 6 when my great uncle Marcel had been released from a TB sanitarium. He had contracted TB during WWII and he I had been swapping letters since I was about 4 or so - I learned to write early and he had the patience and the time to deal with responding to a barely literate kid, and send me stamps from all over the world that he gathered from his fellow inmates. He had used his pay to buy a Buick convertible (this was in the '50's) and had promised to stop in and take me for a ride. A few days before he came back to Maine, I was downtown with my dad and a fellow charged across the street and hugged my dad calling him "you old peckerhead", and he went into a local general store and bought me a pop-gun before we went into the only tavern for a few drinks (mine were root-beers). When Uncle Marcel pulled up in his Buick, I ran out to his car hollering "Uncle Marcel, you old peckerhead!" Mom was flabbergasted and didn't know what to do, but Uncle Marcel came to my rescue with a smile and a gentle admonition to my mother that kids don't always know what they're saying. Years later, he told me how much fun he had that day and how funny the situation was.

 

[chroot]

In the grand list of human behaviors that concern me, torture and genocide are near the top. Swearing in front of children ranks nearly last, right above men wearing ladies' panties in their bedrooms.

Who really cares? Having a definite potty mouth will offend some people with weak sensibilities, so you should probably discourage your kids from swearing like sailors. At the same time, your kids are going to hear the words everywhere, so it's a pretty stupid waste of your time to somehow try to shelter them from such words completely.

- Warren

 

[Surrealist]

Was this thread initiated in response to the court ruling in favor of Nicole Ritchie at the dismay of the FCC?

 

[Smurf]

I found the Penn and Teller episode on profanity to be very good. Their main conclusion is that censorship isn't telling you to be a nicer person and be kinder to people, their just telling you to be nasty with nicer language.

In other words, don't stop beating people up, just smile while you do it.

http://video.glath.com/view/bull****.Profanity

(you have to replace the **** with the word s h i t)

 

[baywax]

Like the little kid in "A Christmas Story", my father had taken cursing to a high art and I had been exposed to it regularly, though with my strict Catholic upbringing, I learned what I could and could not say without problems. One big problem happened about at age 6 when my great uncle Marcel had been released from a TB sanitarium. He had contracted TB during WWII and he I had been swapping letters since I was about 4 or so - I learned to write early and he had the patience and the time to deal with responding to a barely literate kid, and send me stamps from all over the world that he gathered from his fellow inmates. He had used his pay to buy a Buick convertible (this was in the '50's) and had promised to stop in and take me for a ride. A few days before he came back to Maine, I was downtown with my dad and a fellow charged across the street and hugged my dad calling him "you old perckerhead", and he went into a local general store and bought me a pop-gun before we went into the only tavern for a few drinks (mine were root-beers). When Uncle Marcel pulled up in his Buick, I ran out to his car hollering "Uncle Marcel, you old peckerhead!" Mom was flabbergasted and didn't know what to do, but Uncle Marcel came to my rescue with a smile and a gentle admonition to my mother that kids don't always know what they're saying. Years later, he told me how much fun he had that day and how funny the situation was.

Excellent story! My dad was a tank commander in WWII and came back after 6 years with Black Lung from the diesil and gun powder smoke in the confines of his tank.He got out of his infirmary long before I was born but his favorite way to repremand his kids was to call us "meatheads" (except for the daughters). Being extremely well brought up by his dad who was an Army Surgeon during WWI crippled his ability to swear with any conviction. It was almost comical, once I knew how to swear, to hear him try to put **** and **** in the same sentence. As his adult son I was able to help him along with "proper" swearing.

 

[Evo]

I could curse up a storm with someone with tourrettes syndrome. That would be an interesting challenge I could have fun with.

Tourette's is a fascinating condition. I worked with a person that had tourette's, but instead of shouting out obsenities, he would bark like a seal.

 

[baywax]

Tourette's is a fascinating condition. I worked with a person that had tourette's, but instead of shouting out obsenities, he would bark like a seal.

And in this case a parent would not want their children to demonize a person with Tourette's because of the swearing or because of an ignorance of swearing. If children were accustomed, to some degree, with swearing, it would be easier for them to accept someone with a case of Tourette's.

Censorship only breeds ignorance and the circulation of myths and rumors. The proper introduction to a child's language should include every aspect of its structure and history.

Similarily (I was going to start a thread about it but) nudity is treated as another naughty-no-no and that preconception is imprinted on a child's brain from the get-go. The result is a complete ignorance of personal anatomy, physiological function and severely challenging hygenic problems coupled with a set of neurosis that could knock over Vatican City.

Some parents are open enough to go nude with their children. Some are not. I think its an education that should'nt be left to chance or the school system. You don't want a complete stranger like Billie's teacher stripping for the class as an anatomy lesson.

 

[Smurf]

The result is a complete ignorance of personal anatomy, physiological function and severely challenging hygenic problems coupled with a set of neurosis that could knock over Vatican City.

It's the hygenic thing that gets me personally. Thank god for the internet, or I never would've figured that one out.

 

[Huckleberry]

Tourette's is a fascinating condition. I worked with a person that had tourette's, but instead of shouting out obsenities, he would bark like a seal.

I've never met anyone with tourettes. There was a show on, I think Discovery, that showed the lives of a few people with tourettes syndrome. It usually appears in the early teen years and as the person gets older they learn how to control their behaviour. It sounded like they can feel an onset about to occur and somehow ease themselves out of it. It reminded me of the feeling of a muscle cramp that can usually be avoided by a little stretching.

There are some people that are not able to avoid the effects of the condition. Some of them use vulgar language. Some say outlandish things or make sounds. Many have muscle spasms. One guy on the show was doing some shopping and as he reached the clerk with his items he yelled out, "Help, my underwear is on fire!" If one was not aware that someone had this condition it could be a little frightening to experience. I can't fully imagine how this condition must affect someone's life.

On youtube there is a popular video going around. He's called tourettes guy. I think he's just a poser though. I'm not really sure.

 

[baywax]

It's the hygenic thing that gets me personally. Thank god for the internet, or I never would've figured that one out.

Yeah, it took me a couple of decades to figure out how to dry more than 50% of my body after a shower.

 

[chroot]

It's the hygenic thing that gets me personally. Thank god for the internet, or I never would've figured that one out.

Yeah, I didn't even know that I was supposed to wash my butt until I found physicsforums. Thanks, Evo. :!)

- Warren

 

[Evo]

Yeah, I didn't even know that I was supposed to wash my butt until I found physicsforums. Thanks, Evo. :!)

- Warren

Wait, how did I get dragged into this?

 

[jiohdi]

all words are triggers of experiences... swear words are intended to convey strong emotions, most of the time and to do so with the greatest shock value when possible.

 

[Astronuc]

Wait, how did I get dragged into this?

You're just an innocent bystander.

Somehow it got from Tourette's syndrome to hygiene.


As for movies, I do not enjoy gratuitous violence or swearing. I did enjoy Goodwill Hunting and I enjoyed Gladiator given the historical context.

Saturday Night Fever and Grease are two movies I would not go see, although I have seen clips, which confirmed that I would not want to go see them.

 

[radou]

Yeah, I didn't even know that I was supposed to wash my butt until I found physicsforums.
- Warren

 

[baywax]

Saturday Night Fever and Grease are two movies I would not go see, although I have seen clips, which confirmed that I would not want to go see them.

As bad as these movies are, they are portrayals of historic importance, mostly of the 50s and 70s greaser era of the eastern United States. Swearing was a major part of those eras (and is not used in the scripts). Swearing made people "bigger" than they really were. It probably unconsciously signaled the insecurities these outwardly tough and "rebelious" grease balls carried with them. Today they're wearing argyle socks and cardigan sweaters waiting for retirement behind a plastic laminate desk.

 

[Huckleberry]

I prefer movies with vulgar language. If it is done well I hardly notice it and it lends the qualities of realism and sometimes humor to the movie. There are also times where vulgar language can spoil a movie if it is used gratuitously. I don't get a thrill out of hearing people curse. Bad language doesn't make up for a bad script.

As for cleanliness, it wasn't until Danger informed me of the practice of shaving nose hairs that it occurred to me there was a better way for me to remove them than waiting until they got long enough to pull them out with my fingers.

 

[baywax]

Somehow it got from Tourette's syndrome to hygiene.

Somehow, good hygiene (like washing out the mouth with soap) cures swearing.

I just realized "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" was a swear-free movie. Turko mutters under his breath a bit, but, no actual **** or **** or **** or even ********.

The flick certainly promoted cigarellos .

 

[Astronuc]

I just realized "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" was a swear-free movie. Turko mutters under his breath a bit, but, no actual **** or **** or **** or even ********.

I think all the old classic movies are free of vulgar words. I don't remember folks like Henry Fonda, John Wayne, Gregory Peck, James Stewart, . . . . using vulgar language.

 

[turbo]

Wait, how did I get dragged into this?

Apparently, you have been a great influence in anal hygiene - you should be proud!

 

[turbo]

I think all the old classic movies are free of vulgar words. I don't remember folks like Henry Fonda, John Wayne, Gregory Peck, James Stewart, . . . . using vulgar language.

They HAD to be, or the censors would not have allowed them to be released in the US. It was not until a rating system was devised that any level of profanity beyond "damn" was allowed in US films.

 

[Astronuc]

They HAD to be, or the censors would not have allowed them to be released in the US. It was not until a rating system was devised that any level of profanity beyond "damn" was allowed in US films.

True - but then I don't think that cursing or swearing has made a movie better - perhaps more realistic (whatever realistic means in the cinematic context) - but not better.

 

[baywax]

True - but then I don't think that cursing or swearing has made a movie better - perhaps more realistic (whatever realistic means in the cinematic context) - but not better.

So, its ok to drink, smoke, shoot and kill, maim, rob and beat people in front of your kids (at the movies) but swearing is (or was) strickly censored.

 

[raolduke]

Profanity spices up a movie.. "Ignorant" people swear and a movie must relate with the vocabulary of the targeted audience. We can't have people not being able to follow a movie because they don't understand a character's expression.

No but seriously.. I find my self swearing when I feel things, that upset me usually, that I've never felt before. For many years I tried to stay away from using curse words but now since I started using alcohol more frequently it just seems appropriate to use the word **** or **** every other word.

 

[turbo]

I try not to use profanity apart from an occasional "damn" or something scatalogical (especially when describing politicians), but let me whack my thumb with a hammer or drop a big piece of firewood on my toes and something spontaneous happens (think of the little kid in "Christmas Story") only perhaps with a few adjectives tossed in for effect.

 

[GoldPheonix]

Hmm..

Ok, just wanted to know what you think.

Are you against swearing?
Are you against swearing in front of children?

Particularly if No and then Yes, Why?

Whenever I hear of discussion topics like these I think: What, have all the children stopped dying? Have all the poor been fed? Have all the tyrants stopped their genocide? Have all the animals been fed and the Earth's ecosystems gone into flourish? Should we really squabble over something as confoundedly stupid as the utterance of sounds? Has the human race really come down to that?

Every child has heard the f-word by the age of 9. Every child has heard every other one of them by their parents before that.But I really have to question the inherent silliness of being offended by words whose definitions you control. What is a word? A word is a symbol of an action or idea; when the symbol becomes more powerful than the action, I see a problem. People are afraid of their kid hearing the sound and syllables of the word "f***" and yet completely ignore the violent content of that same movie? To allow oneself to feel a complete sense of fear because of an utterance of a sound that you control its meaning --that's just silliness.

Be afraid of the what the strong emotion behind the word means, not the word itself. Don't be afraid when your friend looks at you and says "f*** you," be afraid because of what that means in real life. Getting all worried because someone says "oh, f***" is just a pointless waste of emotion to me.My thoughts, anyways. No offense to those who are offended by swear words.

I dislike swearing (though that makes me a hypocrite, since I do).

I strongly frown upon swearing in front of children.The reason for behaving ourselves in front of children is because it is all our responsibilities to set a good example - in all things, not just swearing.

Set a good example by not being uselessly violent to people, by not hurting others, by taking care of responsibilities, by speaking your thoughts concisely and rationally, by always showing them love and teaching them to love others, and encourage them to be intellectuals and hard workers.

I can pretty much count off about a thousand things that would be more important than not swearing in front of kids that are probably swearing when you have your back to them.

In the grand list of human behaviors that concern me, torture and genocide are near the top. Swearing in front of children ranks nearly last, right above men wearing ladies' panties in their bedrooms.

Amen!

Who really cares? Having a definite potty mouth will offend some people with weak sensibilities, so you should probably discourage your kids from swearing like sailors. At the same time, your kids are going to hear the words everywhere, so it's a pretty stupid waste of your time to somehow try to shelter them from such words completely.

- Warren

I agree entirely. My mother stopped me from hearing the f-word until I was in about 5th grade. (I was home schooled)

Hasn't stopped me from saying it now.

True - but then I don't think that cursing or swearing has made a movie better - perhaps more realistic (whatever realistic means in the cinematic context) - but not better.

I disagree; swearing can be humorous or even artistic in context. This can certainly add to a movie beyond realism.

Though I must admit, I abhor the movies made from the 30's through the 70's where the whole world ends up all right in the end. Call it realism or cynicism, but I prefer to be entertained with serious thought for a few days than to escape reality for a few short hours.

So, its ok to drink, smoke, shoot and kill, maim, rob and beat people in front of your kids (at the movies) but swearing is (or was) strickly censored.

That and sex, yes. Yeah, the world would be such a better place if we could only stop sex and swearing.

 

[Integral]

My problem is to get my 13 yr to quit swering in front of me.

 

[baywax]

My problem is to get my 13 yr to quit swering in front of me.

Still young enough for the duct-tape treatment. Have you tried Clorox? They use it regularily in public pools.

 

[GoldPheonix]

Still young enough for the duct-tape treatment. Have you tried Clorox? They use it regularily in public pools.

What the hell is the duct-tape treatment? 0o;

 

[octelcogopod]

I agree with GoldPhoenix to a degree, but also disagree on some level.

Some words carry a force, a force which is great for unleashing in frustrating times. I think the world needs curse words basically.
I know I do.
I don't curse that often but when I do I usually mean it.
In that regard I don't think we should curse in front of children.
Not that we can stop them from learning those words probably quite early, but we as parents or older brothers should not wildly curse in front of our young ones, both because of the effects it might have later on in their life if they curse in front of the wrong people, but also because in this world cursing like a sailor is not really admired, and in the wrong setting that might be important to the child later on, it can haev a negative outcome for them because they don't have the sensibilities that others do in that situation.