Changing Linguistic Habits

[fountainhall]

Last year marked the 50th anniversary of the word "Fuck!" being used live on UK television (is it even permitted today on US tv?). It provoked an outrage, including a public apology from the BBC and the tabling of 4 motions in parliament by 133 MPs. 12 years ago when the phrase "fucking cunts" was used in a tv celebrity game show it provoked fewer than 100 complaints.

It's now not uncommon to see "Fuck" on T-shirts worn by adults. The other day in a Bangkok Starbucks I saw this cap being worn by a boy who can have been no more than 12! Tempora mutantur!

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[latintopxxx]

isnt this how societies collapse...lack of decorum!!

[cdnmatt]

I don't mind swears. I swear too much for my own good anyway, but guess that's what happens when you grow up in a small, redneck oil patch town.

What I don't like is the total slaughtering of the English language. Entire conversations have turned into a bunch of emoticons, coupled with words / phrases turned into 2 - 4 character acronyms -- lol, w8, m8, abt, abn, b4, and the list is endless.

[latintopxxx]

dont knock rednecks...I fucked heaps in the US for only a little bit more than the cost of a Thai MB

[latintopxxx]

...or maybe I should say redneck trailer trash...absolutely the best.

[christianpfc]

Due to excessive use, "fuck" has lost most of its power and is now little more than an indicator of poor manners of the person who uses it.

When I overhear Thai boys (gay or straight) talking to each other and using swear words, it's a turn off for me.

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[latintopxxx]

oh I love it when a cuteness says " u fuck me...1000bht...OK!!"

[bkkguy]

Last year marked the 50th anniversary of the word "Fuck!" being used live on UK television (is it even permitted today on US tv?). It provoked an outrage, including a public apology from the BBC and the tabling of 4 motions in parliament by 133 MPs. 12 years ago when the phrase "fucking cunts" was used in a tv celebrity game show it provoked fewer than 100 complaints...... Tempora mutantur!

this is two way street, as the full phrase from Ovid acknowledges: Tempora mutantur, et nos mutamur in illis (Times change, and we change with them)

and if you want to see where British TV had got to just a few years later grab a copy of the series The Inbetweeners from 2008 - 2010 for a quick into to high school kids language and attitudes to sex - though the follow up movies are best avoided as puerile and predictable

and now every second BBC drama has a gay element just like it was a normal part of life - so some changes are for the better

meanwhile on the positive side here there is christianpfc on the spoken use of fuck and manners and on the negative side of course there is latintopxx on the actual use of fuck and manners!

bkkguy

[fountainhall]

Tempora mutantur, et nos mutamur in illis (Times change, and we change with them)
I don't think I will ever forget when staying with a friend in England in 2003 he showed me the first episode of the original UK version of "Queer as Folk". Perhaps I had been away from the UK for too long, but I was absolutely gobsmacked at what I was seeing - even though it had been restricted to late night network tv.

[christianpfc]

oh I love it when a cuteness says " u fuck me...1000bht...OK!!"
Even though the word is the same, the meaning is completely different. As a verb describing the actual process of, well, fucking, I would be at a loss to find a different word, "penetrate me" or "intercourse me" just don't cut it.

As a swear word or interjection or insult, I object to the frequent use of "fuck".

[christianpfc]

oh I love it when a cuteness says " u fuck me...1000bht...OK!!"

Even though the word is the same, the meaning is completely different. As a verb describing the actual process of, well, fucking, I would be at a loss to find a different word, "penetrate me" or "intercourse me" just don't cut it.

As a swear word or interjection or insult, I object to the frequent use of "fuck".

[francois]

Screwing or boinking? No doubt there is a good German word for fucking?

[cdnmatt]

As a swear word or interjection or insult, I object to the frequent use of "fuck".

I don't know, but I think words like "fuck" and "shit" come in quite handy during conversations. I use them all the time when talking with someone I know (ie. family), but never in an angry way.

For example, "well, fuck that idea then". I guess I could say, "well, I guess that idea won't work", but adding the "fuck" puts a nice little emphasis on it, which is quite useful in many cases. :)

[francois]

I detest the use of fuck and other swear words in conversation esp when every other word is one of them.

[lonelywombat]

I don't think I will ever forget when staying with a friend in England in 2003 he showed me the first episode of the original UK version of "Queer as Folk". Perhaps I had been away from the UK for too long, but I was absolutely gobsmacked at what I was seeing - even though it had been restricted to late night network tv.

I never saw the show but was is restricted for gay content, language or nudity. I have seen some very attractive models from the show but always thought it was not full frontal.

[fountainhall]

No real full frontals but plenty of bare bodies. The subject matter was also a subject of considerable contention. In the first episode a professional guy in his late 20s picks up a virgin guy who is 15 and proceeds to try and fuck him in his apartment. It's a hot scene. Plus the series dealt with gay bars and discos with back rooms where guys dropped their pants and others dropped to their knees. It was a landmark for UK television. I'm sure it had warnings before each episode but it was network television and so anyone could see it if they stayed up after midnight.

The Guardian newspaper rated it #13 of the 50 best TV Dramas of all time. Interestingly, the producers had great difficulty finding any actor to play the role of 15-year old Nathan. It was only as they were about to start rehearsals that they discovered the very cute Charlie Hunnam. He was/is not gay and is now known for his roles as a hunk-type character. But in that series he is adorably cute.

This is the scene where Stuart picks up young Nathan and take him home (from what I remember a couple of overhead shots have probably been cut). Watch from 5'49" to 9'45"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwdPPWZxro8

Later, the two are in bed again - from 0'20" to 5'38"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_L9-46UnM4
Some think the US series which followed was more interesting. But it did not have the shock value of the original UK version.

[cdnmatt]

I detest the use of fuck and other swear words in conversation esp when every other word is one of them.

Why though? I was just reading over my previous posts, and basically all of them contain swears. For example, one sentence is, "In that scenario, yeah, I could probably get free sex with a cute 19yo, but unless I'm actually looking for a relationship with him myself, that's a pretty shitty thing to do.".

Do you really consider that offensive / vulgar?

[francois]

Do you really consider that offensive / vulgar?



Vulgar, yes, but, in context, not necessarily offensive. I did say "in conversation" when people use swear words when at loss to speak properly. Often been in public places where people use "fuck",shit and other inappropriate language which makes me cringe.

[latintopxxx]

Swear words are a mark of someone with a very limited vocabulary and low self esteem. has no place in polite society.

[fountainhall]

. . . has no place in polite society.
Does polite society still exist??

[arsenal]

Polite society exists only in Latins mind. Just like the sexual encounters he writes about.