Believe it not, when I was in college, words like hell and damn were considered cusswords. It was shocking in Gone With The Wind, when Rhett Butler told Scarlett O’Hara, “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.” Any four letter words referring to the lower body functions were seldom used and never heard in the media. Ladies didn’t swear–at least not in public. It was thought that only ignorant, uneducated people incorporated vulgarity into everyday language. That’s all changed now. But I still believe that over use of dirty words show a poor vocabulary.
Unfortunately, most Netflix shows set in modern times seem to delight in their characters using f**k in almost every sentence that comes out of their mouths. It’s gotten really tiresome. Potty mouthed men and women seem coarse and unappealing. This was especially true in the series called “The Ranch.” It wasn’t just one or two characters, it was every single one of them. Now, it’s happening again in “Dead To Me.” Personally, I find the overuse of these words obnoxious—not only on the screen, but in real life. Which is why the historical series “Bridgerton,” was so refreshing. . I’m sure the writers would have loved having every female character use lots of F words, but they couldn’t. Only “gutter snipes,” used vulgar language in 19th century Britain. It would not have been historically accurate.
At least network television is still adhering to certain standards of decency. If a nightly news reporter used the F word, they would probably be kicked off the air. I hope that continues, but nothing in this day and age would surprise me. .
I’m not against the occasional use of cuss words. Actually, it’s been shown to be therapeutic. As an example, scientists have found that people can relieve pain by swearing. They’ve proven that swearing, or “the use of taboo language conveying connotative information,” has pain reducing effects. Past research has demonstrated that repeating a swear word helped people tolerate physical pain. If I stub my toe, I’m liable to scream every single dirty word I’ve ever heard in my life. And when I’m done, I do feel better.
But the truth is, most people aren’t experiencing intense physical pain all day long, every day in the week. So, if a person does overuse the F word , you have to wonder about their inner pain. I’d like to feel sorry for them, but the trashy talk doesn’t evoke much sympathy.