The Stigma behind "Vulgar" words

Laid in bed last night thinking about the stigma associated with so called "vulgar" words. What exactly is it that makes a word vulgar? Take the word "shit" for example. What makes "shit" any worse than "crap", "poop", "feces" or similar words.

Thoughts?

 

just the fact that one day someone wanted to be the badass and make up said words.

Idk this is something to ponder though because honestly no one knows but the guy that made it up.

 

Okay so someone made up a word. What made it catch on? What caused it to be associated with the vulgarity as we know it to represent today? Surely there's an explanation.

 

It's the connotation and the intent of the word. The words are usually associated with actions that aren't generally acceptable to talk about in 'polite company' such as sexual activity or using the bathroom or are derogatory in nature. Take bastard, which is a perfectly acceptable word because it means illegitimate in lineage, but it has become a swear word because it's association with illegitimate children.

 

If this is the case, then wouldn't that necessarily mean words like crap, dang, shoot, darn, when used as an alternative for said "swear" words, are also vulgar as well?

 

It is all subjective though. Some people do believe that those are 'bad' words.

 

I read around a bit. And, words that are considered vulgar now, weren't considered vulgar a long time ago. As a society, things change as we move along. I read the original meanings of a few curse words, and they were to do with being peasants and lowly. So, I guess that translated into our modern society.

 

Yes, but I believe those words stemmed from their original, complementary bad words, with the intent of being 'more suitable for children'. It's like how when some people used to use the word 'God' in vain, and they replaced it with the word 'gosh' (to prevent using God's name specifically in vain), which has no meaning whatsoever. Or how 'hell' has been replaced with 'heck', even though 'heck' also has no meaning. It just goes back to history, and we're conditioned as we're young to view the newer version of the word as more appropriate. Our parents don't scold us when we say 'darn', but they might when we say 'dammit'. We're just conditioned, that's all. It's almost like a tradition that's still being successfully passed on to newer generations this day. As long as parents (or teachers, childhood friends, etc. for the parents that don't really care) keep hiding bad words and using their substitutes when we're young, we'll continue to view these certain words as 'bad'. And we'll probably do the same to our children as well.

 

"(Bad word) A profanity is a word, expression, gesture, or other social behavior which is socially constructed or interpreted as insulting, rude, vulgar, desecrating, or showing disrespect."

 

We've discussed this in psychology, and it's basically what wulfspade said. Certain words and gestures were uttered in the middle ages by peasants who worked, fought among each other, and acted basically near-uncivilized. These actions were shunned by the aristocrats and even the middle class as being a mark of incivility. This stigma endured through the ages, and as civilizations left the feudal system and entered a more democratic system, swearing stopped becoming the halmark of a brute, and started to become a vulgar utterance in an unpleasant situation. "Proper behavior" and pompous attitudes gave way to our more modern mindset, and with that, we gave up on "clean" language as a whole.

 

I've thought about this a lot, too. You can describe someone a certain way that means the same as a curse word, but they won't be as offended as if you used a curse word. Some curse words originally started out as acronyms (like fuck and shit).

I don't know, I don't see the problem with it so I'm going to keep using vulgar language.

 

Which makes sense considering the original meaning of the word vulgar:

3. Characteristic of or belonging to the masses

 

This also raises a similar question:
In the 60's or so, the term "black person" was considered offensive and negro was not. Now, it's the other way around.

How'd that happen? :/

 

gay meant happy not too long ago!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Multiple posts in this thread have already solidified my argument. There's so many words and phrases which are deemed as "vulgar" and "offensive" when in reality, they're just words that can and are used from day to day to express ourselves. "Fuck" for example has more meanings than most people realize. I could write an entire essay on the multiple meanings of the word "Fuck"


Are they all offensive? Hell fucking no (note the use of the word "fuck")
Are they used in a derogatory term? The fuck it isn't (again.... In most cases.. It isn't...)

 

But for some reason, that would have sounded better with fuck replaced with something else.
Never really thought about this topic and now I have something else to worry about on my mind :/

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26UA578yQ5g this is the best video ever.

 

Words that are said in our everyday language, when used in the right context will offend people. I think it is the fact that the media or whomever/whatever influences society at the time used those words commonly within an offensive context that they caught on as being 'vulgar'. That's why they change in time, and what area you're in. For example we call someone a 'prick' here in Australia and it's just water off a ducks back, if you call someone a 'prick' in the UK it is more hurtful. Different media/culture, different context, different levels of vulgarity.