The 'c' word

I don’t associate cunt with female genitalia, worse than bastard, less that dick. don’t find it any more offensive than other swear words tbh. Banning it would be ridiculous. I actually hate the words fanny and pussy when referring to female genitalia 🤢

Why should a badger be associated with wanking? What have badgers done to deserve that?

I really dislike this word - it's on a par with the appropriation of female animals as insults/ swear words.

Personally I think that phrase undermines the power of cunt as a taboo word which is why I like it. It isn't intended as a serious insult.

Anyone who really pisses me off is wankbadger or a cockwomble so they are my worst possible insult as my work colleagues will attest

Plus it would mean we can no longer us the brilliant approach of saying "I'd call them a cunt but they lack the depth and warmth"

This gets said a lot and doesn't make sense. The first part relies on the word being an aggressive insult and the second on the word being this super- duper empowering word.

So far as using it, reclaiming it or whatever I doubt the average aggressive man calling someone else (man or woman) a "stupid cunt" will get the message.

As for the love which people in Scotland are supposed to have for it, my husband is from a Glaswegian working class background. I've never heard him say it, even in anger. Nor have I heard any of his family use it. The idea my mother-in-law, brother-in-law or late father-in-law would have gone around/ go around talking about "guid cunts" or have allowed it in their houses is laughable.

Crack on with if it if you want but for the moment I haven't seen any replies which address the points BertrandRussell raised at the beginning

Why is it one of the worst words? What makes it worse than calling someone a cock or a dick or a knob end? If anything I'd say it's peoples attitudes about it that needs banning.

Its just a word like any other.

Plus it would mean we can no longer us the brilliant approach of saying "I'd call them a cunt but they lack the depth and warmth".

And yy to being a woman of the cunty variety.

A cunt otoh is just a cunt.

Well not 'just', really, with all the amazing things it can do!

Yy MF is utterly gross.

Dockray agree

Banning it means we can no longer refer to ourselves as women of the cunty variety

And also supports the idea that a vagina is the worst possible thing to call someone.

Using it reduces the impact. It becomes a milder swear.
Banning it does the opposite.

Of course the fact that the 'worst' swear word is to do with womens sex organs is a feminist issue but banning it doesn't help with anything.

We are not on a train with people who seem insensitive to how women (especially older women or young girls) may be offended by what they are saying.
We are in "Feminist Chat" on Mumsnet so this is a relevant post by Terfing.

Well, quite. We are among grown-ups and we can call out anyone who uses it inappropriately. But hasn't it already been demonstrated that there are times when it is appropriate, so the word itself doesn't need a ban? Banning it turns it into the swearword so bad it's banned on Mumsnet. You know, that place where people cheerfully refer to others as CFs or GFs. (Digression: not sure I've ever seen MF on here, but that's one I really dislike, though I guess US people find it less offensive.)

I'd rather take the power out of the word by it becoming a "normal" swear word, than have it banned as a taboo.

Not a word I use generally but I cannot agree with banning a single swear word - that would be weird and it would give it far more power and meaning than it just being another swear word among many.

Why is it worse?
No, it shouldn't be banned.
I use it, (to my dh) no more worse than any other swear word.

Bowed - not Bloody!

I was thikning about your post when I wrote your name!

Nice post Bloody

I come from quite a sweary family but no cunting -

I do think that the word has become much more widley used. 30 years ago it was super-strong, now you sometimes hear it at work when people are chatting. I think it is "toning down".

m.youtube.com/watch?v=GDJutaFuVD0

Funny how attitudes towards words can change. I came from a family where the worst word ('bloody') was only ever used in the most extreme circumstances. Even when my kids were little swearing really offended me. Gradually though, I changed (chilled out?) and now use 'fuck' very frequently! But I would never ever have used the word cunt. Until we lost the simple word 'woman', and the qualifier 'the cunty kind' has a strength and an assertiveness that appeals to me. So I would never use it as an insult as that would be demeaning to women in my eyes, but I would now use it to define myself (or women generally).

And I suggested looking it up in google books, not google, which is why you ended up with urban dictionary as one of your top results.

You’re spending an awful lot of time discussing something you don’t care about.

And it’s referenced on the same wiki page you’re currently discussing.

Gropecunt Laneis astreet nameused in English towns and cities during theMiddle Ages. It is believed to be a reference to the prostitution being carried on in those areas in the same streets with other "trades" have names referring to the business being carried out.

According to Wiki It fell out of usage as a street name in the 14th century with existing streets being renamed Grope/ Grape/ Grove.

Most posters when asked about something like this will provide an explanation- not "google it yourself" . You are the one who knew this. Bertrand and I didn't. On another thread today 2 posters were puzzled what a poster meant by an "Orange Walk". I know what it means. Explaining it with a link took no more time than "google it yourself".

I posted 2 links which I found which were in the top results- one being a feminist blog. Neither seemed particularly convincing.

And I did not posit a theory. I stated a fact. Which you chose to question based on looking up something you claim not to care about on that well known source of history, Urban Dictionary.

I hate the internet, and all who sail on her. It’s endlessly ridiculous.

PLenty of English streets used to be called Gropecunt Lane.

I have read that Cunt didn't used to be so rude (although I suspect it was always fairly coarse! not a language expert though).