Do you view someone differently if they swear?

[Speckledhem]

I don’t really mind the odd swear word - I swear myself from time to time, but why do people swear inappropriately as in normal sentences or use the C word? Its not that it offends, It’s just really quite repulsive both spoken or written down, I just switch off and lose any respect I would have had for this person.

Is it a regional thing? People just don’t talk like that in my area

I rarely swear nor does anyone I mix with. If someone swears in my company I will pull them up and ask them to not use such foul language for which there is no excuse

I'd be telling you 'I have two words to say to you, and the second word is "off"'

Yes I like them more.
Linked to higher intelligence surprisingly.

I don’t swear and would be uncomfortable around people who swear as part of normal conversation. I don’t know really know anyone who swears as part of regular chat though.

I work in a busy IT dept, the air is fucking blue!

@Mumoblue

No, I’m not a wanker.

Swearing is very common in most places I’ve lived. Judging someone on the words they use rather than what they’re actually saying is… kinda fucked up.

This. I hate when people think they're better than others for the way they speak.

I take the view that words wouldn't exist if they weren't supposed to be used.

I also take the view that we as a society have chosen to make some words 'bad' and some not.

I wouldn't choose to use words that are racist/disablist etc. But the rest are fair game. If people choose to be offended by it, that's up to them.

I remember being about eight and hearing Derek and Clive for the first time. I think it was that one that begins, promisingly, with, "I wish all the endangered species would be wiped off the fucking face of the earth," and admonishes whales, inter alia, for being "such cunts they can't breathe underwater."

Until then, I had assumed adulthood meant being a po-faced, tight-sphinctered cunt with a comparatively narrow vocabulary! It was wonderful hearing adults use the words all of us horrible little kids were using freely among ourselves at school, and gave me hope that when I grew up I might find fellow sweary fuckers with whom to pass my days.

@WomanStanleyWoman

I judge people who don’t swear. I just know I’m going to find them a bit pious and po-faced.

Same!

Tbf I don’t use the C word, I would never swear AT someone or call someone names, but I do liberally throw around the ‘fucks sake’ when things go wrong. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t really.

I think I read somewhere that swearers tend to be more intelligent

I won’t swear nor do friends and family. None of us are pious, po-faced or lacking in intelligence. It’s just something we don’t like.

Context and audience really.

Doing a Full Metal Jacket Gunnery Sergeant to a 5 year old (eg "That goddamn painting couldn't be any worse if I ate some fucking crayons and shat them onto your mummies fucking yoga mat"), yes that's bad.

"Oh shit" after dropping a cup of tea and I'd think they were positively restrained.

I hate when people think they're better than others for the way they speak.

It seems to me that it’s the swearers who think they’re better than others, judging by this thread.

@daisypond

I hate when people think they're better than others for the way they speak.

It seems to me that it’s the swearers who think they’re better than others, judging by this thread.

I agree.

For whoever said people just don't talk like that in your area, where are you?! I'm a senior professional and at times painfully middle class. I don't swear around clients, will say bloody in front of my ds (much to my horror he has picked this up). My dad hates swearing with an almost obsessive passion.

In my personal life I swear every other sentence as do my sister and mother. Its an automatic transition and I don't think about what words I use. I also use the c word though less than I used to.

So no.

There’s a difference between swearing at someone, and just happening to include swear words in your vocabulary. I don’t care about the latter, and do it myself. The former is unacceptable in most circumstances.

Out of interest, what bad thing do people think is going to happen if someone swears in front of (not at) a child?

I’m not saying I do it purposefully- but is it really that bad?

I don’t really know any kids so not a big deal for me just interested.

I’m in the camp of swearing is fun and to be encouraged. It’s a good way of weeding out the pearl clutchers.

Yes. It makes me think they're uneducated, rude and boorish. I don't mean the odd swear word for emphasis when recounting a story or using them when you're really angry, I mean the people who can't say a full sentence without the f word in it. "I hardly had any fucking time to go to the fucking shop" sort of thing. People who use language like that in their everyday conversation immediately get filed into the 'not worth knowing' box in my brain. Sorry if that's snobby, but that's how I feel.

Nicking from Frankie Boyle on this one but for me, the word ‘fucking’ is just a warning that a noun is on its way.

@meow1989

For whoever said people just don't talk like that in your area, where are you?! I'm a senior professional and at times painfully middle class. I don't swear around clients, will say bloody in front of my ds (much to my horror he has picked this up). My dad hates swearing with an almost obsessive passion.

In my personal life I swear every other sentence as do my sister and mother. Its an automatic transition and I don't think about what words I use. I also use the c word though less than I used to.

So no.

We don’t swear. I’m a corporate finance director, DH a GP. My family is in Belgium- parents retired university lecturer and an engineer. My sister and brother in law are both dentists.

Lol me and @CecilieRose at opposite ends of the debate here 😁

When someone swears I feel instantly more drawn to them. Like they’re part of my tribe and I can relax with them.

@CecilieRose

Yes. It makes me think they're uneducated, rude and boorish. I don't mean the odd swear word for emphasis when recounting a story or using them when you're really angry, I mean the people who can't say a full sentence without the f word in it. "I hardly had any fucking time to go to the fucking shop" sort of thing. People who use language like that in their everyday conversation immediately get filed into the 'not worth knowing' box in my brain. Sorry if that's snobby, but that's how I feel.

That’s funny, most of the people I know who swear have PhDs, are professors and work as lecturers, some of them are internationally renowned experts in their field. Hardly uneducated 😂

I had no idea so many were made uncomfortable / offended by swearing. I'm from Essex / East London and swearing comes as naturally as breathing.

I don't in front of kids, my parents and some friends / work colleagues who seem like they many not appreciate it. Not many though.

I like to tell anecdotes with the naturally sweary emphases.

That’s funny, most of the people I know who swear have PhDs, are professors and work as lecturers, some of them are internationally renowned experts in their field. Hardly uneducated 😂

One of my favourite lecturers at uni used to swear sometimes in our lectures if she cocked something up; she was a fabulous woman.

So uneducated!!

I do think it's a class/education thing to a certain extent. Highly educated professionals tend to swear quite a lot in my experience.

I do tend to swear when I'm feeling animated or sometimes in jest with my teens, but it does depend in part on the situation. It can be an important aspect of self expression, and there are certainly words I find more offensive than swear words. Sometimes the swearer's background makes a difference too. I hear the C word a lot more from Scottish people than English people, and somehow it bothers me less.

I knew a woman who had suffered a brain injury and she told me a story about how she was unable to speak in the early days after her injury. Things happened during her care that upset her, and she didn't have the words to tell the carers to stop. Years later, she had a massive breakthrough when she was able to say "Fuck Off!" It made her so happy, she commemorated the moment in a piece of art. It was beautiful 😁.