there is a woman at school who is such a prissy pita that I couldn't resist saying the c word in front of her

[moopdaloop]

no children around and it was relevant to the conversation I was having, although wanker would also have done. The people I was talking to laughed and agreed

I never use the c word normally

Hmmmmm..incredibly funny VVVQV.

ack sorry for interupting is a dance thing or a book thing youre discussing

With the headphones, or the lap of the woman he appears to be resting his head in?

LOL Slur

I dont really know.

maybe both actions are related?

Slur..technically you are in the morning crowd!!!

Is he performing an ultrasound you mean?

Technically, I need to go to bed

technically and akchewali I am in bed. Saves all that stair climbing malarky.

Those Stannahs are jolly good, arent they?

Still no mail. Will reply as soon as I get but I must go to bed now. Am utterly shattered.

oooh you'll pay my lady.

its a great swear word

Now about "cunt" and "dick" - I do see the argument that it's bad that the worstest ever swear word is female genitalia and so using it is misogynist etc.

But... the other really strong swear word is "fuck" and that's non-gendered. And although they may not be as strong, there are a plethora of male-genitalia swear/insult words - knob, dick, tosser, cock, prick, tool etc and I think it's noticeable that they all mean something quite pathetic and inneffectual - there are few insults more withering and contemptuous than "dick" - whereas "cunt" has real power. I think that's one reason why I like it - if you turn it around, it's our genitalia that hold the power. (To stun the playground into silence, and other useful tricks)

I'm not sure that 'fuck' as a swear word is non-gendered.'Fuck you' is extremely aggressive in a way that has its origin in a male perception of sex as an agressive act, destroying, murdering the woman.

And the same powerful hatred of women gives the word 'cunt' its amazing power when used as a swearword.

Not that I think we should therefore avoid these words. We can reclaim them and evolve their implications. I love the fact that MN has made it possible (in principle -- I've never done it yet) to use the word 'cunt'.

You did use it right there Thready! You said cunt on MN!

I do totally see what you mean - it's the main feminist argument and it's logical. Hatred of women is also definitely a huge force in society and comes out in many ways.

But I also wonder - how much is it hatred of women/their genitalia, and how much fear? In fact I think in general the hatred arises from huge fear of women and their power. And however much that hatred exercises itself, and however many women are repressed and even destroyed by it, women retain their power and it retains its ability to scare men (and other women).

Or maybe I just love the c-word and must hand back my feminist membership card

OMG I can't beleive how som eof you are getting all offended and high and mighty over a word

Think the Op got a hard time tbh, it's not like she called this prissy woman a cunt, she just used the word.

You lot all need to get yourselves to see the vagina monologues

i've never understood why some people find the word cunt so offensive, i mean it's just another word.
a friend of my gf's literally winces everytime i say it. i of course try not to say it around her but the first time i met her and was informed of her feelings for some reason i used it 10xas much as i'd normally do for the rest of the night. it was like something went off in my brain, the poor girl spent the night twitching and wincing.
so why do some find it so offensive?

northerner

How come PRICK (male counterpart) is not as offensive?

Snowleopard's point is a good one that all of these male genitalia words just mean something daft, feeble, superfluous etc. They are all like 'tit' gently ridiculing, rather than fiercely agressive.

As a mum of boys I do feel just a little bit high-and-mighty about these male genitalia words. They equate maleness with incompetance, superfluity, etc. And there is too much of that in popular culture -- the 'Men Behaving Badly' picture of men. I don't want my sons to feel more useless than women.

It is unfortunate that 'cunt' is the mother of all swear words. I agree with the idea of reclaiming it. But in the meantime the majority of the population feel it's extremely rude/insulting/vulgar. I can't ever imagine using it for that reason.

I think 'tit' is more withering and contemptuous than 'dick'. It's my favourite for a man who indulges in pointless and excessive displays of machismo.

I don't like the word tit, unless we are talking about the feathery kind

TheBOD - I'm not sure either, but for me it has a contemptuous feel about it, because of the way it sounds. I don't like it much, and I have friends who really, really hate it.

The word cunt doesn't bother me in the slightest. Why does a word offend people so much?

haha....love it, it's my fav word. Nothing causes offence quite like it i find. ooo how controversial of me....!

I am missing how this woman has behaved to make OP think she is prissy. Did I just miss that post?
If someone I didn't know very well swore like you in front of me at the schoolgates, I would not be shocked, I would just assume you were a bit low-class and laugh about you to my friends.

I do find the word offensive and inappropriate for conversations at schools.

I also find it unnecessary to taunt someone who is different from you, and want to shock or upset them.