Is Profanity Evolving?

Recently I had got into a fad of watching older movies and TV serials. Some were classics and others were films that I had either enjoyed as a young adult, or missed viewing at the time. To be honest I found a ‘few’ to be a drag, though ‘most’ were still as enthralling. They took some time to gather steam, which was expected considering that we are now used to fast paced adrenaline boosted movies. But the plots more than made up for the slow start. What struck me most though about these movies, was not the photography or the cinematography or editing or special effects. I knew that those could not compare to modern films, and that the advances in technology since those days are huge.

 

What actually struck me was the language - the dialog. There were hardly any cuss words or swearing, and despite that handicap the characters seemed to be able to express their displeasure or anger quite ably. We were never left in doubt, as to their feelings and their passions. It almost seemed as if they had thousands of words at their disposal to vent and fume with, as opposed to a handful of the same that is available to their modern counterparts.

 

The films were not littered with the "F" word, and profanity to make a sailor blush was not deemed necessary to deliver the relevant emotion. The storyline did not suffer or get diminished because the main character could not give voice to his feelings through an expletive. This is true of Bollywood as well (but to a much lesser extent) as the few recent films that I have seen, though technically much better, did have a liberal sprinkling of foul language. I would not be surprised if this is a global trend, holding true in Japan as well as France.

 

As an example we watched a film called "The Sitter" a comedy about a young man forced to babysit some children, and we thought it might be good family fun. How mistaken were we when it started with a graphic scene, and then was liberally sprinkled with profanity almost all through.

 

That got me to think about how language, and profanity in particular, has been evolving. If you notice children you will see that they start using the milder forms of cursing in their earlier years. “Stupid” and “Idiot” are pretty shocking expressions for an average 5 to 6 year old, and it would not be unusual for your child to come home crying, because a friend used those words at school or on the playground. As they get older the words evolve and get more colorful. Context and flavor is added, on an increasing gradient into the tweens and adulthood.

 

I think that this also applies to society in general. What words were completely unacceptable a few decades ago, are now spoken in a matter of fact manner. It has spread to the fairer sex as well, wherein it is perceived as the height of cool to have a woman (I would not call her a lady) using expletives, as a cigarette hangs from her mouth.

 

This raises a few questions in my mind:

 

 - So where do we go from here? Does this mean that in a few years from now, the "F" word coming from the mouth of an infant will be deemed "with it"?

 - Do we actually use more swear words now than before, or am I overreacting?

 - Was the early 20th century a small blip in the ocean of filth?

 - Or even worse is this trend a dumbing down of the spoken language, to appease the masses?

 

Maybe I “am” overreacting, because I cannot stand foul language.

 

And then when I reflect back on my youth growing up in a Parsi Colony, I get confused. I remember that the language in use even then was extreme - but then we Parsis were infamous for the use of foul language, and maybe my colony is not the correct yardstick.

 

Thinking about my colony brings me to an incident that happened last year.  

 

We have lived in this small colony in Mumbai since my grandparent’s time. Hence my Dad has known most of his friends for more than 75 years. I have known his friends since I was born, and so every time I go back to Bombay, I make it a point to join my Dad's group of friends, at least once. Now “their” use of language is multi-hued to say the least, though I must admit that I have never heard my own father swear!

 

I still smile to myself when I recollect a particular conversation last year.

 

They were all sitting at the Pavilion (Clubhouse) that evening, as they do daily. Having some free time on my hands I went down to join them for a while. They were sitting in a circle and I pulled up a chair and sat between two gentlemen (both close to touching eighty) who were discussing the issue of the week. It seemed that they had received some complaints about miscreant youths who were making too much noise late at night and disturbing the neighbors. So one of them turns to me and in all seriousness says…

 

Oh these #$@#@ youth who sit at the @#$@$% gate at all %^$#$#$ hours of the #@$#^ night, you $%$# should hear the $%#%^$$ language they %#$%% use. It is an absolute @#$# disgrace!

 

All I could do was smile, as the other gentleman vehemently nodded in agreement. I think the irony of that statement was lost on them both.  

 

Talk about the kettle calling the pot black!