Swearing?

Endurance Man

Why is swearing in this country so common? Not sure if i have worded that correctly but let me try explain.
It seems every person you chat to uses numerous "foul" words in there day to day conversations. It seems like it is the norm and i cant understand it. When i first came to school here i was in english class, first day, and i started hearing both the students and teacher using the word fcuk like it was Saturday nite down at the pub. I was shocked to say the least but natuarlly got used to it.

I swear, but when im angry or have had a lot to drink. I dont swear infront of my parents, relatives, girls (if i can) and random people that i converse with.
I was driving in a friends car last nite and his 14yr old cousin was yapping away using fowl language infront of his father, i would see this as highly disrespectful.

Is it perhaps a lack of vocabulary, they have to add fcuk inplace of all adjectives? It would seem its being taught in schools, why are the children being brought up like this, and why cant adults have a conversation about the most mundane things and not use this language?

WizZard

'Fowl' language? Like "You chicken!", "Squawk!", "Cluck, cluck" and similar?

Sorry, couldn't help it

Riamfada

Usuallyits beacuse of a ****ing lack of inteligence but in all fairness i say **** and ****e alot and i like to think i have a wide vocab. I guess its just part of the irish nature.

Adam

Lmfao ^^

Endurance Man

WizZard wrote:

'Fowl' language? Like "You chicken!", "Squawk!", "Cluck, cluck" and similar?

Sorry, couldn't help it

Damn you, shoulda proof read .

3greenrizla's

you bring up this thread with eric cartman as your avitar?

shut your' f*ckin face uncle f*cker.............

- joke -

yes people do sware too much including me, but i dont give a f*ck

Adam

we're swaring with fowl language...

is it any wonder we curse?! we cant speak the rest of the ****in language!!

Laguna

I found it very shocking when I first came to Ireland for a Gardai I met to be liberal with the words F*** and C***. It just seems to be the done thing here.

arbeitsscheuer

How do people, like, not swear?
There's all these f**king spaces in sentences and speech where u just have to put a f**king profanity. For f**ks sake, like.

Endurance Man

Grimes wrote:

Usuallyits beacuse of a ****ing lack of inteligence but in all fairness i say **** and ****e alot and i like to think i have a wide vocab. I guess its just part of the irish nature.

It seems it is, the kids are brought up this way and i think its terrible . I think it could be a clue as to why children in these schools are so disobedient, and have no respect what so ever for there teachers.

Adam

Was that genuine use of the word 'like' Seb??

I think I rest my case... :rolleyes:

missingtime

I'm fierce bad for swearing. I dont even notice it anymore. God help me when I have to go for my interview. "Yea I used to work at Tesco but it was sh!te and they are all w@nkers"

homah_7ft

Swearing is good for the soul. Ireland is traditionally a relaxed country. I believe swearing is our form of the familiar tense used in other languages. I'm relaxed in your company and think of you as an equal therefore I swear. :v:

Endurance Man

SebtheBum wrote:

How do people, like, not swear?
There's all these f**king spaces in sentences and speech where u just have to put a f**king profanity. For f**ks sake, like.

Thats exactly it, and its terrible . People need to get more of a vocab, if they ever leave ireland to go work in another part of the world they are going to be lost. They will not be able to hold an adult conversation without being looked at as uncultered.

3greenrizla's

swearing = big + clever



http://www.viz.co.uk/

look in the profanisaurus section

Endurance Man

homah_7ft wrote:

Swearing is good for the soul. Ireland is traditionally a relaxed country. I believe swearing is our form of the familiar tense used in other languages. I'm relaxed in your company and think of you as an equal therefore I swear. :v:

But thats just it, children in the shool enviroment are NOT equal to there teachers, and by allowing them to swear from such a young age they are loosing all respect for them. I would bet this is the reason the kids are such brats .

Tusky

go **** yourself.

Adam

Is one to assume we are in fact cultured, aside from swearing?? I wouldn't agree, I dont see any aspects of culture in the majority of Irish people...

funk-you

you can also convey emotion or meaning to a sentance by using swear words. when talking to the general public, instead of using words or phrases people might not understand your meaning from you can instert a swear word. that and it is just something that you pick up and dont think twice about just like picking up a bit of an accent when living somewhere different for a while.

****, ****, ****, ******, ****, ****head

Laguna

Endurance Man wrote:

It seems it is, the kids are brought up this way and i think its terrible . I think it could be a clue as to why children in these schools are so disobedient, and have no respect what so ever for there teachers.

I completely agree, I've seen the behaviour of some children in the classrom environment and it's shocking, I've heard teachers being called revolting things, I've seen teachers been squared upto by the class hardman. I feel this is down to a fundamental lack of respect for authority, for example, the worst thing that can happen to you in schools in this country is *possible* suspension, where I'm from in London, if you dared to call a teacher a c*** you'd be EXPELLED and a permanent mark goes on your educational record (to be read by future employers etc.). Also, in this country, who is honestly in fear of the Gardai?, they're not exactly something I would regard as a police force, they're more like a private security firm interested in protecting local businesses..

arbeitsscheuer

Tusky wrote:

go **** yourself.

F**kin A

Adam

Well if thats where this thread is going it stems from the documentary the other night on antisocial behavior doesn't it? Its not purely reserved for the classroom, its almost a way of life for some!

Endurance Man

Laguna wrote:

I completely agree, I've seen the behaviour of some children in the classrom environment and it's shocking, I've heard teachers being called revolting things, I've seen teachers been squared upto by the class hardman. I feel this is down to a fundamental lack of respect for authority, for example, the worst thing that can happen to you in schools in this country is *possible* suspension, where I'm from in London, if you dared to call a teacher a c*** you'd be EXPELLED and a permanent mark goes on your educational record (to be read by future employers etc.). Also, in this country, who is honestly in fear of the Gardai?, they're not exactly something I would regard as a police force, they're more like a private security firm interested in protecting local businesses..

Yup, back in SA if you where caught swearing to a friend it was detention. If you swore at a teacher you where given a warning, 2 strikes and your out with a note on your permanent school record. I have seen teachers in this country reduced to tears by these kids. My mom had a friend who came over to teach english and had to leave after 3 weeks, could not handle the kids.
I would also agree with you on the Police force, they do seem very dosile.

homah_7ft

Endurance Man wrote:

Yup, back in SA if you where caught swearing to a friend it was detention. If you swore at a teacher you where given a warning, 2 strikes and your out with a note on your permanent school record.

Yes we really should model our society on South Africa. Hmmm

Laguna

homah_7ft wrote:

Yes we really should model our society on SA. Hmmm

Yeah I can see where you're coming from with that, especially as Endurance Man didn't suggest you do so. I take it then you're in favour of the non conformist attitude that is rampant in this country?

homah_7ft

Laguna wrote:

Yeah I can see where you're coming from with that, especially as Endurance Man didn't suggest you do so. I take it then you're in favour of the non conformist attitude that is rampant in this country?

He highlighted South Africa as a model to illustrate his point. Fair enough I say. It's just that I think some non-conformism is useful. I really think it's a cultural thing. I would agree there are times it's not appropriate but there is a time and a place for everything. Just in Ireland it's more frequent.

MrJoeSoap

Can't beat an auld profanity here and there.

Laguna

homah_7ft wrote:

He highlighted South Africa as a model to illustrate his point. Fair enough I say. It's just that I think some non-conformism is useful. I really think it's a cultural thing. I would agree there are times it's not appropriate but there is a time and a place for everything. Just in Ireland it's more frequent.

I don't think Endurance Man was insinuating that South Africa is a model that Ireland should base itself on, he was echoing my point about the differences I found between my background and the practices in this country.

Lump

If it's in the ****ing Oxford Dictionary, it's ****ing good enough for me.

John

Somnus

missingtime wrote:

"Yea I used to work at Tesco but it was sh!te and they are all w@nkers"

That'd be f***in hilarious

I swear all the time, and most of the time i dont even think about it. Like a lot of other people here, i just swear in my conversations.I think of swears as jsut part of the language now.

I DON'T however swear in front of my parents or teachers etc etc.

dundalk cailin

I dont and wont swear in front of my parents, but i have noticed my little sister has a tendancy to let a curse slip :eek: i always pull her up on it, she should have a bit of respect, plus she didnt learn it from me (everything wrong she does has been due to my influence apparently :rolleyes:)

ionapaul

I was sitting at the tables in Vegas a few years ago with some friends who had come over from home to visit (I was living in California at the time), and one friend in particular never copped to the fact that people abroad don't swear as much as the Irish. After ten minutes at the table, the dealer finally had to ask him to stop swearing, as it was making all the other people at the table uncomfortable. After living in the States for 5 years, I definitely swear much less than most here, and I try to avoid swearing as much as possible - the words become commonplace and lose effectiveness by being used too much!

Mossy Monk

who decided what all the bad words were anyway

i swear as much as the next person. i dont notice it when i do it but in certain situations like work i dont swear at all

Big Nelly

Mossy Monk wrote:

who decided what all the bad words were anyway

i swear as much as the next person. i dont notice it when i do it but in certain situations like work i dont swear at all

Same here....I swear as well...dont really notice....most countries do it.....get me into work and you wont hear a peep out of me...also when around GF house I wouldnt say a swear word....but out in the pub with the lads if a different story! f this f that.....and so on!!

Iago

I just find it ironic that the OP is insinuating that the reason the Irish curse a lot is due to a lack of vocabulary, and yet constantly seems to mix up common words and spellings in every post.

I curse a lot, not in work and normally not in polite company, but certainly on a sports field, or when something has gone wrong. It's a way of expressing the emotion that you're feeling with a little passion and emphasis.

Dave!

Endurance Man wrote:

But thats just it, children in the shool enviroment are NOT equal to there teachers, and by allowing them to swear from such a young age they are loosing all respect for them. I would bet this is the reason the kids are such brats .

Well it seems that school is somewhat disfunctional, cos any school I've been to, the students are not allowed to swear at all, let alone at a teacher. But I'm sure allowing the students to slag teachers and square up to them IS teaching them a lack of respect for authority. But as I say, that's not the norm.

Re: swearing,

I swear alot, not as much in front of my parents, but I still do (they swear too). I don't see what the big deal about it is, to be honest. I think that alot of other countries are too uptight about 'bad language'. For example, in America, 'damn' and 'hell' are considered profanity -- they must be in for a shock when they come to Ireland! We use that kind of stuff as our every day conversation -- it's not a curse at all! Goddammit, bloody hell, etc etc.

I swear in my day to day conversation, dunno why, it's just natural I guess... I do it alot more, as someone said, when I'm in the pub or drinking or something (at that point, it IS because of a lack of vocabulary -- I could be like "pass us the bleedin, f*uckin, yoke... the bloody THING... for f*ck sake, the c*ntin YOKE!!! ...the remote control, yeah, thanks"), and I swear alot more when I'm angry.

It's not because of a lack of vocabulary, no, I have quite a wide vocabulary to be honest, I've worked on it, lol I don't really know why I do it, I just do, and I don't make any apologies, because as I say, I don't think it's a big deal, and some people are too uptight about it.

smalltalker

ionapaul wrote:

the words become commonplace and lose effectiveness by being used too much!

Have a nice day.

ionapaul

smalltalker wrote:

Have a nice day.

F**k you, you f**king f**kweasel.


Ahem, I mean to say, thanks, have a good one yourself

homah_7ft

Laguna wrote:

I don't think Endurance Man was insinuating that South Africa is a model that Ireland should base itself on, he was echoing my point about the differences I found between my background and the practices in this country.

I'm sorry I thought that he said basically that he found swearing in the classroom offensive and that in South Africa they have means to control it.

J.R.HARTLEY

i'm a right beggar for swearing, but one day i heard my old ma use the f word and i was shocked, it sounds filthy when a lady says it. i've tried to curtail it especially around women and children, it is something you should do out of politness and courtesy for others.

Lump

If I'm hung over I'm terrible.... Women and Kids stear clear! I can be anywhere and shout abuse due to hungover/drunken-ness.

John

JackKelly

i swear far to much but strangly enough, never infront of my parents, It doesnt really bother me. I don't think its down to a lack of vocabulary either. Just an Irish thing. It can liven the conversation up if used right. There are some words that shouldn't be used. Namely C***.....an g**.

Sarky

It's a lack of imagination and enthusiasm. Put some effort into expressing your sentiments, you lazy plebians. Nothing says "My inspiration regularly falls short of that possessed by a week-dead mackerel" than peppering a sentence with the usual common vulgarities.

panda100

I hate swearing so much.I never swear and everyone always thinks its really cute when i say 'sugars' instead of 's**t' and 'Drat' instead of 'f**k'. Swearing is the most off putting thing ever in a guy for me. What annoys me is that its seemed as really funny to swear?If you go see a comedian in Ireland and he swears a lot its deemed as fu**ing hillarious.I've been to at least three gigs where what the comedian is saying is not funny but cos he's throwing a few swear words in people seem to think he's great!

brian crackout

Ya can say that again ya c*nting B*stard!

largerthanlife

bad language is for the people with a lack of a vocabulary i pity those and look down on them as i rarely curse

johnny_ultimate

It's a necessary evil I think. And if it is a sin as many say, see y'all down below

johnny_ultimate

largerthanlife wrote:

bad language is for the people with a lack of a vocabulary i pity those and look down on them as i rarely curse

Bit supremist there.... Just because someone swears doesnt make them a lesser person.

ratboy

johnny_ultimate wrote:

It's a necessary evil I think. And if it is a sin as many say, see y'all down below

Why evil? i think swearing is just another way of expressing something, if people find it offensive well **** them, they're old fashioned.

Endurance Man

ratboy wrote:

Why evil? i think swearing is just another way of expressing something, if people find it offensive well **** them, they're old fashioned.

It is the lazy uneducated way of expressing something and when i meet someone who swear excessively i do look at them differently. When someone puts "fcuk" in place of EVERY adjective is shows laziness and a lack of Vocab. Now thats not to say that this person doesnt have a wide vocab, but my impression is that he does not.

cooperguy

I saw a tv programme on this before. it said irish use so much swearing because in the past it was a culture based purely on word of mouth and story-telling Swearing puts the point across more forcefully than using other adjectives so it is now part of common conversation and slang.

You cant say its because of a lack of vocabulary because a huge proportion of the population swear your hardly saying that in general the Irish have a lack of vocabulary