In Defense of Cursing

I love to swear.

For the first 14 years of my life I was prohibited from using any curse words.  From kindergarten to eighth grade I attended a private religious school where of course cursing was considered a sin.  My mother also prohibited swearing at home.  The worst thing I ever said was “darn” and even that was a religious no-no because you were really thinking “damn” which is just as bad as actually saying it.

And then, I went to public school.

Oh, public school, how I loved thee!  I remember freshman year of high school the first time I said “fuck.”  (All the other heathens were saying it!)  It felt so completely liberating, as if I was ungagged, unbound for the first time in 14 years.  I felt as though I was violating some social norm that I had adhered to for my entire life and yet I wasn’t being punished for it.  I embraced the hell out of swearing.  I used each curse word prolifically.  Each new “damn” and “shit” felt like another step away from my childhood, another step towards independence.  It was my single form of rebellion (You are welcome, Mom).

But swearing soon became complicated:  I was cursing up a storm at school with my friends but I still couldn’t around any adults- especially my mother- and remembering which words I could and couldn’t utter in any given situation was like juggling plates.  A few plates may have been broken (I’m sorry, Mom).  Experience has made me much better at keeping that cursing part of my brain roped off when in polite company.

Some people believe that swearing is the last resort of people with small minds.  Or is that sarcasm?  Either way, those people can fuck off.  I have a very large and diverse vocabulary but sometimes nothing fits the situation better than a good, strong, “Goddamnit!”  Perhaps it is because I still feel like a bit of a scofflaw each time I let a “fuck you” fly, but I have a lot of respect for people who swear in moderation.  If you don’t swear, or if you are offended because I do, you can fuck off too (Again, I’m sorry, Mom).