Academic sources:
Andang, K., & Bram, B. (2018). SWEAR WORDS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING-TEACHING. Language and Language Teaching Journal, 21(Supplement), 43–49. https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.2018.suppl2105
In this article the researchers aimed to look at and answer two important questions: what swear words have the highest frequency based on Corpus on Contemporary American English (COCA) and what implications of the frequency of swear words are for learners and teachers of English? The data used in this paper came from both a survey on Facebook in 2013 and the COCA corpus which was updated in December 2017. The data was then examined and compared to find the frequency of the English profanity words. The result of this revealed the top ten US profanities used by online users based on frequency as being: 1. shit 2. fuck 3. damn 4. bitch 5. crap 6. piss 7. dick 8. darn 9. cock 10. pussy 11. asshole. Additionally, it showed the COCA frequency top ten list: 1. damn 2. dick 3. shit 4. bloody 5. fuck 6. bitch 7. crap 8. bastard 9. asshole 10. darn. Both of these profanity lists serve to answer the first research question and illustrate profanity words that English speakers tend to favor.
As for the second research question, this article examines the idea that swearing is used in regards to particular pragmatic variables like the topic, speaker-listener relationship and social-physical setting of the communication. Due to this pragmatic nature, the article argues that teachers were to do learners a disservice if they didn’t teach them how to use swear words. Indeed teaching how to swear would not would not bring bad impacts on the students speaking skills but instead would allow them to have the tools they need to make decisions for themselves. Thus, this article is important as it serves to highlight profanity words English speakers tend to favor and it shows the pragmatic importance of teaching swear words to learners.
Bitchener, J. (2008, April 18). An investigation of ESOL teachers’ attitudes towards teaching about taboo English in the second language classroom. Openrepository. https://openrepository.aut.ac.nz/handle/10292/35
This paper goes over the overlooked notion of researching taboo English; further, the lack of teaching the limited information as well. The study is aimed at understanding the attitudes and opinions of 80 total ESOL instructors from 10 different language schools in Auckland, New Zealand. This was done through the usage of a questionnaire crafted to elicit a conglomerate of qualitative and quantitative data.
The results concluded that taboo English was deemed an essential and valuable part of the ESOL instructor’s repertoire. Though, it was seen that a large majority did not show enthusiasm for teaching about taboo language. This article is important because it brings to light the lack of instructor enthusiasm in teaching about taboo language which is often glossed over. Additionally, this article makes the argument that language is a carrier of culture. This is something we tried to illustrate in this curation by providing instances of memes with popular swear words incorporated in them.
Dewaele, J.-M. (2010, March 29). The Emotional Force of Swearwords and Taboo Words in the Speech of Multilinguals. Taylor & Francis. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01434630408666529
This paper’s purpose is to investigate the emotional power and force that swear words as well as taboo words hold among 1039 multilinguals. The paper’s goal is to determine the relationship between languages and emotion in the bi- and multilingualism and understanding the emotional force that these words have in the eyes of the language speakers. These words are regarded as (S-T words) within the paper. The paper concludes that it highly depends upon the linguistic history (how and when that language was learned). This paper is important because it informs the idea that taboo words have emotional power and force when used in everyday language.
Finn, E. (2017). Swearing: The good, the bad & the ugly. ORTESOL, 17–26. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1152392.pdf
This article explores the positives and negatives of the relevance of teaching ESL students how to swear in the classroom. Swearing is incredibly apparent within popular English media. That, combined with how often normal English speakers swear, means that learners are definitely exposed to these kinds of words. So, while learners are gaining exposure, they need instruction on how to use these words in context to avoid embarrassing and potentially even dangerous situations.
The article argues that swearing can be a double-edged sword; it can allow learners to gain solidarity and tighter bonds with peers or co-workers but if used incorrectly it can make learners seem offensive, unintelligent or even unstable. By not teaching learners how to use these swear words in context, it can lead to them trying to learn on their own which could put them into bad or dangerous situations. Therefore, this article makes that argument that teachers should stop ignoring the topic of swearing and should make it a part of the curriculum to help learners understand these important pragmatic dimensions behind swearing.
Holgate, E. (2018). Why Swear? Analyzing and Inferring the Intentions of Vulgar Expressions. Proceedings of the 2018 Conference on Empirical Methods in Natural Language Processing, 2205–4414. https://www.aclweb.org/anthology/D18-1471.pdf.
This article uses data from Twitter, to present the first analysis of the pragmatic aspects of vulgarity and how they relate to social factors. The overarching goal of the study was to present a multi-faceted analysis of the types of profanity word usage. In this article the researchers gathered their data from the Vulgar twitter Corpus. The data set they used ultimately contained 7,800 tweets with 8,524 vulgar word labels annotated for one of six functions by seven annotators. In order to do a demographic analysis, they used data from self-reported surveys on Twitter of important variables like gender, age, level of education, level of annual income, faith and political ideology.
The results then showed that younger users are more likely to use vulgar words as opposed to older users. The researchers attributed this to younger users wanting to use profanity to signal group identity and express emotion. Additionally, they found liberals are more likely to use vulgar words in general and especially for emphasis. However, when it came to examining faith, the opposite appeared to be true. Less vulgarity usage was seen which can also be strongly correlated to conservative political ideology. This article is ultimately important as it situates the versatility of vulgar words and it shows how pragmatics and social factors can influence the use of swearing.
Horan, G. (2013, July 11). You taught me language; and my profit on’t/Is, I know how to curse': cursing and swearing in foreign language learning. Taylor & Francis. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14708477.2013.804533
The purpose of this article is to discuss why swearing is a manifestation of personal emotional language and the importance of addressing it in the classroom. The article emphasizes that psycholinguistic analysis and pragmatic studies have argued that swearing is a central component of an individuals communication skills. The paper then explores the possibilities for making swearing a staple in the foreign language learning classroom.
This article ultimately argues that teaching about swearing does have a place in foreign language classrooms at the university level or higher. However, they argue that there is little to gain from teaching a lesson about how to swear. This article believes the value surrounding taboo and swearing comes from the larger context and thematizing it can provide, for example, these words are sometimes used to create humorous conditions. This article is important because it argues that swearing is an important topic to be included in foreign language classes and it discusses some of the key elements of why swearing is so important in our culture.
Irwin, G. (2019). Swearing in a Second Language. Grand Valley State University - Masters Thesis, 1–62. https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1928&context=theses
Within this thesis, Irwin goes into depth about the competence in L2 swearing and how it is important for L2 learners to be able to express themselves genuinely and with the full threshold of their emotion. Though, with the hush nature of the taboo language, the disservice of the language ability is very apparent. The paper’s main concern is to address the gap in what L2 language users truthfully know about the usage of swearing in their L2. The hypothesis encompasses whether or not that there is a gap between a learner’s swearing ability and their desire to learn how to properly swear within their L2.
This thesis ultimately concludes that the importance of swearing and taboo language is largely dependent on the language being spoken and the culture surrounding it. In English, swearing is deemed relatively normal and important when compared to in Saudi Arabia where swearing is deemed completely inappropriate for an educational context. Thus, since is deemed important, the article argues that it should be taught to learners (in appropriate courses like a graduate program or if a learner is living in the US).
Jay, T., & Janschewitz, K. (2008). The pragmatics of swearing. Journal of Politeness Research. Language, Behaviour, Culture, 4(2), 267–288. https://doi.org/10.1515/jplr.2008.013
This article maintains the idea that the main purpose of swearing is to express emotions. They argue the emotional impact of swearing is highly dependent upon context, speaker-listener relationship, and social-physical context. In this study they gathered ratings of offensiveness based on the three variables noted above and they ultimately found evidence for the idea that learning where, when, and with whom to use swear words is a complex process that takes a long time for learners to master.
This article helps inform our project because in their study they examined a whole host of pragmatic dimensions that can have an impact on swearing. They examined some key variables like: gender, status, location of the conversation, familiarity with the speaker, knowledge of the culture of the language you are swearing in, and more. The researchers ultimately arrived on the conclusion that all of these variables are important to take into account when one swears and this is why it can be so difficult for learners to learn how to swear.
Kaduce, R., & Metzger, N. (2019). Dangnabit! It’s Time to Teach Swearing in ESL Classrooms. Midtesol, 1–15. https://midtesol.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/3-MIDTESOL-Journal-Vol-2-Dagnabit.pdf.
The main argument of this article is that the main goal of language instructors is to provide learners with the language tools they will need to interact with speakers in the target language. A crucial part of any language involves swearing, therefore teachers need to stop ignoring the topic of swearing because it’s deemed as “too taboo” for a classroom setting.
The second part of this article introduces a pilot unit for swearing that could be implemented into ESL classrooms. The unit is broken into four parts: “general knowledge”, “an introduction to English swearing”, “demonstrate your knowledge” and “role playing activities”. The units are designed to cultivate curiosity towards the topic of swearing, introduce swearing and the culture differences that come with it, and to allow students to have free reign to explore their own knowledge and use of their new language skills. Some activities within the different units include: peer group discussions, watching a humorous video about the different meanings of “ass” in English, answering short questions about class activities, and even a planned role-play for students to participate in. This article can be an important tool for language instructors as it provides a foundation for some tangible ways to implement the topic of swearing within the classroom.
Liyanage, I. (2015, May 20). Accommodating taboo language in English language teaching: issues of appropriacy and authenticity. Taylor & Francis. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07908318.2015.1031675
This article delves into the cultural taboo use of swearing within English. The author goes into meticulous detail about the role of the classroom learning experiences with the goal of preparing L2 learners of the use of taboo language in social interactions. The author goes on to explain the much ignored topic due to the discomfort caused. This article draws upon interview data that come from three experienced teachers of English and explore their views and how they carry out taboo language teaching. The type of English that is in focus is Australian English and the use of “bloody”.
Mercury, R.-E. (1995). Swearing: A “Bad” Part of Language; A Good Part of Language Learning. TESL Canada Journal, 13(1), 28. https://doi.org/10.18806/tesl.v13i1.659
The main focus of this article is to explore the social complexities of obscene language and how English language learners can better understand these important pragmatic distinctions. The article begins by defining and making distinctions between the words cursing, profanity, blasphemy, taboo or obscenity, vulgarisms and expletives. The article then dives into pragmatic distinctions that should be taken into account when using swear words.
The article makes the argument that successful English swearers examine pragmatic contexts of the conversation before they swear. For example, some common situations where most English speakers tend to avoid swearing are: in front of children, speaking to new acquaintances, parents, or physicians. The main reasoning behind this is because in these situations, the interlocutors are of a higher class/social rank. However, some other pragmatic dimensions that play into situations like these are the conversation location and level of familiarity and knowledge of the listeners. All of these different social complexities are influential factors which govern a speaker’s verbal behavior. Overall, the article argues that in order to be what is considered a “good swearer” the speaker must evaluate all of these components and social rules before swearing.
Oliver, F. E. (2011, June 28). Swearing and how to deal with it in the classroom. Skemman. https://skemman.is/handle/1946/9582
This thesis dissects the often overlooked use of English swearing in ESL classrooms in Iceland as well as the lack of published material on this topic. The purpose of this study is to investigate the English teacher’s true emotions towards teaching swearing and the appropriate usage of it.
The study concludes with the notion of the more use of these taboo words, the less it becomes so shocking to hear/use them within any given context. Further, it is emphasized that context is the number one important element to swearing. This last point is relevant as we used it as a large basis for this curated collection. Swearing is largely dependent upon context and one swear word can mean something completely different purely based on its surrounding context.
Tironi, A. (2019, April 16). "WHAT THE F*CK WAS THAT?!” A PRELIMINARY STUDY ON THE USE OF SWEAR WORDS BY UNIVERSITY ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNERS IN CHILE. Revistaschilenas. https://revistaschilenas.uchile.cl/handle/2250/38249
This article explores the use of swear words in English through the context of university level English in Chile. The study focuses on two elements of swearing: the self-reported knowledge of swear words by an EFL learner of English in a University level and the researchers desire to know the context and with whom the learners stated that they used the swear words in English.
The researchers concluded that even though the taboo words were not a part of the EFL curriculum, the students will acquire the swears by incidental learning. Though, with a noticeable pragmatic gap. Thus, the article argues that teaching how to swear within EFL classrooms can help eliminate this 'pragmatic gap' and provide learners with the tools they will need to navigate how to swear. This article is important because it also argues that when teaching how to swear it is crucial to incorporate different sources of learning in the classroom. These different sources can look different (memes, videos, websites), basically anything that uses instances of "real English" which can also help to eliminate the "pragmatic gap".
Waterhouse, M. (2013, November 7). Recherche uO Research: Taboo language and the ESL learner: An ethnographic study. Ruor.Uottawa. https://ruor.uottawa.ca/handle/10393/27077
The purpose of this thesis is to understand the complex interplay of ESL learners relationship with taboo language and the power dynamic that they experience with the language. The author raises the notion that by increasing awareness of the social use of taboo language, it encourages the practice of teaching English taboo language to better empower the ESL learner.
This thesis is important because the author advocates for both the incorporation of taboo language in ESL classrooms and they advocate for the incorporation of these same classrooms raising awareness of the social use of taboo language. Taboo language is such a large part of the language that ESL learners will encounter and it is paramount that they will be able to use this kind of language to try and situate their identities.
Wedlock, J. (2020). Teaching about Taboo Language in EFL/ESL Classes: A Starting Point. Files.Eric.Gov. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1263547.pdf
The main idea behind this article was to examine how educators can begin to broach the subject of teaching students about swearing, offensive and/or taboo language (SOTL) in a way that is non-offensive or threatening and remains professional. They begin the article by arguing that teaching about SOTL is important because language is used to situate one’s identity. Thus, by avoiding the topic of SOTL it is inadvertently taking away those social choices and interpersonal strategies which can ultimately lead to a “reduced personality”. Additionally, by avoiding teaching about offensive language, it could lead to learners not being able to identify potentially dangerous situations.
Then, the article discusses the findings of a research study they did in four different adult EFL classrooms in which they examined teaching strategies for SOTL. These findings helped inform the suggested guidelines for educators dealing with the topic of SOTL provided in the article. Some of these guidelines include: making sure the class and every activity within the class is optional for students, explaining appropriacy and pragmatic components which govern SOTL use, and teaching students important distinctions like varying grammar rules within SOTL use (fan-fucking-tastic). While this article only examines teaching about swearing, it still provides important insight into what things educators should take into consideration before implementing this idea into the classroom.