kriadydragon

If it makes you feel better, I hate it too. I've had to cover my kids' ears in public more than once and I always resent it. And I've had a few good movies basically ruined by it. I know they have the right to use it, but it ruins whatever it's in for me because I detest it and see no reason for civilized humans to use it. I've never thought a movie or book or story was so much better because they used that word (or a HUGE amount of lesser words).

Hearing it is like a punch in the gut for me. Reading it... well, it depends on the story. I've trained myself to read the word as something else (like friggin' or freak). Again, though, it depends on the story, as well as author. There are some stories where I know the word is inevitable, so I put up with it. But used too much and I end up skimming the story rather than reading the whole thing. There are other stories, though - either because of the way the story is written or because the author's past works never used that level of swearing - where seeing the word jolts me right out of the fic (whether original or fanfic).

It's just such an angry, bitter, vicious word, but used so much these days that no one really sees it. I don't like using swears in my own stories, but because someone once told me it would make my stories more realistic, I caved. But the F word, a certain Sh word, and a few other words I absolutely refuse to use and I don't care how realistic using them would make my stories.

Stick by your guns. I've caved a few times myself and I'm never proud of that in the end. Unfortunately those of us who don't like that kind of language are in the definite minority these days.

I can usually read over the bad language without it really bothering me as long as it's not like every other word or the F word. That's only because you get used to it if you want to read anything more than kiddy books or watch anything other than cartoons. I can usually cringe and go on if the F word is used once or twice under dire circumstances. But when it's a constant flow for several minutes, my ears just shut off and I usually change the channel or close the book.

Heh, I think we're in the minority with a lot of things. Which is why it kind of depresses me when I read a story or synopsis by someone who'd I'd thought once in the minority as well, only to find out they're not. I do get over it eventually, though.

Yeah, once or twice is... I won't say tolerable. More semi-tolerbale really. More than that and it actually puts me in a bad mood. It's one of the reasons I no longer watch anything rated R.

you know i think it depends how its used...
when its in a movie i am so accustomed to it i don't even hear it so it doesn't really bother me

but sorry you are bothered by it ((hugs))

I'm better at ignoring it in fic as I've trained myself to read it as something else. It's not a complete solution, but it makes reading it more tolerable.

Hearing it in a movie makes me cringe. Hearing it in real life actually makes me slightly nauseas. It's an anger word - probably the king of them - with a lot of angry energy behind it, so it packs quite a punch for those who don't cuss.

it really doesn't bother me.. but for me its when and where

at the bar or in a movie fine.. at the mall in front of my mom and kids.. thats not cool

I'm with you here. It is a dreadful word and I know I shouldn't use it. I'm not going to say I've never used it but under the circumstances it may have been an outlet of extreme stress. What I find wrong is when it is used in everyday language! What do you say when you REALLY need to say something. Because you've negated the shock factor of this word, it just makes me want to give the person a dictionary! And the fact that people don't have the courtesy to avoid saying it in a public place or worry about offending somebody else. (Or when you are stuck on the train and you are forced to listen.)

Oh, I hate it when people use it in casual conversation. Anger I can understand - sometimes you can't help what comes out of your mouth when enraged (I've blurted lesser words, but have since trained myself to say other things when angry. And it works, believe me. After years of thinking "oh fudge cakes" when upset, that's what pops out of my mouth. And, really, who can stay mad after blurting something like "oh fudge cakes?" ;)).

Using it in casual conversation, I think, is like wearing a Big Johnson T-shirt to a fancy wedding (if you don't know what Big Johnson is, good for you. You're better off not knowing.) There's just no reason to use it like that. I know people will argue that it isn't and shouldn't be a big deal, but the thing about words is that words have power, especially in their meaning. I say death, and what do you think of? Not good things, right? The F word has a lot - a lot - of negative, crass meanings. So even though constant use of the word may negate the power some, there's still power in the word (or parents who use the word wouldn't freak when their kids used it ;)).

My Dad taught us not to swear and I have TJ working on me. I can't even say stupid :D Which is fine by me because what I can't stand is an adult telling little kids not to swear and then doing it them self.

I agree. You will never find that word in anything I write. Can't stand it.

I can't even contemplate using it without squirming.

Totally second you on this. Hate that word - hearing it, reading it... A little easier, at times, with reading because, as you mentioned, I've trained myself to mentally edit it out. But sometimes... it's just impossible. And it has completely unnecessarily ruined some perfectly good movies and stories for me. Just - argh.

To read it once or twice in a chapter or story is somewhat tolerable, but it gets hard when that word seems to pop up every paragraph. I know people say it's just life - people cuss, especially if they're in the military. But that's the thing: various people cuss at various levels. Some pop out a swear-word every sentence while others will only blurt them when really angry. My dad was Air Force, and he rarely ever cussed.

So sometimes having very little cussing is just as realistic as having a lot of cussing. And i've found that in some stories and shows - depending on how it was written - there's no place for it, and hearing it is like tripping over a big log (I remember watching this supposedly PG show where they said the Sh word, most likely in an attempt to give the show more attitude. I don't care anyone's attitude toward cussing, it was completely out of place and pointless.)

Exactly. Actually, I'm reminded of something I read in a book on how to write well... Don't recall the author's name, just that he's written a number of well-known books. He had done a whole lot of work with both cops and military people, in the process of researching his various books. He mentioned the subject of how often writers like to add swearing, especially with such characters, in an attempt at greater realism, but in reality very few of the military and police personnel he'd worked with swore heavily, certainly not in casual conversation. Of course, such things vary depending on the situation and the individual, but... I think very often the impression that it's so necessary to "realism" is exaggerated.

And man, that is one of the times when it bugs me the most - when the swearing doesn't really have any purpose, beyond attempting to make something edgier, give it more attitude. Like you said - like tripping over a big log in the middle of the living room, and wondering what that's doing there. It bothers me very much.

Ditto to the above. I don't use such language and I don't like hearing it or seeing it either.

There are lesser words I can ignore because in some movies and fic they are usually only mentioned once or twice in the story and under dire circumstances, but the F-bomb is just awful.

It's a vicious word. I can ignore it pretty good most of the time in fic, hate hearing it in movies but really hate hearing it in casual conversation in real life.

I'm with you and Titan...and also...I have caved a few times myself, and like ya'll, I find I wish I hadn't. So...perhaps I need to re-evaluate how I do some things in fic.

With fanfic, I completely caved. Well, not completely since, obviously, there are certain words I refuse to use. But it's fanfic, an indulgence and not something that's going to be published. I do worry about swears with my original fic, though. Especially the urban fantasy stuff. People swear, whether minor or major, and I hate that fact as it makes the swearing issue difficult to work around (though I have found plausible ways. Except those ways are starting to run low.)

That's the problem with writing. You have your standards, your beliefs, your view of the world. Then you have people telling you that if you want to write an awesome story you have to sacrifice those standards and beliefs. And if you don't, well, then you're "not a good writer." Not out right, of course, but it's certainly implied, and frustrates me to no end.

You're not alone, I don't like it either. It's to the point that on longer stories, where I really like the author and it's looks like we're in for a rough ride that word-wise, I'll copy the story to a word processor and do a search & replace. Depending on the usage and the replacement word du jour, hilarous results can ensue. But my brain doesn't end up tripping so much over the word.

Hey, yhat's a good idea :D.