The Case Against Cursing

          

          Cursing in books is a much-debated topic in writing. As with any issue, particularly when one or more of the groups debating feel that morals are involved, many people cling to their opinions like lifelines.

            I'm here to express mine.

            Writers and readers who support using swear words in novels have their arguments-- cursing boosts authenticity, some people curse regularly, so characters should be the same, and a well-placed swear word can heighten tension.

            Personally, I'm against cursing, for several reasons.

            First of all, I believe that swearing constantly doesn't let you show off your amazing vocabulary. A creative writer can invent new swear words for their sci-fi and fantasy worlds (I used blazing once, and to this day it's still my favorite substitute). If you write realistic fiction or real-world fantasy, you can still be creative.

            For example, in Heather Frost's Seers, the main character's best friend has a swearing habit that she's trying to break. Every time she wants to swear, she substitutes a random word, such as Oreos. You get the idea that she swears or used to swear often, but you don't actually read a curse word. Shannon Hale's narrator in Dangerous censors the swear words of a character with the word bleep. The quirk even provides a humorous moment when she says it aloud in the place of a swear word.

            And, of course, you have dozens of real-life substitutes. Dang it, freak, and crap are all more appropriate substitutes. Or you can just say, "She swore," or, "He muttered an unrepeatable word." You don't need swearing to get the emotion. That's the wonderful thing about language. You can craft the same feeling in a thousand different ways, and 999 of them are clean.

            Secondly, it offends a lot of readers. I once opened a book. Every fifth word was vulgar. I didn't make it through the first chapter. I rarely read a book that swears constantly. I'll tolerate a couple of tastefully placed curses, but more than that and I'll return it to the library. I've never heard of a reader putting down a book because it didn't swear enough, but everyone I know has stopped reading at least one because it was too vulgar.

            As to the argument of curse words heightening realism, I don't read to be taken somewhere realistic. I read to be taken somewhere fantastic. Somewhere better than this mundane world. And for me, clean language is a part of that incredible place.