Does Swearing Make You Less Intelligent?
There's a constant debate as to whether consistently using bad language is a sign or limited intelligence and vocabulary, but isn't that just a load of sh*t?
Many people share the belief that using taboo language (swearing) is a sign of a limited vocabulary and that the person lacks the ability to express themselves and so by extension has low intelligence. But this just isn't the case, in face, swearing a lot actually is a sign of having higher intelligence as we choose to use taboo language in different contexts and for multiple purposes, for example; to have a laugh, to convey emotions, or to just simply be rude. My point is, we're not swearing incoherently, we use bloody context!
There are many moments when swearing comes in handy and actually does make us feel better, which sounds a bit odd, but it's true. In an article by Richard Stephens, he writes about how an experiment showed that people who swore when they placed their hands in ice cold water found that the experience was less painful and so were able to keep their hands emerged in the water for longer than those who did not swear. Funny how it works but there we have it, swearing makes you feel less pain, although that doesn't mean you should stick your hand in a fire and scream "f*ck"! Although from personal experience of painful situations, I have found that swearing does make it more bearable, so there's a fun little life hack.
Other Languages
Now here is another important thing we have to address, swearing is not the same all over the world, a taboo word in English may not seem so bad in French or German, which would suggest that if other countries use the words we deem to be taboo in just regular conversation, how can it be that it is a sign of low intelligence?
Swearing is very different all over the world, it's funny, without really thinking about it, we just assume that the words we have in English that are taboo or pretty much exactly the same all over the world, but that's not true. Some of our swear words are actually pretty tame in other countries but some of the worst phrases in their language are just normal for us. Although one thing that remains almost entirely the same no matter where in the world you are is the fact that the most forbidden swear words usually refer to female sex organs. Not quite sure why but there we are.
In Italy, it's pretty common to yell "che cazzo" when something annoying happens, this roughly translates to "what the cock?" which isn't something we would necessarily yell. But then in Rinconada Bikol, the phrase "buray ni nanya", which means 'mother's vagina', is used as commonly as we might use the 'crap'.
It's pretty interesting to think about; the concept of swearing. Each country has it's own taboo language and you're just brought up knowing that you have to be careful where and when you say them, but it's funny how such a simple thing like swearing can be linked with your intelligence as they are just phrases that have become common among many people. Although, be careful what kind of things you say when you're abroad, you never know what might come across as potty-mouthed.
