Perhaps the most widely cited reason for the inclusion or usage of profanity in any artistic medium is the desire for realism. The logic itself makes sense because people do, in fact, swear. Some of us frequently. And some, like the Coen brothers, David Mamet (video with strong language), and even William Shakespeare, have become legends for their use of profanity. Numerous others have raged against the use, labeling it as crude, grotesque, and a mark of artistic laziness. How, then, is a modern writer supposed to handle the situation? To swear or not to swear is an important artistic question.
The Power of Profanity
In an article lambasting the use of profanity in literature, Charles Benton ironically provided an argument for its use that is as true today as it was when he wrote it over a century ago. Benton noted that “the essence of profanity is a Vandalic desecration of those inner temples, without excuse save the depraved desire to show contempt for that which is dear to another.”
Or, to paraphrase, profanity in its many forms is an assault on the reader and what they hold as dear, a form of mental shock that when used correctly, can jolt the reader.
Understanding Profanity
After all, art is simply a means to communicate without being present. A method to convey thoughts and emotions to an audience. Profane words are taboo because they are powerful, they question or challenge the various parts of our humanity that we are the most self-conscious about: our religion, our sexuality, our race, our base bodily functions.
The use of these words has the same effect as the Vandals, dirty barbarians, riding into the white marbled Rome. They desecrate. They destroy. They tear down what we hold dear, they become what we fear.
The Desecration Principle
As these words are the metaphors that sack Rome, one should consider the Romans. For, just as profanity is a part of the reality of many, it is also abhorred by a vocal group. And understandably so. Just as Charles Benton described the power of profanity in his missive rallying against it’s use, so does the modern audience. For many people, profanity simply has no place in art of any medium.
The Corruption Cliché
The common cliché regarding power and corruption holds true when extended to profanity. The overuse of profanity creates an awkward, contradictory situation.
In the first part, when profanity becomes common place, the words themselves lose specific power as the audience becomes first accustomed, and then desensitized to said power.
The contradiction arises when, despite these words losing their individual power, the whole of them taps into the strength of their original intent. That is, despite the individual use of profane words losing value, the whole gains a greater value. When collected in an individual work, the work itself becomes profane. When stretched amongst a series of works, in which the unifying, notable feature is the profanity itself, the works are reduced to little more than a gimmick reaching for shock value. And shock is a momentary experience which stands opposite the immortality of art.
The Question Begets Questions
The most difficult task with regards to profanity and art might not be the binary question or do or do not, but rather the more cumbersome questions of when, where, and how. Unfortunately, these questions are ones that each artist must individually grapple with, and the only guide is that of tone and questions.
To Each Their Own
Each artist walks their own path, even today in our age of digital mashups and artistic appropriation, and so there are no hard and true rules for the use of profanity. The pure fact is that sometimes a piece of art has a critical moment when it is necessary to sack the white marble temples of Rome. In others, there are ways to show desecration sans exacting details.
In literature, the artistic area with which I am most accustomed, the decision can often come down to the specific medium. As a writer, I would be hard pressed to use profanity in print journalism. When traipsing into fiction, I do have stories in which the characters swear, and have used profanity in the narrative when it fits the voice of the narrator. Here, on my personal website, there is the occasional use of profanity, but then this is written in my voice. And I do swear. A lot.
Useful Questions
Perhaps the best guidance for the use of profanity in any artistic medium can be summed up in a set of questions:
- Is this usage appropriate for the setting?
- Does this usage achieve the message I wish to purvey?
- Am I using this profane term because no other will suffice?
- And finally am I willing to risk isolating my audience?
When measured against these questions, profanity does still carry a risk, but if the artist is honest in answering them, profanity can be a powerful tool. The end result, the line between a profound piece of art and a profane piece of garbage, might actually be best determined by borrowing from the Supreme Court’s ruling on pornography. In the words of Justice Stewart “I know it when I see it.”
In preparation for this piece, I contacted numerous peers including Justin Koeppen, fellow writers at Lyran Tal Press, and Debbie Stier at HarperStudio. All of whom put up with my pestering without resorting to using profanity.
Bradley Robb likes TV and books, and has an intense dislike for cinnamon. Once, Bradley stopped a Soviet T-60 with his middle finger. Bradley writes speculative fiction and edits Fiction Matters, and never really got the hang of talking about himself in the third person.
Very interesting information…thanks for sharing. But I and my family don't ever use profane language or curses because we are Christians. We believe what comes out from our mouth is what makes heart of. Curses repel blessings. So we don't curse in any form.
Thanks for this article! I appreciate your objectivity and think that you make some great points. I am an English lit major and writer in my spare time(a mix of pop-culture and some more academic stuff) and I use profanity in certain of my writing – if and when I deem the context appropriate. It is most certainly a risk and I have succeeded in alienating my mother-in-law (although she is not exactly my target audience and it is not my fault that she has insisted on reading my columns). I am also a Christian(and I do swear) – I will not defend that, because I can't. What I will say is that language is a tool and must be understood within the context in which it is used. Check out my blog if you like: http://rantchick.com/
Interesting points. The one thing I know of most swearing and expletives is that they (the said words) relate to either sex/sexual functions; faeces/the function of defecating; hell and more often than not, some form of insult towards another human. None of these in my opinion is beneficial to people in general and in many cases is used to replace much more appropriately descriptive and less harmful to the psychae of people. Something to chew on…
Why is it that, no matter what the subject, there will always be those theists that use it as a platform to promote their twisted “morality”?
Why can’t they go off an practice their insanity by themselves and stop attempting to force their views on everyone else? They enact their lies into law, constantly demand others “respect” the illogical, impossible, and inane.
When I write, I use the language the character is likely to use. Yes, if they are French, I’ll insert a few French words. But if they are a theists, I’ll make them talk like one and a profane, rough character will have profane, rough dialog. It’s called logic and reality, theists. Get used to it.
Interesting article.
The thing is, profanity reflects honesty in a person’s writing. There are times and places for everything, and if a word exists, it belongs in poetry.
At the suggestion of an editor, she has suggested that I delete profanity from an upcoming novel. I find that I am incorporating more action (sometimes violence) instead. I’m not sure if it is going to be effective and if this will still streamline my target audience of families.