***Many thanks to my sister-in-law, Jeanine, who contributed this blog post and wears many hats as a Pediatric Cardiologist and Family Therapist! Good to have one of those in the family, I should say. Here’s her take on four letter words:***
It seems like our language is changing. Obscenities have crept into our collective culture. Missing, however, are discussions regarding the possible downsides and implications of these trends. What do they mean for our future?
Our language contains over 900,000 words. This ever-expending collection is the largest language on the planet so far. Certainly lack of word choice cannot be the problem. But it is just a few four-lettered utterances, why should we worry?
It’s hard to appreciate the effect of stress when it is part of your everyday life. But like water or air, it seems to be part of the landscape. How much of our language is a symptom of our times and the extreme pressure and complexity of modern life in 2010? Are we managing this stress and anger or is it managing us?
On a societal level, our nation is one of the top three in the world in population with over 300 million inhabitants. We must adapt quickly to demographic changes, and America, in addition to expanding in citizenry, is also becoming more crowded, hectic and urbanized. As this population stress impacts our daily interactions we can consciously strive to live and work respectfully and cohesively. The interconnected nature of our modern world should not be underappreciated.
On an interpersonal level, speech and self-expression reflect one’s thoughts, feelings, education and upbringing and this output is highly visible to the outside world. Don’t we want this manner of communicating to be as positive and complimentary as possible? A tendency toward cursing seems like counterproductive energy. Refraining from insults and swearing may go a long way in developing manners, boundaries, relationships and self-control. There can be many benefits as we work to modify this growing dialect decline. Calming anger and decreasing blood flow to the emotional side of our brain may be one small step for individuals, but a big step for humankind.
Like any significant behavioral change, any improvement in language is going to take collective effort and energy from all individuals. Obscenities have seeped into many aspects of our mass media and seem aimed at the most impressionable minds. The time is now to start countering these messages. One of the most effective ways to show disapproval of anything in a capitalistic society is to stop buying it. Ultimately it is the consumer who wields the power and decision-making ability. Rather than becoming stranded in the emotions of anger and hopelessness, we can actively work to change our word selections and conversations. By showing disapproval and offense at the hurling of these vulgarities, each individual can do his or her part to discontinue one aspect of this growing culture of disrespect.
Who will enact change? I wonder about the implications of changes in our basic language and modes of communicating. What responsibilities or change opportunities are available for our community? Don’t our children deserve a culture of respect? Word choice is one small step in choosing the life you want to live.
Well said, and written 🙂