The word “cunt” remains one of the most powerful, shocking, and arguably vulgar words in the English language today. Its definition has shifted over time, going from a relatively innocuous word referring to a woman’s genitals or prostitutes, to the derogatory, highly censored term it is today.
The Oxford English Dictionary offers a number of definitions for the word “cunt,” including “the female genitals; the vulva or vagina” and “a woman as a source of sexual gratification; a promiscuous woman; a slut. Also as a general term of abuse for a woman.” Further definitions note the word as a general abuse for a man, or in reference to anything unpleasant. The spellings of the word itself were generally similar throughout Middle English as some variation of “cont” or “count,” before settling into the modern-day “cunt” spelling in the 16th century. Later usage is considered to be coarse slang. Indeed, the earliest usages of the word were innocuous references to female genitalia and prostitution, mentioned in place names in London such as “Gropecuntelane.” It was not until the 1800’s that the word donned its harsher meanings of abuses and sexual objectification (“Cunt,” OED).
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The usage of the word “quaint” as a synonym for “cunt” emerged before the word gained its more vulgar meanings; “quaint” is not cited as having a vulgar meaning at all. The word “vulva” also emerged around the same time as the vulgar meanings of “cunt” (“vulva”). In much the same way words such as “retard” transitioned from being a proper term to being vulgar or abusive, so too has “cunt,” and based on the timeline it is perhaps fair to assume that the word “vulva” became more used to provide a less vulgar alternative to
Before social media was ever a thing, there was not much meaning when a girl was singled out and called a slut. When called a slut, the girl definitely knew that she as was being bullied and harassed. However, today the word “slut” is so casually used that it is almost like greeting someone. “Through the “slut” greeting, girls and young women hail each other the way police officers hails the citizens” (Tanenbaum, 2015, pg.113). It has been so widely used by many girls that
The word cunt is very old and has gone through many changes in its lifetime. It is a taboo and vulgar word with ancient origins. According to Tony Thorne in the Dictionary of Contemporary Slang, “related words exist in other European languages (French con, Spanish cono) and it seems that, in the unwritten prehistoric Indo-European parent languages, cu or koo was a word base expressing “feminine” or “fecund” and associated notions.” (‘cunt’). At one point during Middle English (1066-1500CE) cunt stopped being vulgar, but sometime before the period was over it took back on its original meaning.
middle of paper ... ... e they are so firmly embedded in the everyday language used by society. However, the ‘politically-correct’ era is dawning on Britain at present, and the public is becoming more aware of sexist speech as well as lexis that discriminates other groups of people. Gender-specific words are being discouraged by Government campaigns, even altering the curriculum so that young children are taught to refer to ‘police officers’ and ‘firefighters’ instead of ‘policemen’ and ‘firemen’.
Sexuality has often been confused with pornography. It has been trivialised as something that is a denigration and denial of true feeling by sensationalising genuine expressivism.
The word “cunt” used in modern language carries a heavy offensive potency in just one syllable. Saying phrases such as “You’re a cunt!” “Stop being such a cunt” or “You fucking cunt” for those with more gusto for its use, reveals the misogyny that the word possesses. After all, “cunt” is another, albeit derogatory, word for vagina and (most) females have a vagina; and the vagina is the central powerful symbol for femininity. What does it mean then to essentially be a “vagina” (read cunt)? Furthermore, as a woman, what does it mean to have such a pejorative word aimed towards you with the intent to offend, harm, and essentially oppress one’s own femininity? Yet, as British journalist Zoe Williams states, the word “vagina” is not used to insult women; however, cunt” is. To be called a “cunt,” then, suggests that the offender is attempting to dishonor this very symbol of womanhood, by scandalizing the word in attempt to claim and perpetuate its pejorative power, thus diminishing the woman, and inadvertently her power.
Leora Tanenbaum’s book Slut! imposes the argument of the unfairness and small mindedness of the sexual double standard between teenagers and what leads them to label others of the name slut. Throughout the book, the author discloses many different studies and stories to help the readers understand the underlying cause and issue of the name slut and how it affects different girls and women around the country.
In the essay, “You Are What You Say”, by Robin Lakoff, she explains how certain words can be used to degrade an individual. Lakoff makes clear that a girl is someone “. . . who is . . . too immature and too far from real life to be entrusted with responsibilities or with decisions of any serious or important nature” (Lakoff, “You Are What You Say”, pg.3). A girl is someone who cannot be taken seriously. A girl is simply incapable of running a women’s errand, because they are incredibly immature. Yet, women are still referred to as girls, since calling someone a woman is “embarrassing”. She also elaborates on being called a “lady” and how that is degrading as well. She used the example of calling a woman doctor a “lady doctor”, which is extremely degrading since no one calls a man doctor a “gentleman doctor”. Being called a “lady” also implies that she is helpless and not someone to be taken seriously. So, language can and is used to degrade
Is swearing important to our society? Should children be allowed to use foul language? And how should they be used in conversation? In the essay titled “Cussing Time”, author Jill McCorkle expresses her view on these subjects, and this essay will provide additional views.
What is obscenity? According to Webster’s New World Dictionary, obscenity is the state or quality of being obscene which means that is offensive to modesty and or decency. During the 1930s and 1940s, New York City was infected with burlesque shows. During these times this shows were considered indecent and immoral by Mayor LaGuardia, his license commissioner Paul Moss, and John Sumner. Women were used as objects of entertainment. In 1934 Mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia took office. Fiorello LaGuardia was a decisive and objective man. Mayor LaGuardia saw a very problematic situation for New York City when it came to this kind of performances. The targets of LaGuardia ‘s wrath were burlesque houses, where strippers had alternated turns with stand-up comics and the other acts since at least the turn of the century (Newyorkmetro.com). Clearly, LaGuardia was focused on stopping these displays of female degradation. It is important to mention that were two kinds of entertainments displays during this time. One group was the burlesque shows, which degraded females by displaying them as sexual objects. These shows were targeted towards the low income and illiterated people. The other group was called Ziegfeld Follies, which was aimed for the high elite people. This form of entertainment was a very refine and elaborated, but also did contain degrading displays. Regardless, Fiorello LaGuardia’s campaign unfairly opposed Burlesque performances instead of the Ziegfeld Follies, since it was politically easier to take action against shows that were supported by the lower class.
Sara Bareilles wrote “She Used to Be Mine” for the stage adaptation of “Waitress” she starred in. The musical is about a pregnant waitress in an abusive marriage who gets a second chance at her dreams when she enters a baking contest. “She Used to Be Mine” is a ballad about grieving the person you once were and coming to terms with who you are today, after the many trials and tribulations that life brings. Sara Bareilles’ moving lyrics and use of musical elements like pace and melody create a song that makes even the most upbeat and self-confident people pause and think of their younger, brighter, sparkly-eyed selves. I don’t remember exactly when I found this song, but it has been one of my favorites for a few years.
for it to be construed as offensive. I would hope that a person in this
Battery is harmful contact, or the imminent threat of harmful or offensive contact, of one person against another, and the direct or indirect results of the affected person from this harmful or offensive contact. The defendant, Grem, arrived at Logan’s around 12:30am. Grem was intoxicated while at Logan’s. The plaintiff, Agnes, arrived at Logan’s around 12:15am to 12:30am and awaited the arrival of his girlfriend, Scelza, who arrived at 1:00am. Upon her arrival, Grem made a profane and defamatory statement about Scelza, followed with laughter at her. Agnes asked Grem to apologize to Scelza but Grem did not apologize. Shortly after, Agnes decided to leave Logan’s with Scelza to avoid a confrontation with Grem, because he felt that Grem was highly
Whore and Slut, two words that seemed to have forced their way out of the mouths of hundreds of girls in the last decade. Often enough, these words are used to berate and tear down other girls for acting a certain way, dressing in a way that is considered “provocative”, or having more than one sexual partner: an act called Slut-Shaming. According to the author Jessica Valenti, “I was called a slut when I didn 't have a boyfriend and kissed a random boy at a party. . .I was called a slut when I wore a bikini on a weekend trip with high school friends. It seems the word slut can be applied to any activity that doesn 't include knitting, praying, or sitting perfectly still lest any sudden movements be deemed whorish” (Valenti 1). Women who have
Shit is one of the most popular and less frowned upon swear words in the modern age. Whether it’s as a noun, a verb, adjective (Bulson 2014) or plural, it has been around for a very long time frowned upon by one culture but embraced in another. According to The Origin of Swear Words (2008), the word shit appeared about 1,000 years ago as ‘skita’ an Old Norse origin. It morphed into Old English nouns as ‘scite’ which means dung and ‘scitte’ meaning diarrhea.
Pornography in legal terms is “any sexually explicit work deemed obscene according to legal criteria and therefore exempt from freedom of speech protections (Hock, 569). My definition of pornography would consider any printed or visual material that contains the explicit display of sexual organs or activity, with the intent to stimulate erotic behavior. I believe wholeheartedly that pornography is very discriminating towards women and I agree with the five basic ideas that Catherine MacKinnon advocates. Her basic ideas are as follows: Pornography, by its very nature, is discrimination against women which in turn advocates and justifies rape. The distinctions between sexually explicit materials and actions they depict are meaningless. Pornography reflects and constitutes male domination and dehumanization of women as well as objectifying women by portraying them as nothing more than tools or male pleasure. Pornography represents men’s power over women in society and embodies the dehumanization of women in an already male dominated world (Hock, 573).