15. Swearing as emotion acts
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Shlomit Ritz Finkelstein
Abstract
This chapter explores swearing as emotion acts, speech acts that express and evoke emotions. The chapter focuses on a special kind of such acts - the involuntary verbal and gestural swearing of the neuropsychiatric disorder Tourette syndrome (TS). Examined within the framework of pragmatics, behavioral data suggest that, by adhering to the Gricean rules while simultaneously violating the sociocultural norms of the society, TS-related involuntary swearing becomes an effective speech act. In violating norms, the automatic behavior of swearing demonstrates great sensitivity to them and to their relevance to the specific situation in which the swearing occurs. The consequences of swearing, as the data show, can be very harmful. Automaticity contributes to the effects of the swearing on both speaker and hearer. Not only is the speaker’s behavior mostly involuntary; the hearer’s negative reaction to the speaker is often involuntary too. When the hearer responds non-automatically and considers the challenges of the speaker, the communication can change and reduce the harm done by the swearing to both speaker and hearer.
Abstract
This chapter explores swearing as emotion acts, speech acts that express and evoke emotions. The chapter focuses on a special kind of such acts - the involuntary verbal and gestural swearing of the neuropsychiatric disorder Tourette syndrome (TS). Examined within the framework of pragmatics, behavioral data suggest that, by adhering to the Gricean rules while simultaneously violating the sociocultural norms of the society, TS-related involuntary swearing becomes an effective speech act. In violating norms, the automatic behavior of swearing demonstrates great sensitivity to them and to their relevance to the specific situation in which the swearing occurs. The consequences of swearing, as the data show, can be very harmful. Automaticity contributes to the effects of the swearing on both speaker and hearer. Not only is the speaker’s behavior mostly involuntary; the hearer’s negative reaction to the speaker is often involuntary too. When the hearer responds non-automatically and considers the challenges of the speaker, the communication can change and reduce the harm done by the swearing to both speaker and hearer.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Foreword V
- Table of contents IX
- List of contributing Authors XI
- Introduction 1
- 1. Lexicon, discourse and cognition: terminological delimitations in the conceptualizations of linguistic taboo 13
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Part I: Construal
- 2. The axiological and communicative potential of homosexual-related metaphors 35
- 3. Metonymy-based euphemisms in war-related speeches by George W. Bush and Barack Obama 55
- 4. Ambiguity and vagueness as cognitive tools for euphemistic and politically correct speech 79
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Part II: Cultural Conceptualization
- 5. Old age revolution in Australian English: Rethinking a taboo concept 99
- 6. Taboo subjects as insult intensifiers in Egyptian Arabic 117
- 7. Emotion concepts in context: Figurative conceptualizations of hayâ ‘self-restraint’ in Persian 141
- 8. A Cognitive Linguistics approach to menstruation as a taboo in Gĩkũyũ 161
- 9. The socio-cognitive aspects of taboo in two cultures: A case study on Polish and British English 179
- 10. The influence of conceptual differences on processing taboo metaphors in the foreign language 201
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Part III: Cognitive Sociolinguistics
- 11. Why do the Dutch swear with diseases? 225
- 12. Calling things by their name: Exploring the social meanings in the preference for sexual (in)direct construals 245
- 13. The perception of the expression of taboos: a sociolinguistic study 269
-
Part IV: Interdisciplinary Approaches
- 14. Scrupulosity, sexual ruminations and cleaning in Obsessive – Compulsive Disorder 293
- 15. Swearing as emotion acts 311
- Index 329
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Foreword V
- Table of contents IX
- List of contributing Authors XI
- Introduction 1
- 1. Lexicon, discourse and cognition: terminological delimitations in the conceptualizations of linguistic taboo 13
-
Part I: Construal
- 2. The axiological and communicative potential of homosexual-related metaphors 35
- 3. Metonymy-based euphemisms in war-related speeches by George W. Bush and Barack Obama 55
- 4. Ambiguity and vagueness as cognitive tools for euphemistic and politically correct speech 79
-
Part II: Cultural Conceptualization
- 5. Old age revolution in Australian English: Rethinking a taboo concept 99
- 6. Taboo subjects as insult intensifiers in Egyptian Arabic 117
- 7. Emotion concepts in context: Figurative conceptualizations of hayâ ‘self-restraint’ in Persian 141
- 8. A Cognitive Linguistics approach to menstruation as a taboo in Gĩkũyũ 161
- 9. The socio-cognitive aspects of taboo in two cultures: A case study on Polish and British English 179
- 10. The influence of conceptual differences on processing taboo metaphors in the foreign language 201
-
Part III: Cognitive Sociolinguistics
- 11. Why do the Dutch swear with diseases? 225
- 12. Calling things by their name: Exploring the social meanings in the preference for sexual (in)direct construals 245
- 13. The perception of the expression of taboos: a sociolinguistic study 269
-
Part IV: Interdisciplinary Approaches
- 14. Scrupulosity, sexual ruminations and cleaning in Obsessive – Compulsive Disorder 293
- 15. Swearing as emotion acts 311
- Index 329
