Perhaps I'm a bit of a prude. I can swear like a trucker when the mood strikes me (and it does often) but never at work, in front of children or people I don't know, or out in public where others can hear me.
So there I was watching the Project Runway debut last night, when a movie trailer came on advertising Quentin Tarantino (and Brad Pitt's) new movie, Inglourious Basterds. Now I realize that there were some liberties taken with the spelling of the second word, but it is pretty clear what they were aiming for there. My 8-year old is clever enough to figure that one out (Ohhh- that's a BAD word!).
I realized how how far we've come in the area of using stronger language in the media. Mainstream artists have "insert swear word" here lyrics, and the full version plays in all it's glory on satellite radio. I have become desensitized to all it to the point where it takes something as in your face as Taratino's new movie title to wake me up to "Hey- this is pretty crazy."
Right or wrong- swearing in mainstream media seems to have arrived. There are only a few words left waiting their turn in the spotlight, but I have no doubt that day will come in the not so distant future.
As a writer, I utilize swearing in scenes to increase the impact of the dialogue and also signal that the action in the scene is very different than before (Hey Ms. Reader- pay attention!!). But I am still uncomfortable weaving it in regular character conversation. (And I guess I haven't encountered a character yet who would be swearing on a regular basis.)
What do you think?
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