The bible talks of hell and the damned. Yet, the uttering of the single word "hell" or "damn" followed by an exclamation mark is taboo, I explained to the children.
Why is it so? These, I tell them, are 'curse' words. Words that were, are used to place a curse upon the intended victim, person or thing. For example, I explained, if the computer is not working properly, simply shout "hell" and said computer might spend eternity in fire and brimstone, inshalla.
4 comments:
Fine educating. I never had anyone to explain that to me.
you're giving me a hard time, right?
because I'm sure you knew that, as did my students, without anyone telling them.
I just thought it might be funny to actually have a conversation about it in class, out in the open.
I think the conversation got started when, for some reason or other, I started going on about old words. For example, some of the oldest words in English are "curse" words like "shit" and "fuck".
and I told them that the funny thing is that if these words weren't so damn common, they would have died out long ago. And if they were really taboo, then no one would say them and they would in fact be dead. But this isn't the case, these words are still around because people say them all the time. So, I told the kids, you are free to use these words at will.
I can't question your logic, though some parents might...!
Inshallah, indeed. One more than one occasion in the past have I wished to send a computer straight down to old Bog's barbecue, where brimstone is plentiful and ashes abound. I am not at all convinced that they are not susceptible to magic. Let us remember that real curses, however, are quite something else than the mere mentioning of hell, and often seems to involve chickens for some reason. But the principle is the same of course, chicken or no chicken.
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