ABSTRACT
Puruhito, Gregorius Gyan. (2016). Swearing Uttered by the Main Character of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Department of Language and Arts, Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Sanata Dharma University.
Swearing is considered as a means of communication. Some people use swear words in their utterances to convey certain intentions. However, people would likely to use different swearing expressions when they are possessed by different emotional states. This phenomenon of swearing could happen in many different situations in society. In this research, the researcher intends to analyze the swearing which are uttered by the main character of a video game called “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”.
The abundance of swearing uttered by the main character, Jack, throughout the story of the video game triggered the researcher to analyze them in order to find the types of swearing and also the motives behind the swearing expressions. The analysis of swearing expressions is highly contextual so that some expert theories will be employed in this research to support the analysis process. Additionally, concept of taboo, taboo words, and swear words will also be explained in this research since swearing is rooted from those concepts.
This research applied content analysis approach in order to ease the researcher to conduct this research. To find the answer, the researcher sorts the transcription of the conversation between characters which occurred in the game. The researcher only focused on analyzing the main character’s utterances which is resulting in the elimination of the conversation which did not contain the main characters’ swearing expressions. The researcher then categorized the types of swearing and motives for swearing based on the related theories.
Based on the data of the research, the researcher found that in Jack’s utterances, there are four different types of swearing expressions. Among those types, Abusive Type is mostly uttered by him. He enjoys insulting other people or things by using swearing expressions. The researcher also found three different motives for swearing. Among those motives, Jack is mostly triggered to swear by Psychological Motive. It is because Jack is confronted by a lot of frustrating conditions.
ABSTRAK
Puruhito, Gregorius Gyan. (2016). Swearing Uttered by the Main Character of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Department of Language and Arts, Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Sanata Dharma University.
Mengumpat dianggap sebagai salah satu cara untuk berkomunikasi. Beberapa orang akan menggunakan kata-kata umpatan di dalam perkataan mereka untuk menyampaikan maksud-maksud tertentu. Meski demikian, orang-orang cenderung akan menggunakan ungkapan umpatan yang berbeda-beda ketika mereka berada di dalam keadaan emosional yang berbeda pula. Fenomena umpatan dapat terjadi di situasi yang berbeda di dalam masyarakat. Dalam penelitian ini, peneliti bermaksud untuk menanalisis umpatan yang diucapkan oleh karakter utama pada game berjudul “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”.
Banyaknya umpatan yang diucapkan oleh karakter utama, Jack, sepanjang cerita dari permainan tersebut memicu peneliti untuk menganalisis umpatan tersebut dengan tujuan untuk dapat menemukan tipe umpatan dan motivasi di balik ungkapan umpatan tersebut. Menganalisis ungkapan umpatan sangatlah kontekstual. Maka teori dari beberapa ahli akan digunakan dalam penelitian ini guna mendukung proses analisa. Sebagai tambahan, konsep tentang tabu, kata-kata tabu, dan kata-kata umpatan juga akan dibahas dalam penelitian ini karena konsep umpatan sendiri berakar dari konsep-konsep tersebut.
Penelitian ini menerapkan pendekatan analisis konten yang bertujuan untuk memudahkan peneliti untuk melaksanakan penelitian. Untuk menemukan jawaban, peneliti menyortir transkripi dari percakapan yang terjadi antara para karakter di dalam game. Peneliti hanya akan fokus pada analisis dari perkataan karakter utama. Hal ini mengakibatkan pada penghilangan perkatan-perkataan yang tidak mengandung ungkapan umpatan karakter utama. Kemudian peneliti mengkategorikan tipe-tipe umpatan dan motivasi untuk mengumpat berdasarkan teori-teori yang bersangkutan.
Berdasarkan data dari penelitian ini, peneliti menemukan bahwa pada perkataan Jack terdapat empat tipe ungkapan umpatan yang berbeda. Diantara umpatan tersebut, Abusive Type adalah tipe yang paling sering diucapkan. Dia senang menghina orang atau benda lain dengan menggunakan umpatan. Peneliti juga menemukan tiga jenis motif yang berbeda dalam mengumpat. Diantara motif tersebut, Jack lebih banyak terpicu oleh Psychological Motive. Hal ini dikarenakan Jack banyak menghadapi situasi yang membuat dia frustrasi.
SWEARING UTTERED BY THE MAIN CHARACTER OF
BORDERLANDS: THE PRE-SEQUEL!
A SARJANA PENDIDIKAN THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education
By
Gregorius Gyan Puruhito Student Number: 111214144
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA
“
Keep
your mind
wide open.”
- Leslie Bur
ke-“Follow your HEART!
And STUFF!
-Jack Body Double-
ABSTRACT
Puruhito, Gregorius Gyan. (2016). Swearing Uttered by the Main Character of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Department of Language and Arts, Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Sanata Dharma University.
Swearing is considered as a means of communication. Some people use swear words in their utterances to convey certain intentions. However, people would likely to use different swearing expressions when they are possessed by different emotional states. This phenomenon of swearing could happen in many different situations in society. In this research, the researcher intends to analyze the swearing which are uttered by the main character of a video game called “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”.
The abundance of swearing uttered by the main character, Jack, throughout the story of the video game triggered the researcher to analyze them in order to find the types of swearing and also the motives behind the swearing expressions. The analysis of swearing expressions is highly contextual so that some expert theories will be employed in this research to support the analysis process. Additionally, concept of taboo, taboo words, and swear words will also be explained in this research since swearing is rooted from those concepts.
This research applied content analysis approach in order to ease the researcher to conduct this research. To find the answer, the researcher sorts the transcription of the conversation between characters which occurred in the game. The researcher only focused on analyzing the main character’s utterances which is resulting in the elimination of the conversation which did not contain the main characters’ swearing expressions. The researcher then categorized the types of swearing and motives for swearing based on the related theories.
Based on the data of the research, the researcher found that in Jack’s utterances, there are four different types of swearing expressions. Among those types, Abusive Type is mostly uttered by him. He enjoys insulting other people or things by using swearing expressions. The researcher also found three different motives for swearing. Among those motives, Jack is mostly triggered to swear by Psychological Motive. It is because Jack is confronted by a lot of frustrating conditions.
ABSTRAK
Puruhito, Gregorius Gyan. (2016). Swearing Uttered by the Main Character of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Department of Language and Arts, Faculty of Teachers Training and Education, Sanata Dharma University.
Mengumpat dianggap sebagai salah satu cara untuk berkomunikasi. Beberapa orang akan menggunakan kata-kata umpatan di dalam perkataan mereka untuk menyampaikan maksud-maksud tertentu. Meski demikian, orang-orang cenderung akan menggunakan ungkapan umpatan yang berbeda-beda ketika mereka berada di dalam keadaan emosional yang berbeda pula. Fenomena umpatan dapat terjadi di situasi yang berbeda di dalam masyarakat. Dalam penelitian ini, peneliti bermaksud untuk menanalisis umpatan yang diucapkan oleh karakter utama pada game berjudul “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”.
Banyaknya umpatan yang diucapkan oleh karakter utama, Jack, sepanjang cerita dari permainan tersebut memicu peneliti untuk menganalisis umpatan tersebut dengan tujuan untuk dapat menemukan tipe umpatan dan motivasi di balik ungkapan umpatan tersebut. Menganalisis ungkapan umpatan sangatlah kontekstual. Maka teori dari beberapa ahli akan digunakan dalam penelitian ini guna mendukung proses analisa. Sebagai tambahan, konsep tentang tabu, kata-kata tabu, dan kata-kata umpatan juga akan dibahas dalam penelitian ini karena konsep umpatan sendiri berakar dari konsep-konsep tersebut.
Penelitian ini menerapkan pendekatan analisis konten yang bertujuan untuk memudahkan peneliti untuk melaksanakan penelitian. Untuk menemukan jawaban, peneliti menyortir transkripi dari percakapan yang terjadi antara para karakter di dalam game. Peneliti hanya akan fokus pada analisis dari perkataan karakter utama. Hal ini mengakibatkan pada penghilangan perkatan-perkataan yang tidak mengandung ungkapan umpatan karakter utama. Kemudian peneliti mengkategorikan tipe-tipe umpatan dan motivasi untuk mengumpat berdasarkan teori-teori yang bersangkutan.
Berdasarkan data dari penelitian ini, peneliti menemukan bahwa pada perkataan Jack terdapat empat tipe ungkapan umpatan yang berbeda. Diantara umpatan tersebut, Abusive Type adalah tipe yang paling sering diucapkan. Dia senang menghina orang atau benda lain dengan menggunakan umpatan. Peneliti juga menemukan tiga jenis motif yang berbeda dalam mengumpat. Diantara motif tersebut, Jack lebih banyak terpicu oleh Psychological Motive. Hal ini dikarenakan Jack banyak menghadapi situasi yang membuat dia frustrasi.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
My first and greatest gratitude goes to Jesus Christ and Mother Mary for their remarkable blessings during the process of completing this thesis. They
have given me strength, protection, and motivation so that finally I can finish this
thesis.
I would like to thank my advisor, Drs. Concilianus Laos Mbato, M.A.,
Ed.D., for his guidance, time, and suggestion until the final process of writing this thesis. I would like to give many thanks for my academic advisor, Yuseva
Ariyani Iswandari, S.Pd., M.Ed., for being my generous mother started from the first semester until the end. I thank her for being the advisor of my learning
progress during my study. I would also like to express my gratitude to all
lecturers of the English Language Education Study Program who shared the knowledge and gave me the warm smiles during my learning process in Sanata
Dharma.
This thesis would not have been done without my parents, Stephanus
Sunaryo and Endang Riyanur Harjanti. I thank them for all the great advices, love, prayer, reinforcement and financial support in this long, steep, and winding
road. I am also grateful for having Rhymondus Rhisang Galih Gumantyo, Heronimus Rhyan Hanurraga and Joanita Anting Sasotya in my life. They have given me support and motivation during the completion of my thesis.
I would also take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my friends,
Panji Sadewo, Yosua Adi Wicaksana, Muhammad Eka Amperawan, Alexander Pramudya, Fa’adilah Malik Akbar, Leonardus Indramarwan, and Pascalis Sadewa Setyanta. I thank them for the awesome and ridiculous moments that we had together. These guys have helped me to understand the true
meaning of friendship. I would also thank all of my cats at my home. I thank them
for their presence and cuteness which can give serenity and peacefulness to me
during the completion of my thesis.
Finally, I give my deepest gratitude to Tamara Gita Megani. I thank her
for being the most significant part of my life. She has given me her precious time
and her wonderful love. Thanks for all the supports, surprises, and the crazy times
we shared. Thanks for your willingness so that we could keep writing this life
story of us together. Then, I would not forget anyone who had supported the
completion of my thesis that I cannot mention. May His blessings always be with
them.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ... i
APPROVAL PAGE ... ii
DEDICATION PAGE ... iv
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY ... v
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI ... vi
ABSTRACT ... vii
ABSTRAK ... viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... xi
LIST OF TABLE ... xiv
LIST OF APPENDIX ... xv
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ... 1
1.1 Research Background ... 1
1.2 Research Problems ... 4
1.3 Problem Limitation ... 4
1.4 Research Objectives ... 5
1.5 Research Benefits ... 5
1.5.1 The Readers ... 6
1.5.2 English lecturers ... 6
1.5.3 ELESP USD ... 6
1.5.4 Future researchers ... 7
1.6 Definition of Terms ... 7
1.6.1 Swearing ... 7
1.6.2 Swear words ... 7
1.6.3 Taboo words ... 8
1.6.4 Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel! ... 8
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ... 9
2.1.1 Taboo ... 10
2.1.2 Taboo Words ... 15
2.1.3 Swear Words and Swearing ... 16
2.1.4 Types of Swearing ... 19
2.1.5 Motives of Swearing ... 21
2.2 Theoretical Framework ... 23
CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ... 25
3.1 Research Method ... 25
3.2 Research Setting ... 26
3.3 Data Source ... 26
3.4 Research Instruments and Data Gathering Techniques ... 27
3.5 Data Analysis Technique ... 28
3.6 Research Procedures ... 28
CHAPTER IV RESEARCH RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ... 31
4.1 Research Results ... 31
4.1.1 The Types of Swearing ... 31
4.1.1.1 Expletive Type ... 32
4.1.1.2 Abusive Type ... 34
4.1.1.3 Humorous Type ... 35
4.1.1.4 Auxiliary Type ... 38
4.1.2 Motives of Swearing ... 40
4.1.2.1 Psychological Motives ... 40
4.1.2.2 Social Motives ... 42
4.1.2.3 Linguistic Motives ... 44
4.2 Research Discussion ... 46
4.2.1 Types of Swearing ... 47
4.2.1.1 Abusive Swearing ... 47
4.2.1.2 Expletive Swearing ... 49
4.2.1.3 Auxiliary Swearing ... 50
4.2.1.4 Humorous Swearing ... 52
4.2.2.1 Psychological Motive ... 53
4.2.2.2 Linguistic Motive ... 55
4.2.2.3 Social Motive ... 56
CHAPTER V CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ... 58
5.1 Conclusions ... 58
5.1.1 Types of Swearing ... 58
5.1.2 Motives of Swearing ... 59
5.2 Recommendations ... 59
REFERENCES ... 61
LISTOFTABLE
LIST OF APPENDIX
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
This chapter consists of six sections. The first section is the research
background. This section gives brief explanations about swearing as the main
topic of this research. The second section is the research problem. This section
provides the research questions of this research. The third section is problem
limitation. The focus of the problems will be explained in this section. The fourth
section is research objectives. The purposes of this research will be stated in this
section. The fifth section is research benefit which contains the explanations
about the benefit of the research. The sixth section is definition of terms.
Particular definitions related to the topic will be stated in this section.
1.1 Research Background
No one in this world has been able to reveal the birth and the origin of
human language (Yule, 2010, p. 1). However, based on Charles Darwin’s (1871,
p. 56) vision of the origins of language, there was a speculation that the early
humans had already developed musical ability to appeal others before there was
language. Human then also developed simple words with pronunciations that
seem to echo naturally occurring sounds like cuckoo, splash, bang, boom, rattle,
buzz, hiss, screech, etc. called onomatopoeia (Yule, 2010, p. 3). As time goes by,
human developed and produced more complex words and it keeps developing
until this day. However, the main purpose of this language development is to find
groups or society. By proper communication, they can interact and work out
together (Yule, 2010, p. 3).
According to Goodwin and Heritage (1990, p. 283), social interaction is a
means to conduct the business of social world which can affirm or deny
participants’ identities, and also transfer, renew, and modify cultures to others.
Shared meaning, mutual understanding, and the coordination of human conduct
are obtained in this interaction. Therefore, to make a social contact functioned and
transmitted properly, people need to have language as a means of communication.
A successful communication can be determined if the information in the messages
can be understood by both the speaker and the hearer. To achieve that goal, people
are required to make clear statements and are expected to be good communicator.
Gamble and Gamble (1984, p. 4), states that communicators are people who build
relationship with others by communicating. Communicating can help people to
build or maintain certain types of contacts, such as interpersonal contacts, small
group contacts, and public forum contacts. In addition, people communicate in
order to share information, exchange ideas or feelings, solve problems, and make
decisions. However, failed communication will become a flaw in society, since
communication is significant to satisfy not only individual and social needs, but
also practical needs.
Swearing is considered as a means of communication. Swearing is the use
of swear words with the purpose of expressing the speaker’s emotional state and
conveying that information to listeners (Jay 1992, p. 155).These swear words
society. Jay and Janschewitz (2008) state that the main purpose of swear words in
swearing is to express emotions, especially anger and frustration and this act in
public is actually common. However, in some cases, swearing is not highly
emotional, confrontational, rude, or aggressive. In other words, swearing may be
used with any emotional state (p. 267-268). The swear words in swearing add
emphasis to the message the speaker wishes to convey and the meanings of these
words are primarily interpreted as connotative (Jay 1992, p. 155). In other words,
swearing provides certain functions for people when they are conveying their
intention.
In a computer game named “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”, there are a lot
of swearing expressions uttered by some characters. The story of this game is
about a main character named Jack, who takes a role as the hero and hires some
bounty hunters called Vault Hunters. Later, this Vault Hunter, as the other main
character, will become Jack’s subordinate who helps him in achieving his goals.
The bottom line is that Jack and the Vault Hunters are trying to prevent the
destruction of Elphis, a moon of a planet called Pandora, from the antihero,
Zarpedon. As the story goes by, Jack has a lot of interactions with the other
characters in a form of uttered communication. On most of the interactions,
employs a lot of expression in conveying his feeling or emotion. The emotions
which Jack’s possess are not always in the notion of negative emotion such as
anger or frustration but also positive emotion such as joy or surprise. Additionally,
compared with the other character, Jack is using more various swear words while
be found the possible backgrounds and conditions of swearing expressions. That
is why I am interested in analyzis Jack’s utterances which can represent the use of
swearing expression. The topic of swearing here is focused on the verbal
expressions uttered by Jack, which is associated with emotional feeling towards
something particular. There are many different types of expression which Jack
possessed while he is swearing. There are also certain things which motivate Jack
for swearing. These matters will mostly be discussed in this research.
1.2 Research Problems
There are two research problems emerged in this research:
1. What types of swearing are uttered by the main character of “Borderlands:
The Pre-Sequel!”?
2. What motives of swearing are used by the main character in “Borderlands:
The Pre-Sequel!”?
1.3 Problem Limitation
The object of the research here will be on the speech of Jack, one of the
main characters of “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!” game. The main consideration
of the researcher to focus on Jack is because the other main characters rarely have
speech throughout the story. Furthermore, Jack mostly swears in the conversation
with the other characters. Even though there are other secondary characters which
also do a lot of swearing, Jack’s swearing contains more various swear words. By
analyzing the phenomenon of human interaction in the form of swearing, the
The first problem arises is the type of Jack’s swearing. The type of
swearing becomes the problem because Jack uses many kinds swear words while
he is possessed by certain emotion in different situations. Thus the researcher
intended to categorize them into several types based on relevant theory. The
second one is the motives of Jack for swearing. Indeed, human will do certain
action based on a certain motivation whether the factor is internal or external. The
problem emerges since there are many possible motives for Jack to do swearing
based on certain situation. To solve this problem, I will use relevant theory about
the motive of swearing to classify the Jack’s motive of swearing. The utterances
which are not considered as swearing will not be analyzed.
1.4 Research Objectives
The purposes of this study are:
1. To find out the types of swearing uttered by the main character in
“Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”
2. To find out the motives of swearing used by Jack in “Borderlands: The
Pre-Sequel!”
1.5 Research Benefits
This study is expected to give some contributions for four subjects. They
are the readers, the English lecturers, English Language Education Study Program
1.5.1 The Readers
By reading this research, the reader may have deeper understanding about
the concept of swearing and its origin. By understanding its concept, the readers
will know the essence of swearing which is rarely taught in an educational
institution. Hopefully, this research will help the readers to use them
appropriately.
1.5.2 English lecturers
The English lecturers can use the comprehension of swearing to teach the
students so that they will have deeper understanding about it. Furthermore, the
students are learning English as a second language (ESL) in which they will rarely
encounter the occurrence of English swearing in their society. It is English
lecturers’ task to introduce them to ESL learners to enrich their understanding in
order to make them aware of the concept of swearing. By having the awareness
about the swearing expressions, students are expected to understand about the
concepts of swearing expression which include the origin, types and motives of
swearing itself. This awareness then could also minimalize the misuse of swearing
expression when they have interaction in the society where English is its
language.
1.5.3 ELESP USD
People need to enrich their knowledge for the sake of having good relation
with others. Thus by the information about swearing provided in this research,
especially in linguistic aspect, lecturers and students of ELESP USD would be
maintaining their interaction with others. It can also be a means of discussion in
the process of English learning in ELESP USD.
1.5.4 Future researchers
The future researchers, who want to conduct a research around swearing,
swear words, and taboo words, can use the information from this research as a
reference. Hopefully, this research can provide sufficient information about that
topic.
1.6 Definition of Terms
There are several key words which are better to be understood to deal with
the content of this research. Those are:
1.6.1 Swearing
Swearing is the employment of taboo words in order to express the
speaker’s emotional feeling and to convey information to the listeners in a
communication (Jay & Janschewitz, 2008, p. 268). It suggests that the words
which are employed in swearing are mainly intended to reflect emotions. In
addition, Ljung (2011, p. 4) states that swearing is emotive language, in which its
primary function is to express the speaker’s feelings. Thus, swearing is a means to
express the speaker’s emotion toward something or someone.
1.6.2 Swear words
Swear words originate from the words which have correlation with taboo
word. However, they refer to the connotation meaning based on the context of the
used as swear word, it means that the taboo word no longer has its literal meaning.
Functionally, these words are used in the act of swearing.
1.6.3 Taboo words
Taboo words refer to every word which is considered taboo. Taboo words
are considered as taboo based on the notion of their literal meaning related with
taboo behavior. Thus prohibition of uttering this kind of words arises. The
prohibition usually derived traditionally from certain society. Yet, those kinds of
prohibition could arise in the institutional level where authorities have the power
to restrict speech (Jay, 2009, p. 153).
1.6.4 Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!
“Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!” is a game developed by 2K Australia with
cooperation from Gearbox Software, an American video game development
company. This game is a role-playing shooter game in a form of First Person
Shooter (FPS) which centered on gun and projectile weapon-based combat
through a first-person perspective. “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!” is the third
game in the Borderlands series. However, in chronological order of the story, the
events in this game take place between 2009's “Borderlands” and
2012's “Borderlands 2”. It was released for Microsoft Windows, OS
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter consists of two parts; theoretical description and theoretical
framework. In the theoretical description, relevant theories related to the study
will be discussed. In theoretical framework, there will be explanation about the
connection between the theories and the research which is conducted.
2.1 Theoretical Description
Swearing is considered as a language style that people prefer to use.
According to Coupland (2007, p. 1-2), style refers to a way of doing something.
Style can be applied in linguistic forms and processes. Thus swearing is
considered as language style which stands in the scope of Linguistics. Swearing is
also a means of communication which related to the use of language in society.
Standing on this idea, this study then is included into a sociolinguistics study. It is
in accordance with Wardaugh’s theory about sociolinguistics. He states that
sociolinguistics deals with examining the relationships between language and
society in order to have better understanding about language structure and the
function of language in communication (Wardaugh, 2006, p. 13). Holmes also
adds that the main concerns about sociolinguistic study are describing people’s
different way of speaking in different social context and explaining the use of
language in social life to deliver social messages (2013, p. 1). Thus, every
question emerged in society, which deals with social communication through
A study on swearing expressions could also be considered as pragmatics
study. Pragmatics is concerned with the study of meaning as communicated by
speaker and interpreted by a listener. It has more to do with the analysis of what
people mean by their utterances than what the words or phrases in those
utterances might mean by themselves. In other words, pragmatic is the study of
speaker meaning (Yule, 1996, p. 3). The study on swearing would involve the
interpretation of what people mean by saying the swearing utterances and how the
context influences what is said. It requires a consideration of how speakers
organize what they want to say in accordance with who they’re talking to, where,
when, and under what circumstances. By this explanation, pragmatic is considered
as the study of contextual meaning (Yule, 1996, p. 3).
However, before going into deeper discussion about swearing, it is
considered essential to deeply understand about the concept of taboo first since
swearing is derived from taboo words. Thus, this chapter will explore the
literature review about taboo, taboo words, swear words, and swearing
sequentially.
2.1.1 Taboo
There are many versions of the concept of taboo proposed by several
linguistic researchers who have interest in digging out about the origin of taboo.
Allan and Burridge (2006, p. 2) state that the word taboo derives from Tongan,
Tahitian language, called “tabu”. This finding is in accordance with Captain
Cook’s experience which is written in his log book when he was sent to Tahiti to
“When dinner came on table not one of my guests would sit down or eat a bit of any thing that was there. Every one was Tabu, a word of very comprehensive meaning but in general signifies forbidden.”(Cook 1967, p. 129)
. . .
“In this walk we met with about half a dozen Women in one place at supper, two of the Company were fed by the others, on our asking the reason, they said Tabu Mattee. On further enquiry, found that one of them had, two months before, washed the dead corps of a Chief, on which account she was not to handle Victuals for five Months, the other had done the same thing to another of inferior rank, and was under the same restriction but not for so long a time”. (Cook 1967, p. 135)
In this citation, Cook uses the word “tabu” to describe the behavior of the
native inhabitants toward things that were not to be done or touched. Cook also
states that anything which is forbidden to be eaten are called Taboo, as when
people are forbidden to eat from the flesh of human sacrifices (Tangata Taboo)
(Cook, 1967, p. 176). For the other example related to this kind of prohibition,
there are food taboos in most societies and they are mostly religion-based taboo;
the vegetarianism of Hindus; the proscription of pork in Islam; the constraints on
food preparation in Judaism; fasting among Jews at Passover and Muslims during
Ramadan; the proscription of meat on Fridays among Roman Catholics (Allan &
Burridge, 2006, p. 4).
Freud (2004, p. 3) digs out the origin of taboo by observing the ancient
Aboriginal Australian’s way of life. This tribe upholds totemism as their system
of tribal life. Each clan, the smaller division of the tribe, has different symbols of
among the same totemic clan. In other words, marrying or having sexual
intercourse with the same member of the clan is prohibited. The totem itself could
be animals, plants, or natural phenomena which are believed to have spiritual
power which protecting the clans from danger. The member of the clan must not
use the totem for his/her own benefit, destroy it, kill it, eat its flesh, in order to
avoid the consecutive sanction. By this observation, Freud then claims that taboo
is showed in the act of prohibition and restriction.
Continuing Allan and Burridge’s findings, it is stated that there are taboos
in which uncleanliness are the motivating factor. Here are some instances for this
kind of taboo: many communities regarded physical contact with a menstruating
woman as taboo, believing that it will pollute males in particular. Some Orthodox
New York Jews will avoid public transport in order to avoid the seat where a
menstruating woman has ever sat before. The Balinese used to prefer one-story
buildings in order to avoid unclean feet would pass above their heads. These
Balinese also avoid walking under washing lines where garments that have been
in contact with unclean parts of the body might pass over their heads. Many
communities regarded contact with a corpse as taboo; whoever has touched the
cadaver is prohibited to handle food (2006, p. 5-7). Allan and Burridge (2006)
also state that the genital organs of humans are always the subject of taboo. Those
parts of women are usually more strongly tabooed than those parts of men. The
reason is because those parts are related to the source of new human life (p. 7).
Foucault (1978, p. 3) explains that sex is prohibited and defined as taboo
related to sex was more freely discussed or even performed by people. There are
indeed regulations for sexual matters but the regulation is not strict enough. Then
after the Victorian bourgeoisie took place, the discussion about sex becomes
strictly forbidden. The other regulation is that people should perform sex for the
procreative purpose only. If it is violated, the offender will be sanctioned. Since
then, sexual intercourse should only be done by married couple in closed room. In
accordance with this findings, Pinker (2007, p. 297) also states that in Ancient
England, a person could not have sex unless this person had a consent of the King.
When anyone wanted to have baby, they got consent of the King & the King gave
them a placard that they hung on their door while they were having sex. (Later,
this placard is considered as the original root of the word fuck (Fornification
Under Consent of the King)). However, this kind of limitation has faded away. It
is because at that time England is facing a problem about population that was
considered important for the development of the country. The government needed
many labors to establish their industrial state. Thus the government alleviated the
limitation of people in having sexual intercourse (Foucault, 1978, p. 25).
Hughes (2006, p. 462) claims that there are different taboos in different
regions of which cultures are also distinct. This claims is in line with the concept
of taboo by Pinker (2007, p. 328), who states that the concept of taboo can vary
across times and places. However, based on all of these similar cases of taboo, the
view is always related to the concept of prohibitions and restrictions. The
limitation for somebody to not do such taboo behavior is because they believed
trouble such as lack of success in hunting, fishing, or even they believed that they
will get sick or death. They believed that someone or some physical or spiritual
forces (law, the gods, and the society) have the authority or power to give
punishment upon them (Allan & Burridge, 2006, p. 9) if they break the rule of
taboo. Taboos could arise out of social constraints on the individual’s behavior
where it can cause discomfort, harm or injury (Allan & Burridge, 2006, p. 1).
Speaking about the topic of taboo, Allan and Burridge (2006, p. 1) have
also classified them into several topics:
a) Bodies and their effluvia
b) The organs and acts of sex
c) Diseases, death, and killing
d) Touching, and viewing persons and sacred beings, objects and places.
e) Food gathering, preparation and consumption
However, on each of these topics, there are different backgrounds about
the emergence of how the prohibitions or restrictions are made. Based on the
discussion above about the origin of taboo, it can be concluded that prohibition or
restrictions, first, can be traditionally received, and the second one, it comes up
from authority with a set of law.
The concept of taboo is not limited only on prohibition and restriction of
also unavoidably lead into prohibitions or restriction of certain utterances. In other
words, uttering something particular can also be considered as taboo (Hughes,
2006, p. 462).
2.1.2 Taboo Words
In this realm of prohibition, In accordance with Jay (2009, p. 6), Allan and
Burridge (2006, p. 40) states that taboo words or taboo language refers to a
language which violate certain customs because it contains “dirty words”.
However, at the institutional level, taboo words arise from authorities that have
the power to restrict harmful speech. For instance, there are courts of law,
religious leaders, educators, and mass media managers. Authorities who define
taboo speech could punish those who violate the prohibitions (Jay, 2009, p. 153).
In this case, then emerge a question about why a mere saying about taboo
is prohibited. Hughes (2006) notes that taboo words are linguistically rooted in
word magic in which people believe that certain creatures of forces cannot or must
not be named. For example, people are prohibited in naming God, the Devil,
death, damnation, disease, copulation (p. 463). Words are believed to have
symbolic power and are considered magic. Wajnryb (2006, p. 32) claims that
cultural context influences the word’s sense of danger. Ljung (2011, p. 47) adds
that some beliefs claim that saying tabooed things, such as evil or misfortune, will
wreak that force in front of the offender. Furthermore, Pinker (2007) states that
uttering taboo words is believed to be capable of evoking the uttered idea in mind,
in this case tabooed things. For example, hearing words related to bodily effluvia
reaction is a desire not to eat or touch the offending substance. But it’s also
disgusting to think about bodily effluvia, together with the body parts and
activities that excrete them, and because of the unwillingness of speech
perception, it’s unpleasant to hear the words for them. The effluvia that evoke the
strongest disgust reaction are vicious ones: feces, blood, vomit, mucus, pus,
sexual fluids, urine (Pinker, 2007, p. 346). In the context of culture, Jay (2009, p.
154) states that in very religious cultures, blasphemy is very likely to be the
biggest taboo, therefore the taboo words drawn from this domain are considered
to be the most offensive ones. In other cultures, like in America where sex is the
biggest taboo, words denoting around this aspect are the least accepted ones.
Interestingly, the taboo words referring to the biggest taboos of a society are
usually the ones that are used most often.
In sort, Pinker (2007), Crystal (2007), Ljung (2011), and Alan and
Burridge (2006) have distinguished the topic of taboo words derived from two
major areas of taboo which are religious taboo and secular taboo. Religious taboo
words relies on profanity and blasphemy, while secular taboo words include the
topic of sexual activities, bodily effluvia, intimated part of body, ethnic or racial
slurs, family origins, animal names, physical abnormalities, and mental illness.
These concepts of taboo words and their classification lead the words into the
term called swear words.
2.1.3 Swear Words and Swearing
Taboo words and swear words are actually similar because both of those
difference between them. Karjalainen (2002, p. 18) claims that all swear words are
considered taboo words, while not all taboo words are swear words. Ljung (2011)
supports this concept by claiming that if certain taboo word is considered or used
as swear word, it means that the taboo word no longer has its literal meaning.
Reversely, taboo words which is used in their literal meaning cannot be regarded
as swear words (p. 12). The acts of uttering swear words are then called as
swearing.
As has been stated in previous chapter, Jay (2009) claims that swearing is
the use of swear words with the purpose of expressing the speaker’s emotional
state and conveying that information to listeners. The emotional state here is not
limited in the expression of anger and frustration, but also positive emotion such
as joy or surprise (p. 155). Furthermore, Jay and Janschewitz (2008, p. 270) claim
that the areas in the brain that are activated when we swear are the same areas that
also process emotions. In supporting this idea, Allan and Burridge (2006) also
claim that the involvement of emotions when people swear is even manifested in
the structures of the brain (p. 237).
Ljung (2011, p. 4) states that taboo words and swear words are two
different cases. It can be seen clearly by looking at Ljung’s criteria of swearing:
a) Swearing is the use of utterances containing taboo words
c) Many utterances that constitute swearing are subject to severe lexical,
phrasal, and syntactic constraints which suggest that most swearing
qualifies as formulaic.
d) Swearing is emotive language and its main function is to reflect, or
seem to reflect, the speakers’ feeling or attitude.
Similarly, Andersson and Trudgill (1990, p. 53) also give their definition
of swearing:
a) Swearing refers to something that is taboo and/or stigmatized in the
culture.
b) Swearing should not be interpreted literally
c) Swearing can be used to express strong emotions and attitudes
The distinctions of the use of taboo words and swear words can be seen in
this following example:
1. They are fucking like rabbit
2. Give me that fucking gun!
In the example number one, the word fucking is considered as taboo word.
However, the meaning of that word refers to its literal meaning which is “having
sex”. Meanwhile, in example number two, the word fucking is not meant to be
considered as its literal meaning but the word fucking there is a swear words
which is conveyed in emotional expression and it has the function as an
emphasizer of an utterance. Thus, statement number two is considered as
There are abundance forms of uttering swear words in an act of swearing.
However, there are some classifications for the types of swearing, together with
the motives behind the swearing utterances.
2.1.4 Types of Swearing
Many researchers of swear words have their own classification about the
type of swearing. However, among those classifications, Andersson and Trudgill’s
(1990, pp. 36-37) typology of swearing is the most comprehensive:
a) Expletive Swearing
Most swearing are emotive reactions toward frustration, something
unexpected, disappointment, or in anger. This is the expletive function of
swearing which is the use of a swear word to let off steam. Expletives are kinds of
exclamatory interjection, and like any other interjections, they have an expressive
function and are conveyed reflexively. These kinds of swearing are usually not
directed to the hearer. However, it is not limited in being expressed with the
negative emotions, but expletive swearing can also be used in expressing positive
emotion. The examples of expletive swearing are:
- Oh dammit!
- Oh shit I’m getting lost! - Fuck!
b) Abusive Swearing
Abusive swearing is kind of swearing which is usually directly conveyed
to the addressee in order to wound them verbally. It is usually includes
name-calling or the use of swear words that can cause insult. However, the speakers
may also use this swearing in order to talk about the things that frustrate or annoy
them, things that they disapprove of and wish to disparage, humiliate and degrade.
To abuse someone verbally is to abuse them by attack them with swear words that
may include an element of bragging. The examples are:
- Fuck you!
- He is an asshole, man! - Going to get you, fucker! - Those angry bastards!
c) Humorous Swearing
Humorous swearing does not have to be emotional. It can be found in
humorous scenes in which it is directed to others but it is not necessarily insulting.
It takes mostly the form of abusive swearing but has the opposite functions where
the playfulness is the key and not the offensiveness. It tends to be idiomatic,
playful, humorous, and not serious. The examples are:
- You’re such a badass! - Get your ass in gear!
d) Auxiliary swearing
Swearing can be used as an auxiliary. This type of swearing is used to
spice up about what is being said. The words that are used here have the function
of intensifier or emphasizer toward someone or something. The emotion
expressed here are various, not only limited to negative emotions. Auxiliary
swearing is also known as ‘lazy swearing’ (Andersson & Trudgill, 1990, p. 37). It
means that this kind of swearing represents any vocabulary which the speaker has
less preference to use. People are also use this kind of swearing when they have
no other words at disposal. The examples are:
- I don’t give a shit. - This is a real good shit.
- He has broken the fucking TV. - That was freaking awesome!
2.1.5 Motives of Swearing
In every swearing utterance uttered by someone, there is certain motive
behind it. Andersson (1985), as cited in Karjalainen (2002, p. 24), has generalized
the category of the motives of swearing into three major aspects:
a) Psychological motives
Many occurrences in human life are not always happened as expected.
People sometimes are left behind by the bus in the station. Someone might have
been rejected to come to certain party. A friend can suddenly cancel the plan to
unpleasant, unexpected events occur or things in general do not go according to
plans. In this situation, people are confronted with emotions such as aggression or
anger and they will usually release or express their emotion by swearing.
However, following upon frustration or anger, arising from an unexpected event
or shock, most people resort to swearing for an immediate vent of emotion. The
swearing are not deliberate, but are uttered as a reflex. In this case, the swearing
expression is not limited in a notion of negativity, but it can be used in a certain
emotion like happy or joy, and surprised. Thus, swearing is believed to be a
means of expressing emotion and releasing stress. By using the swearing that way,
it can restore emotional stability (Montagu, 1967, p. 78).
b) Social Motives
When people are swearing based on social motive, it means that their
swearing is deliberate in order to achieve social bond with the addressee.
Swearwords can be used not only to shock or evoke someone, but they can also be
used in situations that completely or almost completely lack negativity. This
motive explains that swear words can be used to strengthen friendship and group
identity. Crystal (1995, p. 173) explains that swearing are contagious. A new
social group member will have the tendency to utter certain swearing based on the
likeliness of swearing within the group. The common example can be seen in
Afro-American society where each of the members would rather say the word
“Nigga” to others as a way of solidarity and friendship. However, if the person is
not a member of that group or belong to other race, it will be considered as serious
c) Linguistic Motives
In speaking, people may have their own linguistic style which usually
appears differently if it is compared with another utterance spoken by the others.
People have variety ways of speaking and expressing themselves by using
different words and grammatical structures as long as the intents or the goals of
the communication with others are well achieved. That case could be applied
when people are swearing. People have their own style of swearing that might be
different with another. People might feel that swearwords are totally unacceptable
and should be banned from language, they might feel that swearwords are
acceptable in certain situations, or some might even argue that swearwords are
acceptable in all situations. One may say “What a very nice picture!” and he or
she may also say “What a fucking nice picture!”. In this case, swear words are just
as good and usable words as any others. They seem to appear as pure motives on
linguistic subjects or to give emphasize on what people try to communicate.
Indeed, linguistic motives can also show someone’s way of speaking in daily life.
2.2 Theoretical Framework
This section consists of summarization about the main theories which will
be the basis for answering the research problems. As has been stated in the
previous chapter, there are two research problems arise related in the phenomenon
of swearing uttered by the main character, Jack, in “Borderlands: The
Pre-Sequel!”. The first one is about the types of swearing, and the second one is the
To help answering the first problem, the researcher uses Andersson and
Trudgill’s (1990, p. 36-37) theory about the type of swearing. They categorize
swearing into four types: Expletive Swearing, Abusive Swearing, Humorous
Swearing, Auxiliary Swearing This theory will be used to support the discussion
of this research about the preferred types of swearing which are uttered by Jack.
The second problem is about the motives of swearing. In order to find out
the motives, the researcher uses the category of swearing theory by Andersson
(1985), as cited in Karjalainen (2002, p. 24): Psychological motive, Social motive,
Linguistic motive. This theory will be used to give further explanation about the
things which motivated Jack in swearing. This theory will help the researcher in
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This chapter consists of six parts. The first one is the description of the
research method that is used in this study. The second part is the research setting;
it is used to inform when the study is conducted. The third is data source of the
research. The fourth provides the description of research instrument and the data
gathering techniques. The fifth contains the steps of data analysis technique. The
last part is the research procedure which summarizes the steps in conducting the
study.
3.1 Research Method
This research is qualitative research. In qualitative research, the focus is on
understanding the social phenomena from the perspective of the human
participants in the study (Ary, Jacobs & Razavieh, 2002, p. 22). It enables
researchers to study human behavior in an indirect way through an analysis of
their communication. However, in conducting qualitative research, there are some
methods that can be used; case study, content analysis, discourse analysis. In this
study, the researcher used content analysis since the researcher employed the
transcript as a document or recorded material. Fraenkel and Wallen (2012, p. 478)
state that content analysis is a technique that enables the researcher to study
human behavior in an indirect way through an analysis of their communication.
Content analysis focuses on analyzing and interpreting recorded material to learn
newspapers, letters, films, tapes, diaries, themes, reports, or other document. To
analyze the documents, a researcher needs to organize the material by developing
appropriate categories, ratings, or scores that the researcher can use for subsequent
comparison in order to illuminate what he or she is investigating. In this study, the
applied and analyzed document was the transcript from the speeches of
“Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”. The researcher analyzed the transcript of the
conversation occurred in the game which is found in the internet. Specifically, the
analysis focuses on the transcript of conversation which contains swearing. The
transcripts which do not contain swearing will not be analyzed.
3.2 Research Setting
This research was conducted in several places where the researcher could
gain access to the literature sources both in the form of printed books or digital
files. The books were obtained from library and the digital files could be accessed
anywhere as long as there is connection to internet. However, the researcher
mostly performed the research at home because the book from the library could be
brought home and there always be internet connection there.
3.3 Data Source
The data source of this research is the transcripts of the speeches of the
main character, Jack, in “Borderlands: Pre-Sequel!” game. The transcript is
obtained from the internet on the website:
3.4 Research Instruments and Data Gathering Techniques
The only instrument used in this content analysis research was the
transcript of the speech of “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel”. The researcher used
the transcript to gather the swearing utterances occurred in the game. To ease the
data gathering, the researcher then formulated categories that were relevant to the
investigation by coding. Fraenkel and Wallen (2012, p. 436) state that coding is a
technique that is used in content analysis method. Coding is the analytic process
through which data are fractured, conceptualized and integrated to form theory.
The following table presented two objectives which became the main focus of the
study; the types of swearing and the motives of swearing. The format of the
coding table shows how the researcher answers the first and the second research
problem of this study.
Table 3.1. Format of the Coding Table of the Types of Swearing and Motives of Swearing by the Main Character of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!
No Code
Data Types Motives
Dialogue Swearing Expression
Soldier I surrender! I give up! Jack Off course he does!
Now kill him!
Jack Hahahha! He really thought we were gonna let him go. He was like “daaah, I’m gonna turn my life around and eat better and finish my novel and stuff”, then BOOOOM! What a
dumbass, ahaha!
What a
dumbass, ahaha!
Legends:
ES: Expletive Swearing PM: Psychological Motive AbS: Abusive Swearing SM: Social Motive
HS: Humorous Swearing LM: Linguistic Motive AuS: Auxiliary Swearing
3.5 Data Analysis Technique
There were several steps taken in order to analyze the data. First, the
researcher played the Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel! game to check the occurrence
of swearing expression throughout the story. Then the researcher downloaded the
transcript of the speeches of the game from internet on
www.borderlands.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Transcripts. Next, the researcher
eliminated the transcript which was not relevant with the study because the main
focus was only on the conversation which contains the main character’s swearing
expression. After that, the researcher classified that expression based on the
swearing occurred in the game.
In order to answer the research questions, the researcher found out some
theories which were related to the topics discussed and then matched each
classification of the utterances of swearwords to those theories. After that, the
researcher analyzed the data and made a conclusion to answer the research
questions.
3.6 Research Procedures
To answer the research questions, the researcher had to undertake the
systematic research procedure. In order to finalize this research, there were six
deciding the approach, deciding data source and identifying the data, interpreting
the data, and reporting result.
1. Deciding Problem
Deciding the problem of the research is the essential part of every research
since the researcher conducted the research in order to find out the answer of the
problems. In deciding the research problem, the researcher came from his personal
interest in investigating swearing phenomenon in society that was represented in a
game called “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”. In this game, there could be found
different varieties of swearing occurred throughout the game.
2. Reviewing Related Literature
After specifying the research problems, the researcher then reviewed the
relevant literature to gain more insight and knowledge about the topic. The
researcher read several journals and books which mainly discussed about taboo,
taboo words, swear words and swearing. Hence, the researcher could decide the
relevant theories related to the research problems.
3. Collecting the Data
The form of the data of this research was in the form of transcription. The
transcript contained the speeches of the characters of “Borderlands: The
Pre-Sequel!” which is obtained from the internet.
4. Deciding the Approach
After reviewing some relevant literatures and collecting the data, the
researcher then designed the research. The approach which the researcher used
content analysis. Content analysis study was assumed to be the most appropriate
method in analyzing the data since the main data are in form of written
transcription.
5. Analyzing the Data
After the data was collected, the researcher then analyzed the data. The
transcript was analyzed using the theories from different linguists and experts. In
analyzing the type of swearing, the researcher employed the theory of Andersson
and Trudgill’s (1990), while for the motive of swearing, Andersson’s theory
(1985) would be the basis.
6. Interpreting the Findings
After analyzing the data, the next step the researcher conducted was
interpreting the findings. The researcher presented the interpretation and
explanation in narrative form. While interpreting the findings, the researcher also
stated some conclusions about what the researcher had analyzed.
7. Reporting the Result
Having analyzed the findings, the researcher then reported the result. Since
the researcher conducted a qualitative study, the data presented is in form of
CHAPTER IV
RESEARCH RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter presents the findings and discussion of the study. In this
chapter, the researcher provides some analysis and discussion to answer two
research problems of the study. There will be two major parts in this chapter. The
first part is the research results and the second part is the research discussion.
4.1 Research Results
This section showed the findings that I obtained from the data gathering
which was conducted previously. Based on the research questions, there were two
major findings; the types of swearing and the motives of swearing. Those findings
were limited only on the conversation which contained the swearing expression of
Jack, the main character of “Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!”. The other swearing
expressions of the other characters will not be analyzed. As the main character,
Jack had important roles from the beginning until the end of the story. I found that
Jack was always having conversation in every major event on the game.
Furthermore, he mostly used swearing expressions in his conversation with the
other characters. Overall, there were 134 swearing expressions which were uttered
by Jack throughout the story of the game
4.1.1 The Types of Swearing
I found that Jack was the only character who mostly expressed his feeling
Among those swearing expressions, Jack had several types of swearing used
throughout the game. Those types were expletive, abusive, humorous, and
auxiliary.
4.1.1.1 Expletive Type
Expletive swearing was swearing expression which was uttered by Jack in
a form of exclamatory. It was like the expression of ouch!, oh!, or wow! but in a
form of swearing which functioned as an act of letting off steam. This kind of
swearing was uttered by Jack reflexively which means that Jack uttered the
swearing spontaneously without thinking. Based on the data, it was found that this
kind of swearing was uttered by Jack in a lot of situation like when he felt angry,
threatened, shocked, astonished, or even happy.
Below is the example of Jack’s swearing utterance which he expressed
when he felt happy.
Code: Welcome to Helios 2
Jack Holy crap! You saved my life! Thank you! Heh -- sorry, heart’s pounding. Never been shot at before. Kinda fun, actually. Look, these crazy bastards attacked Helios Station right after I sent for you guys. If we can drive them off, we’ll be free to go after that Vault on the moon’s surface.
Hey, just let me activate the defense controls. Few seconds, we’ll have turrets, force fields, laser wires -- these assholes won’t know what hit ‘em.
That conversation happened after Jack was being shot by unknown
likely be dead. Luckily, before that event happened, Jack had a bounty hunter
called Vault Hunter hired as his body guard. When Jack was cornered by the
unknown army, the Vault Hunter could come in time and saved his life by killing
the soldiers. In that situation Jack then was swearing “Holy crap!”. This swearing
utterance was an exclamatory interjection which was directed neither toward the
army nor the Vault Hunter. It was directed toward nobody and functioned as an
act of letting off steam in an extremely happy emotion.
The other example was about the expletive swearing utterance which was
expressed by Jack when he felt disappointed:
Code: Lost Legion Invasion 15
Jack We can get in the moonshot up there. Let me get the elevator.
Dammit, something’s jamming the elevator. Gotta figure something out... Alright, weird idea, uh -- let me work the loading terminal. Alright, you get into the moonshot cylinder and ride it up. Ooh, watch your step, that’ll be a hell of a fall.
In that conversation above, Jack was trying to operate the elevator.
However, it turned out that the elevator was jammed because something was stuck
on it. In that situation, Jack was using the swearword “Dammit”. This was
considered as exclamatory interjection since it was not directed toward others and
4.1.1.2 Abusive Type
Abusive type of swearing was the type of swearing expression which was
uttered by Jack when he wanted to abuse someone or something. It meant that this
kind of swearing was directed toward others. This included name-calling and
cursing expression which were offensive and could causing insult. It was also
conveyed by Jack when he wanted to wound the addressee.
The example of abusive type of swearing could be found in the situation
when Jack wanted to abuse someone which he uttered directly to the addressee:
Code: A New Direction 10
CU5TM-TP Aaaaand here we go! To the Meriff!
Jack Seriously? You idiot machine? The offices are UP. CU5TM-TP Right! I’m such a kidder! Up we go!
Office Warning. Trespassing of government property will result in your immediate death. Thank you.
Jack These aren’t going to stop us, Huxter!
This conversation occurred between Jack and a CU5TM-TP which was a
law robot. They had this conversation in an elevator while they were heading to
Huxter’s office. Jack ordered the CU5TM-TP to operate the elevator and expected
it to take him upward toward the Huxter’s office above. However, the CU5TM-TP
took them downward instead. In this situation, Jack uttered the swearing “You
idiot machine?” in which functioned as an act of abusing someone. It was directly conveyed toward the CU5TM-TP which Jack thought that the CU5TM-TP was
The other example of abusive swearing could be found in the conversation
where Jack was not conveyed the insult directly to the addressee:
Code: Welcome to Helios 1
Jack Help! Lots of help! I got no idea who these asshole troops are or why they’ve got a murder-on for this space station, but they’ve got me pinned!
Zarpedon Attention, Hyperion: your Helios Space Station now belongs to the Lost Legion. Surrender before it is too late.
This conversation happened in Jack’s space station. In that situation, Jack
was suddenly being shot by unknown soldiers and Jack was trying to ask the
Vault Hunter for some help. He then uttered the swearing “asshole” which
referred to the soldiers or troops who were shooting him. This kind of swearing is
considered as abusive swearing because it was a name-calling and it functioned as
an insulting term. However, this name-calling is not uttered directly to the
addressee.
4.1.1.3 Humorous Type
Humorous swearing was the type of swearing which Jack uttered toward
others. However, it was not meant to be abusive. Jack uttered this kind of
swearing in order to make humorous situation with the person he was talking
with. This also often contained name-calling but it has lack of negativity so its
function was not to wound the addressee.
The first example of humorous swearing was about the use of swearing
Code: Lost Legion Invasion 6
Jack Hey, kid, are you sure this place actually HAS a combat AI? These pirate dickbags just sound nuts. Get it? Dickbags? Nuts? Heh-heh.
Pickle Word is, before The Bosun went native, ‘e was some kinda AI tech whizz. Not that you’d think it now ‘e’s gone all mum-and-dad mad. But do you care? Didn’t you just get fired?
Jack And when I march up to Helios with an army of badass robots, I’ll be un-fired so quickly it’ll make Tassiter’s pedo-mustache spin off his big gross ugly face. Just get the AI core.
Pickle Uh, okay.
In that conversation above, Jack made a joke while he was talking with his
partner, Pickle. Jack was mentioning the swear words “dickbags” and “nuts” in
order to explicitly make sexual joke. That swear words both had denotation
meaning of testicle. However, Jack conveyed them connotatively where he was
using those term to abuse the pirate by name-calling them as “dickbags” and
“nuts”. Even though “dickbags” and “nuts” have their own connotative meaning, Jack found this utterance funny because those swear words have the same
reference which was testicle. In this situation, Jack was trying to construct a
humorous situation with the person he was talking with.
The second example of humorous swearing was when the swearing which
Jack uttered contained insulting swear words. However, that swearing utterances
did not used as an expression to insult. Instead, it lacked of negativity and tended
