That's What I'm F***ing Talking About

Here's a brilliant essay over at The New Republic detailing just why it is that swear words have the power they do, and why we use them. The author, Steven Pinker, does an excellent job analyzing not just the grammar of curses (for example, how nebulous the meaning/function of "fuck" really is) but their heritage. I, for one, had never thought about how religious curses ("What the hell is that," "Damn you") have lost their bite and severity, so "fuck" steps in with its secular power ("What the fuck is that," "Fuck you").

Absolutely worth a read, for fuck's sake.