Why We Curse: A Neuro-Psycho-Social Theory of Speech (review)

Despite its pervasiveness, cursing has never been accorded a significant role in theories of language. Timothy Jay, author of Cursing in America (Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 1992), attempts to remedy this with the current book. In Why we curse, J develops what he calls a neuro-psycho-social theory of speech which blends cross-disciplinary factors to try to explain what underlies cursing. The book consists of 29 short chapters divided into 5 sections: an ‘Introduction to the study of cursing’ (Chs. 1–4); ‘Neurological factors underlying cursing’ (Chs. 5–9); ‘Psychological factors underlying cursing’ (Chs. 10–16); ‘Social and cultural factors underlying cursing’ (Chs. 17–26); and ‘Why do we swear? Why do we choose the words we do?’ (Chs. 27–29). There is also a comprehensive (40-page) bibliography on cursing.

In the section of the book devoted to neurology, J argues that the right cerebral hemisphere dominates emotional events, including spontaneous cursing, but that propositional cursing is a product of the left hemisphere. Thus he suggests that response cry cursing (as when the hammer hits the thumb) replaces the shrieks and cries of infants as words become associated with emotional expressions. Particularly significant is J’s examination of neurological disorders that result in coprolalia (primarily Tourette’s Syndrome but also a number of others listed in the DSM-IV). And J proposes the existence of a ‘cursing module’— a functional neurological system that underlies cursing and its acquisition.

The section of the book devoted to psychological underpinnings of cursing treats such issues as children’s cognitive development and vocabulary learning (from a principally behaviorist stance) and personality factors. With respect to personality, J posits factors that restrain or motivate cursing. These range from ‘strong religiosity, preconventional and conventional morality (with authority salient), high level of sex anxiety, [and] middle age, middle-class status’ on the one hand to ‘history of being rewarded for cursing, extraverted, role models for cursing, impulsive personality’ on the other (88). In this section J also addresses our memory for cursing, the notion of offendedness (as opposed to offensiveness), the learning of cursewords through operant and classical conditioning, the development of cursing and the sexual vocabulary, and the grammar of cursing. In the discussion of the last item, J touches on some of the syntactic issues raised in Studies out in left field (Edmonton: Linguistic Research, 1971), though it would be interesting to see how more recent prototype semantics approaches deal with offensive vocabulary.

The section dealing with social and cultural factors discusses what makes speakers more or less likely to curse, e.g. awareness of pragmatic context and power. In the chapter on power, J notes that speakers are more likely to curse when they either have reserves of social power or lack it—when they have license or little to lose. J also discusses the role of gender identity, slang, and humor in cursing. And he considers the role of religion, taboo, etiquette, and law in curtailing offensive speech. The section also provides an interesting cross-linguistic look at Tourette’s Syndrome. The final section of the book sums up.

Overall, this is an excellent contribution to the study of offensive language, bringing together a variety of perspectives and a vast amount of research. Nevertheless, J at times digresses into topics that are somewhat tangential to his main theme. And while I learned a great deal about offensive speech from reading J’s work, I am not certain that I am able to predict when cursing will occur or to identify the factors that cause it in a particular instance: I am still unsure about the title question.