Stapleton also asked her subjects why they might avoid certain curse words—specifically the more “obscene” ones, which participants agreed were the words that made reference to the vagina (cunt, fanny*). The top three reasons women gave were that they found these terms sexist because they gave a negative impression, and because they made them feel uncomfortable. For men, the top reasons were that they found them inappropriate in certain company, that they were sexist, and finally that they made them appear sexist. This last reason is particularly interesting, because there was not a single
...more
