Emma Byrne > Quotes

“We should keep at it. Swearing is a powerful instrument, socially and emotionally. If women and men want to communicate as equals, we need to be equals in the ways in which we are allowed to express ourselves. Sod social censure. Let us allow men to cry and women to swear: we need both means of expression.”
― Emma Byrne, Swearing Is Good For You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language

“We should keep at it. Swearing is a powerful instrument, socially and emotionally. If women and men want to communicate as equals, we need to be equals in the ways in which we are allowed to express ourselves. Sod social censure. Let us allow men to cry and women to swear: we need both means of expression. I like this observation from British-American anthropologist Ashley Montagu, writing in the 1960: 'If women wept less they would swear more... Today instead of swooning or breaking into tears, she will often swear and then do whatever is indicated. it is, in our view, a great advance upon the old style.'
Too fucking right.”
― Emma Byrne, Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language

“So much of the way we judge women’s language, and their behavior, still rests on the antiquated double standards of a handful of long-dead churchmen.”
― Emma Byrne, Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language

“Research shows that women are using swearing and other equally powerful forms of language more effectively than ever, but that same research shows that doing so still comes at a greater social risk for women: a man swearing is more likely to be seen as jocular or strong; women are likely to be seen as unstable or untrustworthy. To which I can only ask: where the fuck did this bullshit come from?”
― Emma Byrne, Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language

“The fact that swearing is lost if we lose our ability to map the emotions of others shows us just how socially sophisticated we have to be in order to swear.”
― Emma Byrne, Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language

“The most common explanation boils down to the same double standard that makes “slut” an insult and “stud” a compliment.”
― Emma Byrne, Swearing Is Good for You: The Amazing Science of Bad Language