Derogatory words and offensive images do not shoot up up naturally from the ground like a spring, inherently possessing meaning with the power to offend, hurt, and potentially cause violence and war between people. Derogatory words derive from the geography of a place, the history that occurred there, and the culture and often the religion of the people who live there. Profanity spawns when conflict arises between two or more groups of people with opposing views, beliefs, or morals. While the world is becoming a smaller place, different cultures are intermingling more often and in larger numbers.
These differences create conflict when their space overlaps. Many times throughout history, people have failed to use logical arguments with the agenda of solving a conflict, and instead turned to the rather ignorant, destructive, yet powerful strategy of using insults, generalizations, detrimental stereotypes, and profanity as their form of persuasion. Despite these profane words lacking any inherent truth about any certain group of people such as homosexuals, African Americans, women, Jewish people, Latinos, and many other groups of people, their rhetorical abilities have proved to persuade large masses of people many times throughout history.
My question is whether or not it is possible to have universal derogatory words that mean the same thing everywhere, possess the same connotation and denotation, and offend all people worldwide, regardless of what place a person is from or lives in currently. Is it possible for the human race to find agreement in what personally offends them or does one have to be part of a subgroup in order to be offended by something derogatory said against it?
I argue that there will never be able to be 100% agreement about the true meanings of words, specifically derogatory ones, due to the difference in cultures and lack of understanding between members of different groups. Every person possesses bias and experiences that shape the connotation of words for them specifically. Since people will obviously face different circumstances and experiences in life, often dependent upon their place in the world, the meanings of words will never be agreed upon. Therefore, there will always be derogatory words that are offensive to certain groups of people and inoffensive to others.
Confrontation and controversy, even in politics, is typical and not very dramatic in a highly individualistic culture such as America. This could be seen as negative or positive, depending upon your argument. One could argue it is positive because it gives people the opportunity to voice their opinions without fear. Another could argue that it creates a lack of unity in our nation, as well as permits ignorant people to insult groups of people based solely on false ideas and stereotypes.
An example that stirs up controversy frequently is the N-word. Some scholars argue that the N-word should be able to be used without offending anyone because the meaning has shifted dramatically and by using it freely people are removing its negative connotation and replacing it with a new meaning. Others would argue that the history of slavery and injustice will never be forgotten and is, in fact, the sole reason the word even exists. In this second argument, people would say that the word should no longer be used at all and that by silencing it now, it will eventually cease to exist. This second argument would claim that there will never be a time when the word can exist without its negative history attached as a part, if not the whole meaning of the word. It is a debate between those who wish to empower and redefine the word, looking more towards the future, and those who wish to respect the past and remember the painful meaning it once held, as well as the unjust beliefs it reiterated about an entire race.
Words are powerful rhetorical tools and whether intended or not, can create real effects in reality, despite the lack of truth that derogatory words possess. America and other countries will continue to face new obstacles as large numbers of people from diverse backgrounds converge from places all over the world, filtering into new cultures, changing them as they go. I don’t think that America will ever be able to totally agree upon words that should be considered offensive, let alone the entire world. As long as different cultures exist with entirely dissimilar experiences, traditions, beliefs, and values, so will opinions about language and meaning behind words .
Ask yourself how many times a month, a week, a year, you call your friends “b*tches,” “gay,” “retarded,” “whores,” or other words similar in nature while playfully joking around. Whether you realize it or not, you are associating women, disabled people, and homosexuals with something extremely negative, even if you are totally joking. I know it sounds dramatic and let’s fact it, we’re all guilty of it, myself included. However, by becoming more aware of the power that words have in the real world, you may now catch yourself cringing and using that bright collegiette head of yours to stop for a second, think of a word that actually makes sense and contains a whole lot more wit, and say what you actually mean. Because there is nothing intelligent, witty, or funny about the hate some people possess when they use derogatory words and actually mean them.