Swearing

Since I have just found some new software for uploading, I thought I might have a go at another rant. The issue has recently scraped its way to the top of my brain, and as such has received some (soft) focus from my brain. The problem is (as one might guess from the title) swearing.
Most sub-urbanites, such as myself, begin with our attitudes towards swearing in the same place. That is, it's a BAD thing, and we don't ever want to do it or we will be tasting suds for a week. This attitude typically lasts all through elementary school (unless you're a "suburban bad-ass", in which case you might want to consider having yourself put down for blatant oxymoron-ism). Then comes high school. Suddenly, you see the way cool grade 12's swearing all over the place. This results in two very opposite responses in people. Some, wishing to emulate the grade 12's (which, depending on your gender, is either where you want to be, or the people you're after want to be) begin also dropping curses all over the floor, in a misguided attempt to be just like the awesome soon-to-be grads. The rest retain their sanctimonious abhorrence of the evil that is swearing. "Good" kids, they refrain from swearing in public, but among close friends, for a giggle at the sheer naughtiness of it, the occasional "fuck" might slip out. I belonged to the latter segment of the population, and it is them that I will address in the remainder of this post. If you belong to the first half, well perhaps I'll shed some light on us preppy brown nosers.
In fact, I will concentrate my focus even further, down to those of us who are theatrically inclined. Those of us who derive some sort of enjoyment from standing on a raised platform in front of strangers and attempting to communicate an intention with them. However, the ideas presented apply across the board, I think.
As we reach the end of our tenure at high school, our previously strict abhorrence of certain four letter words begins to wane. They begin slipping into regular conversation more and more. At first, we are horrified, and suspect we are being subtly peer pressured into it (a horrific event for us drama "rebels"). Then suddenly, it occurs to us. There is a reason that swear words came to be, and it is not so that pre-pubescent boys could impress the ladies with their amazing maturity. They serve a purpose, and a very important one, for those of us concerned with communicating effectively.
They reflect a certain emphasis, impossible to otherwise gain. "What the fuck was that?" is a lot stronger than "What on Earth was that?" I heard swear words once described as percussive, and I think that's sort of how they work. They are the beats to the song of our emphatic emotion. They are but words and nothing more, but also nothing less. Semantically, they add nothing to a sentence. "What the hell was that shit?" means the same as "What was that?" It's that extra oomph that fuck gives us that encourages us to continue using it.
Swear words are more than just a refuge for the linguistically challenged. They are the rhythm to the dance of our emotion and they pack a punch otherwise denied us. Am I saying swear words are the only alternative? No, of course not. It's entirely possible to use more family appropriate words and accomplish the same thing. However, they are not something to be shied away from, simply because they are regarded as "bad." It is because they are regarded as bad that they have their use, and for as long as we have language, we will have words that are not considered acceptable, and they will be used. Shakespeare used swear words. We just don't react to them as we would if he dropped a few "shit"s in there because what the Elizabethans found offensive and what we found offensive are two different things.
So, in conclusion, now that I am done ranting, I am going to keep on swearing until I get bored with it, and I don't encourage anyone to start because I said so, but neither should you not because you think it's too lame. Shakespeare did it, and according to me, he's not lame.