Growing up as a cradle Catholic is, in my experience, less than advantageous in the Bible Belt. Not only does not questioning your faith lead to assuming that what you've always heard is true, but when you do run into some one who has a different view, you often sound like a total idiot trying to argue your case. Lucky for me, my high school friends often asked questions that many Catholics do not encounter until college. However, living with a liberal Baptist for a few years has raised questions that, honestly, I never even considered normal people think about. That said, I could never say the Welch men are normal.
Recently, my liberal Baptist brought up his view on morality, especially in regards to using vulgarity and drinking to the point of being drunk. Though we both agreed that "drunk" was a pretty arbitrary word and decided that gluttony was the real sin, he was not totally convinced with my boundaries for vulgarity. This is, I think, because of some moral relativity on my part. Its pretty common to change one's vocabulary based upon who one is interacting with, but is it right?
First of all, is it right for a guy to use different language with "the boys" and when ladies are present? Without hesitation: yes. Please note, this does not mean that a guy can't use a dirty word in front of a lady. But men should, at all times, uphold the dignity and respect of any woman that he is around, even if that means being ultra sensitive of how he uses his language.
This leads to the second question: should any language be avoided simply because of the word? Now, this question belongs to the realm of philosophy of language, of which I know absolutely nothing about. This is where I start getting morally relative. On the Backporch, I argued the position that even if society deems some words improper, it does not necessarily hold that they are immoral. Although I stand by this, it may be that some words imply actions or ideas which actually are immoral. For example, both "bugger" and the F-bomb indicate some sexual action which I deem immoral. Although I give one friend grief for saying "bugger" (mainly because no American should wish to be British-our food is so much better), I am not anywhere near as shocked as if she stubbed her toe and yelled "F@&%!" Why? The only answer is that society, and by association me, consider "F" more offensive than buggery. It seems, then, that vulgar words do not, by virtue of conveying an immorality, become equally vulgar.
I guess I'm not the only moral relativist in this country...like that was even a consideration! However, anyone morally aware should be conscious of his or her words just as he or she is conscious of actions. A weak assertion, I know, but plenty of time remains to expand on my moral relativity and how to change it.
