Forbidden Words: Taboo and the Censoring of Language - Hardcover

Allan, Keith; Burridge, Kate

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0521819601 ISBN 13: 9780521819602

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2006

Synopsis

Many words and expressions are viewed as 'taboo', such as those used to describe sex, our bodies and their functions, and those used to insult other people. This 2006 book provides a fascinating insight into taboo language and its role in everyday life. It looks at the ways we use language to be polite or impolite, politically correct or offensive, depending on whether we are 'sweet-talking', 'straight-talking' or being deliberately rude. Using a range of colourful examples, it shows how we use language playfully and figuratively in order to swear, to insult, and also to be politically correct, and what our motivations are for doing so. It goes on to examine the differences between institutionalized censorship and the ways individuals censor their own language. Lively and revealing, Forbidden Words will fascinate anyone who is interested in how and why we use and avoid taboos in daily conversation.

About this title

About the Authors

Keith Allan is Reader in Linguistics and Convenor of the Linguistics Program at Monash University.

Kate Burridge is Chair of Linguistics at Monash University.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521819601
• ISBN 13: 9780521819602
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 316