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Cursing, Taboo, and Euphemism

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Zhuo Jing-Schmidt at University of Oregon
Zhuo Jing-Schmidt
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Abstract

Cursing is a universal and enduring human activity. As such it provides a window into human ethology, psychology, and culture. It is inherently related to taboo and its symbiotic other – euphemism. This chapter will begin with an overview of key scholarly insights on cursing, taboo, and euphemism, from psychology, anthropology, linguistics and related fields, to be followed by a review of research on these phenomena in Chinese, and conclude with brief suggestions of future directions.
Jing-Schmidt 2019
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... Euphemism is known as the practice of altering or softening impolite, harsh, rude, or taboo expressions with more pleasant and polite ones for reasons of religious fear or moral sensibility (Burridge, 2012;Crespo-Fernández, 2020;Gomez, 2009;Kany, 1960). Most studies discuss euphemism and its correlation to verbal features (Asseel, 2020;Burridge, 2012;Halmari, 2011;Matusitz, 2016;Purnomo et al., 2020;Schmidt, 2010). On the other hand, the practice of euphemization can also be seen in visual features. ...
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[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11953.].
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