Films and Their Linguistic Impact on Modern English

So I was looking through my computer at past documents. I came across this paper I wrote for my History of English class, Junior year at The University of Georgia. I believe the assignment was one of those "you can basically do whatever the hell you want" kinds of things, as long as you choose some part of the English language and argue about why/how it has changed. I, being myself, of course chose to argue about the current progression of Modern English and its prevalence of "profanity". Part of me probably just wanted to turn a paper into a 4000 level course full of "bad words" and actually get an A instead of a professor's reprimand. So, beware, this hub often uses not-so-wonderful language. Well...depending on who you are, I suppose. I think it's perfectly wonderful, as profanity serves a clear purpose in conveying emotions and tone. But that's beside the point.

     Though some people consider language to be a standardized, static component of culture, every language evolves over time as a result of contact with other languages, formations of dialects, and the introduction of new concepts. The English language is particularly subject to change because of its widespread use on each continent. With globalization, English has become more readily accessible to the world because of the internet, music, television, and film. With these modes of communication at people’s fingertips, they have become more and more linguistically impacted, especially concerning profanity. Over the last few decades, profanity has become a prominent feature of colloquial English, especially among youth. Films more commonly use words some categorize as obscene, and the increased accessibility of these films has made slang terms and obscenities more acceptable in everyday communication.

     According to one article, Gone With the Wind, released in 1939, was the first English film to feature an obscenity in its famous line spoken by Clark Gable: “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn” (Goodale). A few decades later, in 1966, the film Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?  features twenty-seven profanities, and 1995’s Casino features 573—422 of which are the word “fuck” (Goodale). This unprecedented, and barely unrepeated, high, and the film’s success, as it earned a profit of over $110,000,000 in theatres, suggest that viewers are not impeded in their movie choices by foul language. In fact, more recent movies commonly use the word “fuck” and its derivatives, along with hundreds of other profane terms and phrases, and they still rank among college students’ favorite films. Some people might even suggest that this language causes the love of these films and viewers’ tendency to repeatedly quote movie lines with peers. In fact, many cult classic films, such as Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, and The Big Lebowski use the word “fuck” at least 250 times. These movies show viewers the versatility of these profane words and encourage day-to-day usage.

 Accompanying movie releases, since 1968, are movie ratings by the Motion Pictures Association of America. Most films, if submitted to the MPAA Board of ten to thirteen people for review, receive a rating of G, PG, PG-13, R, or NC-17. These ratings were originally intended to act as guides, especially for parents, of what content one can find in the film. Though filmmakers are not required to submit their films to this Board, most do in order to comply with viewers’ demands. According to the organization’s website, this Board uses a majority vote to decide which rating a movie will get based on the film’s content and how the Board thinks parents would want the film to be rated. Thus, the films’ ratings essentially are determined by viewers’ consensus and reaction to films. In fact, the website’s guidelines on rating a film as PG-13 are as follows:

A motion picture’s single use of one of the harsher sexually-derived words, though only as an expletive, initially requires at least a PG-13 rating. More than one such expletive requires an R rating, as must even one of those words used in a sexual context. The Rating Board nevertheless may rate such a motion picture PG-13 if, based on a special vote by a two-thirds majority, the Raters feel that most American parents would believe that a PG-13 rating is appropriate because of the context or manner in which the words are used or because the use of those words in the motion picture is inconspicuous. (Ratings)

Thus, the rating system still acts as a subjective response to viewers’ desires and the current accepted use of language, which has become progressively looser. 

One recently successful film among college students is the 2007 film Superbad. This movie immediately became a huge success in the box office, grossing $167,463,226 in theatres, and it was rated R “for pervasive crude and sexual content, strong language, drinking, some drug use and a fantasy/comic violent image - all involving teens” (“Superbad”). This film’s characters not only use crude language excessively throughout, as the word “fuck” appears 186 times, but much of the comedy actual centers around this language rather than around a topic intensified with crude language. The characters use language such as “fuck,” “cock,” and “ass” repeatedly, and they casually integrate these words into their usual conversations. In fact, the main character, Seth, speaks to his home economics teacher and requests that she “give [him] a fuckin’ break,” and his teacher basically ignores his language (Superbad). These actions subtly suggest to viewers that any conversation, whether formal or informal, can successfully include such words.

While trying to analyze other people’s opinions of profanity in modern English and the impact of films, I created a survey of questions that I gave to a large group of people. Since I realize many different factors play into people’s opinions about language, such as gender, age, and social status, I decided to eliminate as many factors as possible. I gave this survey to a group of eighty females and eighty males at The University of Georgia. Thus, while my results only reflect a small group of people, I think I eliminated most differences between education level and age. All students surveyed were between the ages of eighteen and twenty-two and currently attend the university. Of the questions I asked, I was most interested in the question about students’ reactions to profanity in films. Of the 155 students who answered this question, forty-six percent replied that they are unaffected by excessive profanity in films, and only eight percent said they actually dislike “bad” language in films. That twenty-three percent of the students stated they enjoy the movie more because of the profanity suggests that many people, at least those similar to the people surveyed, actually do prefer movies with profanity. These same people answered how many times a day they use the word “fuck,” to which more than fifty percent answered between one and twenty-five times, but approximately the same percentage hear the word between one and fifty times a day. Many people, especially off of a college campus, would consider this as excessive use of this word. Clearly, the word “fuck,” as well as other profane words, has penetrated the English vernacular of twenty-year-old students.

Another film that recently has been successful among all movie viewers is the film The Departed. This drama set in Boston, about moles in the Massachusetts State Police and the Irish Mafia, uses the word “fuck” 237 times (The Departed). In this film, most of the characters become clearly defined as morally “good” people and morally “bad” people. Whether categorized as good or bad, all of the characters speak using much profanity. This film, though perhaps unintentionally, provides viewers with the idea that language is separate from morality. Many people argue that “proper” or “polite” language reflects good morals and ethics, but this film blatantly challenges this concept. This film was not only financially successful, but it also won the 2006 Oscar Award for Best Picture, proving that even art can use excessive amounts of profanity.

Films like Superbad and The Departed present the true question regarding films and their relationship with language. Perhaps films impact society’s use of certain words by presenting them as acceptable and common, or perhaps films reflect society’s current use of these words and simply make the film more relatable to a majority because of the language to which they are accustomed. Either way, profanity has become more prevalent in daily language, and it has also become prominent in films, especially comedies. Because films and movie stars emotionally and mentally influence viewers, especially young viewers, the presentation of comedies as films that are humorous because of profanity presents the idea that, in real life, comedy must be peppered with foul language, and this concept subconsciously pressures the youth of America into incorporating words like “fuck” into their everyday conversations.

"Casino." The Numbers: Box Office Data, Movie Stars, Idle Speculation. 1 May 2008 <http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1995/0CSN.php>.

The Departed. Dir. Martin Scorsese. Perf. Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg. DVD. Warner Bros. Pictures, 2006.

Gone with the Wind. Dir. Victor Fleming. Perf. Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable. DVD. Selznick, 1939.

Goodale, Gloria. "Mucking Up Movies in Hollywood." Christian Science Monitor (1998). Academic Search Complete. Ebsco. The University of Georgia, Athens. 29 Apr. 2008. Keyword: Film Profanity.

"Ratings Today." Motion Pictures Association of America. MPAA. 1 May 2008 <http://www.mpaa.org/Ratings_hstry_RtTday.asp>.

Superbad. Dir. Greg Mottola. Perf. Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Seth Rogen. DVD. Columbia Pictures, 2007.

"Superbad." The Numbers: Box Office Data, Movie Stars, Idle Speculation. 1 May 2008 <http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2007/SPBAD.php>.