LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature 16(1) October2021 p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X 39 The Flexibility of the “F” Word Deinda Ratih Machmudah Universitas Negeri Surabaya deindarm@gmail.com Abstract The “f” word (fuck) cannot be separated from its taboo nature. This can reveal more deeply about its use which can be found every day that the “f” word is not always used in negative terms and may be useful to enrich the knowledge about the characteristics of the “f” word and to reduce the stigma about it that it has more than negative purpose in expressing emotions. This research would also clarify the reasons for the versatility of the “f” word itself because of the kind that can be used to convey the sense of a specific emotional situation. This study was created because of the shortcomings that the previous study had; Horvat (2016), Jay and Janschewitz (2008), and Pluszczyk (2015) who have not studied the function of the “f” word in detail. So the motivation is created with documentation technique and applying the framework of Shiedlower (1999) and Wang (2013) to further discuss that the “f” word can be flexible in terms of word elements and their function in this study. The results have 6 different types of word element and 4 functions of “f” word swearing. Keywords: Fuck, Swearing, Functions of Swearing INTRODUCTION Language has always been a medium of communication. Every emotional state can be conveyed by expressing it through language. It does not rule out that any kind of word can be uttered, because it is the function of the language itself to visualize what we are thinking or feeling in words despite whether it is “good” words or “bad” words. By “bad” words, it means a taboo, which means in linguistic theory refers to the condition that a word or a name cannot be used by a certain community, circumtance, or persons. Let us name it the “f” word (fuck) in this case. Battistella notes that the words' vulgarity 'and' obscenity 'both apply to crude terms for human anatomy (e.g. prick, cunt) and sexual or excretory functions (e.g. fuck, shit),' largely a matter of degree and prurience,' with the discrepancy between vulgarity and obscenity (2005). Historically, the 'degree and prurience' of the “f” word was such that the first academic study of the “f” word, Read's paper, omits any description of the word itself and refers obliquely to it as 'the most unreputable of all English terms, the colloquial verb and noun, uniformly understood by English speakers, defining the sex act' (Read, 1934). The survival and continuing use of the "f" word can sound shocking, considering this extreme social stigma (Fairman, 2006). Stapleton (2010) however suggests, that the banned existence of taboo language gives it a strength and power that performs a number of social, psychological and interpersonal purposes. The term thus tends to be used 'not in spite of the stigma, but because of it' (Fairman, 2006). For some people expressing emotional state with the “f” word is inevitable. It proves that this “f” word has its some kind of flexibility to be in any explication or statement. This what makes the study worth doing. It is to analyze why is it flexible. Why it can be “Get the f*ck out” when you expel someone? Why it can be “Don’t f*ck with me” when you are cornered and giving a threat like so? And why does it have to be “She’s f*cking beautiful!” when you see a really beautiful person? Several related studies found. Among them is a study by Horvat (2016) that discusses the “f” word from its etymology and also its roles as a word element. But not the function of the word. The second study is done by Jay and Janschewitz (2008). It analyzes swearing from the pragmatic’s perspective and believes that swearing is not necessarily impolite. However, the second previous study focuses on the swearwords https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ http://journal.unnes.ac.id LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1) October 2021 __________________________________________________________________________ 40 characteristics in general and does not expand it to the “f” word specifically. The third is by Pluszczyk (2015) that analyzes various functions of swearwords from negative to positive use. Even this study attemps to demonstrate the occurrence of swearing used in a more positive sense. This following study will support the function of the “f” word’s flexibility in expressing any kind of emotional statement. The case leads us to the purpose of this study that is to clarify and point out that the “f” word has several functions to express something more than what it is written explicitly. Therefore, the present study is motivated by the statement of Andersson & Trudgill (1992) that the “f” word can be considered flexible, since the “f” word can be used to express pain, pleasure, hate, and love depending on the context it appears in. Swearing Vingerhoets (2013) cited from Andersson and Trudgill (2007) Swearing is described as a use of language in which the expression: (i) refers to something in the culture of the swearer that is taboo or stigmatized, (ii) is not meant to be literally interpreted, (iii) may be used to convey strong emotions or attitudes. The application of these elements leads to a language with a greater power of expression. For this reason, in specific cases, swearing may be more functional (Stapleton, 2010). Pinker (2007) notes that swearing is universal and that in certain cultures, the words and terms used in swearing can be considered taboo. In various corners of the world, swearing is a normal human behavior. Many people claim that it is sometimes socially inappropriate to utter swear words, but new studies show that it helps alleviate stress, frustration, and tension (Stephens, 2013). As Stephens (2013), a senior lecturer in psychology at Keele University, states: "[...] swear-ing probably works by making people feel more aggressive, in turn setting off the fight or flight response". Most of us probably agree that the main purpose of swearing is expressing something negative, such as anger, frustration, and annoyance. It is used when we cannot control our emotion most of the time. Swearing, in addition, is often used to insult or offend others. People, thus, stigmatize swearing, even if swearing may be used for the opposite reason. Just as Jay and Janschewitz (2008) claim that the purpose of swearing does not always have to be thought in a bad way. Functions of Swearing It is undeniable that a swear word used in a given context fulfills some kind of communicative function (Wang 2013). It is necessary to stress that there are several functions of swearing to be distinguished. 1. Emotion One of the most principal functions of swearing is expressing emotion. Whenever we analyze swearing in terms of expressing emotions, we usually associate it with anger, fury, and anxiety. According to Andersson and Trudgill (2007), swearing in constitutes an utterance of strong emotions such as: fuck, shit, holy shit. 2. Insult Swearing is also used in order to offend another person. It is undeniable that this function is used in a negative way. Male 1: Danny, anybody hurt? Male 2: We're OK, just don't say "no", you motherfucker! (The Negotiator) The above example contains word - insults and slurs the purpose of which is to offend others. We can easily observe how swearing is used in order to vent negative emotions, show rudeness, offend, insult another person or refer to them in a derogatory way. 3. Emphasis Another function of swearing is emphasis. One of the most principal objectives of swearing in this respects is to emphasize one's feelings or emotions about something and intensify the force of a particular element in an utterance (Wang 2013). It should be stressed that the swear words the function of which in emphasis do not have to be regarded as contextually inappropriate or offensive. As a result, the judgement is not negative in this respect. https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature 16(1) October2021 p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X 41 Male 1: Tell me some of the shit you've learned, fuck-ass before I pistol with you. Male 2: OK. I believe in death, destruction, chaos, filth and greed. Male 1: Cut the shit, Danny. Come on, tell me what I wanna hear, asshole. Male 2: Do you want to hear shit about your mother, man? Male 1: Do you want to get fucking beaten, Danny? (American History X) In the above example, the function of the adjective fucking is used in order to strengthen the force of beaten. 4. Solidarity / Identity Another function is expressing solidarity or identity. The expletives used in this respect usually occur in order to indicate intimacy or group membership (Wang 2013). The swear words fuck you, or shit, or the mild one damn is probably very okay among close people, as the swearing utterances instill or confirm the feeling of friendship, solidarity, or camaraderie. The occurence of swearing can also be caused by the need to show solidarity or harmony. Hence, in this respect a swear word functions as a marker of solidarity and this phenomenon is regarded as positive. 5. Humour Finally, swearing can also be used in order to bring forth laughter. It should also be stressed that there is a lot of offensive language encountered in jokes which also contributes to or increase the funniness. It can be hypothesized, in other words, that swearing does not actually always indicate rudeness. Swearing is not inherently violent, rude, and hostile. It can even be a reflection of politeness, it can also have other functions-swear words, for example, also serve to signify unity or cooperation or even to create laughter. The “F” Word (Fuck) The meaning of the “f”word varies based on its word element. It is because the characteristic of the “f” word that can be any word element in a sentence. Either as a verb, noun, adjective, interjection, adverb, infix, or acronyms. Therefore, the “f” word can be considered as a polymorphous word. Most of the examples below are taken from Sheidlower's book The F‐word, some are taken from the internet, and some are taken from the Corpus of Contemporary English. The corpus was created by Mark Davies of Brigham Young University and can be accessed at http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/. Other examples are taken from song lyrics, television shows and internet chat rooms. Fuck – verb, 1. To engage in heterosexual intercourse involving the penetration of the penis into the vagina Liz Phair, Flower, song: "I want to fuck you like a dog, I'll take you home and make you like it ... Everything I'll do to you, I'll fuck you till your dick is blue." (Retrieved from http://www.lyricsfreak.com/l/liz+phair/flower_200 84491.html 5/2/2016) 2. To make sexual thrust into, rub against in a sexual way, engage in intercourse other than heterosexual genital intercourse; J. Vasco, Three‐hole girl, 1967: Stick your tongue in my pussy hole, Lisa, fuck my pussy with your mouth! (Sheidlower, 1999) 3. In various similes and proverbs; Legman, Dirty jokes, 1952: I am going to fuck you till your ears fly off. (Sheidlower, 1999) W. C. Woods, Killing zone, 1970: I wish you were here too, so I could fuck your brains out. (Sheidlower, 1999) 4. Used as an interjection to express dismay, disbelief, resignation, surprise, etc., often used with it, occasionally elaborated; Manning, Fortune, 1929: A man uttered a monosyllabic curse: "Fuck!" (Sheidlower, 1999) 5. To harm irreparably; finish; victimize; H. Miller, Tropic of cancer, 1934: We'll take his lousy review and we'll fuck him good and proper ... The magazine'll be finished. (Sheidlower, 1999) 6. To botch, bungle up; L. Sanders, Anderson tapes, 1969: I might fuck the whole thing. (Sheidlower, 1999) 7. To cheat, to victimize, deceive, betray; https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/ http://journal.unnes.ac.id LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1) October 2021 __________________________________________________________________________ 42 Gwin, Overboard, 1979‐1982: As Mick tried to teach me, "Top dog fucks the bottom dog. That's the law of the jungle." (Sheidlower, 1999) 8. In variations implying especially cruel deception or brutalization; New Yorker, September 1997: Gil didn't understand how much firepower Steve had ... Steve is going to fuck Gil so hard his eardrums will pop. (Sheidlower, 1999) 9. To exploit to one's own benefit; M. Baker, Cops, 1985: I'm going to stay here but I'm going to fuck the job to death. They are not going to get anything out of me. (Sheidlower, 1999) 10. To be used as a curse, oath; Cee Lo Green, Fuck you: I see you driving 'round town with the girl I love and I'm like, "FUCK YOU!" I guess the change in my pocket wasn't enough, I'm like, "FUCK YOU! And fuck her too." (Retrieved from http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/ceelogreen/fuckyou. html 5/2/2016) 11. In stronger, more vivid or more elaborate curses; Bunker, Animal factory, 1977: If she's been a jiveass bitch, fuck her in the ass. (Sheidlower, 1999) 12. To cease or abandon, especially suddenly, to ditch; R. Roth, Sand and wind, 1973: I got the idea to fuck everything and head for California. (Sheidlower, 1999) 13. To trifle, toy, meddle, or interfere, fool, play, to harass, tease or provoke, to mess with, to lie to; New Yorker, March, 1998: You don't say no to the Mafia, you don't challenge the Mafia, you generally don't fuck with the Mafia. (Sheidlower, 1999) Fuck off – verb; 1. To run away, get away, get out, go to hell, usually used as an imperative; Movie: A fish called Wanda, John Cleese, 1988: Tell those pigs to fuck off. (Sheidlower, 1999) 2. To loaf or evade duty; Rhodes, Chosen few, 1964: You missed formation. You fucked off and we don't tolerate fuckoffs. (Sheidlower, 1999) 3. To slack off; fail through inattention; Rhodes, Chosen few, 1964: You were on yo way t'breakin' some kinda record, son, bu'cha fucked off on th' five hundred. (Sheidlower, 1999) 4. To be deprived of through bungling; Bunker, No beast, 1972: It's too late. We fucked off a score because you weren't there. (Sheidlower, 1999) 5. To disregard; brush off; put aside; G. Ross, Last Campaign, 1962: They been trying to retire him for months ... but he keeps fucking them off and turning down his retirement and refusing to leave the division. (Sheidlower, 1999) 6. To idle away; Playboy, December 2969: You are going to get tired of running around in a pair of dirty Levis, fucking off your time with those other young cats. (Sheidlower, 1999) 7. To anger, upset; N. Hornby, High fidelity, 1995: "I'm glad you're back to sort him out." This really fucks me off. (Sheidlower, 1999) Fuck over – verb, especially Black English; 1. To treat harshly or with contempt in any manner whatsoever; to mistreat, victimize, cheat, betray; damage; Movie: Cradle to the grave, 2003: I'll be back. I got ta go fuck over a guy who fucked me over. (COCA) 2. To beat up, to work over; T. Mayer, Weary Falcon, 1971: The fourth mission I went on was the time they really fucked us over. (Sheidlower, 1999) Fuck up – verb; 1. To ruin, spoil, destroy, to botch, to bungle; Movie: The Terminator 2: Judgement day, 1991: "Yeah, Saralita. Sure. Just drop by any time and totally fuck up my life." (COCA) 2. To blunder badly, get oneself into any kind of trouble; fail; Stuart Woods, The short forever, New York 2003: "Callie left in a hurry, she said. I guess you fucked it up again. Don't you start, Stone said." (COCA) 3. To go awry, malfunction, break down; D. Mamet, American Buffalo, 1976: There's the least chance something might fuck up. (Sheidlower, 1999) 4. To confuse, confound, thwart, interfere with; https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature 16(1) October2021 p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X 43 Chinn, Dig the nigger up, 1976: I'd sure like to do it to her! She fucks me all up! (Sheidlower, 1999) 5. Intoxication; John Allman, Losers and gainers, Antioch Review 1992: " If you have kids, " Arlene says, " you'll have retards and cripples. " She means he is so fucked up by now from drugs. (COCA) 6. To injure, especially severely, mangle, wound; especially Black English; Movie: Collateral, 2004: I'll fuck you up! Hand it over. (COCA) 7. To kill, especially Military; Whitely, Deadly Green, 1987: Fuck them up! Fuck them fuckers up! Get some! (Sheidlower, 1999) 8. To fool around, especially Black English; A. Young, Snakes, 1970: We both need to get away from this old school grind for a while. Why don't we go out and fuck up tonight? It's Friday, man ... Let's go out and party! (Sheidlower, 1999) Motherfuck – verb; 1. Used to express rejection, dismissal, hatred, used as a curse; Song: Lil Jon and the Eastside Boyz feat. Ice Cube, Real nigga roll call: Motherfuck that nigga! Motherfuck that bitch! (source at link: http://ohhla.com/anonymous/lil_jon/cr_juice/real_ nig.jon.txt) 2. To destroy, confuse; Urban Life IV, 1975: We'll motherfuck the bastard's mind! (Sheidlower, 1999) Fuck – noun; 1. An act of copulation: J. Atkins, Sex in literature IV, 1763: Then just a few good fucks, and then we die. (Sheidlower, 1999) 2. Copulation: R. Thompson, Unit for modest ears, ca 1675: If gifted Men before now swear and Rant/(Then surely I for Fuck may Cant). (Sheidlower, 1999) 3. A person considered as a sexual partner: "J.M. Hall", Anecdota, 1934: You are a much better fuck than your old mammy here. (Sheidlower, 1999) 4. Same as goddamn, a jot; usually used in phrases such as worth a fuck and care a fuck: H. Miller, Tropic of Cancer, 1934: Nobody gives a fuck about her except to use her. (Sheidlower, 1999) 5. Anything whatsoever – used in negative: Rolling Stone Interviews, 1970: They didn't play fuck. (Sheidlower, 1999) 6. Used with like, as or than as an emphatic standard for comparison, also used with a: Legman, Limerick, 1938: The colloquial comparative, "hotter than a Persian fuck". (Sheidlower, 1999) 7. A bit of difference – used in negative: Sample, Racehoss, 1984: It don't make a fuck who it is. (Sheidlower, 1999) 8. Semen, although rare nowadays, in phrases such as full of fuck: "Justinian", Americana Sexualis, 1938: Full of fuck – amorously potent. (Sheidlower, 1999) 9. A despicable person, usually a man: Fliesler, Anecdota, 1927: You bloomin' fuck. (Sheidlower, 1999) 10. An evil turn of events, a cheat of fortune: Terkel, Good war, 1984: Know what they did? They made him a lieutenant colonel and me a captain. Ain't that a fuck? (Sheidlower, 1999) Fucker – noun; 1. A person, usually a man, who copulates, especially promiscuously: Romance of lust, 1866: She grew madly lewd, called me her own dear delightful fucker. (Sheidlower, 2009) 2. A person, especially a man, who is despicable, wretched, formidable, a bastard, (broadly) a fellow or simply a person: J.S. Farmer and W.E. Henley, Slang and its analogues, 1890‐93: Fucker – a term of endearment, admiration, derision etc. (Sheidlower, 2009) 3. An annoying or hateful thing, task, situation; a thing in general, especially if its striking or remarkable: T. Shibutani, Derelicts of company K, 1945: I don't think I can walk a mile with this fucker on. (Sheidlower, 2009) 4. A splendid or wretched example: W. Kotzwinkle, Jack in the box, 1980: She'll burn up the competition ... It's one fucker of an engine. (Sheidlower, 1999) https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ http://journal.unnes.ac.id LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1) October 2021 __________________________________________________________________________ 44 Fuckface – noun; an ugly or contemptible person; usually used abusively in direct address; Movie: The Nines, 2007: Goodnight, fuckface. (COCA) Fuckload – noun; a large number or a load of, a lot; G. Malkani, Londonstani xxiii, 2006: She was my girlfriend, we'd both landed in a fuck‐load of trouble. (Sheidlower, 2009) Motherfuck or motherfucker – noun; 1. A man who commits incest with his mother; a despicable or contemptible man or woman; Mailer, Why are we in Vietnam, 1967: Don't come near, motherfuck. (Sheidlower, 1999) 2. Especially Black English or Military; a fellow, a person, a formidable person: Song: Lil Jon and The Eastside boyz feat. Lil Scrappy – What you gon' do: I don't play with motherfuckers 'cause this shit be real. Make you hold your breath longer than a navy seal. (Lyrics retrieved from: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/liljontheeastsidebo yz/whatyougondo.html 24/2/2016) 3. An infuriating, hateful or oppressive thing; a difficult task: B.Jackson, In the life, 1962: Oh, life's a motherfucker, Bruce. (Sheidlower, 1999) 4. An infuriating or surprising state of affairs: S. Robinson and D. Ritz, Smokey, 1989: We're going to remember this motherfucker ... 'cause I don't intend to let it happen again. (Sheidlower, 1999) 5. A large or outstanding example: National Lampoon, August 1977: Have I got a motherfucker of a stunt for you! (Sheidlower, 1999) 6. A damn: Pelfrey, Big, 1972: And I don't give a motherfuck. (Sheidlower, 1999) 7. Used as an emphatic expletive; hell: Norst, Colors, 1988: What the motherfuck was that you just did? (Sheidlower, 1999) 8. Used as an indefinite standard of comparison: Rukuza, West Coast Turnaround, 1990: It was raining like six motherfuckers. (Sheidlower, 1999) Fucked – adjective; 1. Completely exhausted: H. Garner, Monkey grip, 1977: I only want to crash, right now. I'm absolutely fucked. (Sheidlower, 1999) 2. Lacking in sanity or good sense, crazy: National Lampoon, April 1990: They're fucked in the head. (Sheidlower, 1999) 3. Exceedingly bad or offensive, rotten, awful: Movie: Ules's gold, 1997: Everyone's life you've ever touched is fucked. You know that, Ulee? (Sheidlower, 1999) Fucked up – adjective: 1. Especially Military for ruined or spoiled through incompetence or stupidity; botched, chaotic, messed up: T. Dulis, Path for our valor, 1963: Man, there ain't ever been such fucked‐up operation! (Sheidlower, 2009) 2. Intoxicated by liquor or drugs: Danielle Steele, Secrets, 1985: Sandy's not fucked up again, is she? (Sheidlower, 2009) 3. Confused, mentally or emotionally ill, crazy: J. McCorkle, Cheer leader, 1984: You're crazy, Jo, fucked up. (Sheidlower, 1999) 4. Deeply troubled or upset, distraught: E. Hemingway, Selected letters, 1948: I was all fucked up when I wrote it and threw away about 100.000 words which was better than most of what I left in. (Sheidlower, 2009) 5. Contemptible, worthless, miserable, damned: S. Terkel, Hard times, 1970: It's the textbooks that are fucked up. (Sheidlower, 2009) 6. Utterly fatigued, exhausted: D. Gram, Boulevard nights, 1979: I'm tired man. Fuckin' fucked up. (Sheidlower, 2009) Fucking – adjective; contemptible or despicable, goddamned: Kate Rockland, 150 pounds, N. York, 2012: "Come on, Shoshana, can't you turn that thing off for one fucking day?" (COCA) Motherfucking – adjective: 1. Goddamned: Movie: American History X, 1999: You're a motherfucking traitor! (COCA) 2. Used to emphasize the positive qualities of a following noun: Flaherty, Fogarty, 1973: What a motherfucking man he was, Shamus! (Sheidlower, 1999) https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature 16(1) October2021 p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X 45 BFD – Big fucking deal! So what? Who cares? P. Fonda, Unauthorized Biography (on Fox TV), 1988: He was very angry that I had destroyed his honeymoon – BFD! (Sheidlower, 1999) FU – Fuck you: "Man, I just embarrassed you!" "FU" (Retrieved from http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term =FU 24/2/2016) Motherfuck or motherfucker – used to express astonishment, anger. GQ, November 1998: He spins around, kicks the ground, stares down the offending patch of wood. "Motherfuck," he mutters. (Sheidlower, 1999) WTF – What the fuck? Same as "what the hell?" Reddit.com, 2013: All (& only) things that make you say WTF. (Retrieved from http://www.reddit.com/r/WTF/ 24/2/2016) -fucking- used for emphasis in the middle of a word or set phrase: In Verbatim, 1945: Twenty‐fxxxing‐four faces to feed. Blame it on your anti‐fxxx'n‐aircraft units, mate. (Sheidlower, 1999) Also –motherfucking- Ragni and Rado, Hair, 1967: Yeah! Emanci‐ motherfuckin'‐pator of the slave. (Sheidlower, 1999) A number of explanations above lead to several problems to be answered. some of these are to answer the meaning of the word “f” (fuck), and the flexibility of the “f” word from the point of view of the swearing function. This is related to the purpose of this study are to uncover the meaning of the “f” word (fuck), and to elaborate the flexibility of the "f" word by categorizing the swearwords according of their pragmatic (functions) and semantic (word element). METHODOLOGY According to Lodico (2010) qualitative research has few characteristics. Some of them are: studies in qualitative method are carried out in naturalistic settings, in qualitative the researchers ask broad research question designed to explore, interpret, or understand the social context, and the study data report is in narrative form or using words rather than numbers. Based on the explanation above, this research uses qualitative data approach because the data resulted from research problems are in the form of texts or statements. Subject Documentation is considered to be the most useful approach in this analysis since there have been several researches similar to the present research. The hypotheses produced need to be examined and compiled later in order to produce a clearer hypothesis in this study. The data obtained comes from dialogue of a movie that requires expressions with the “f” word in it. Data Analysis Analysis can be described, according to Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña (2014), as consisting of three current activity processes that is data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing/verification. In this study, the researcher uses Miles and Huberman's theory to analyze the results. RESULT AND DISCUSSION In filling in the responses to the problems that have been provided, this study collects data from a film entitled The Wolf of Wall Street, which has the motivation of the large number of “f” swearing found in the film. Please note that this film is a criminal biographical movie about the life of a stockbroker whose life is inseparable from alcohol, drugs, and other criminals that are still considered taboo by most people. It is found 571 times “f” swearing in the movie. Word Elements of “F” Swearing Table 1. Word Element of "F" Swearing in The Wolf of The Wall Street Adjective Adverb Interjection Verb Noun Infix 273 153 64 36 34 11 Adjective The “f” word swearing that has been collected from the movie, has 273 the f word swearing as the adjectives. There are 256 adjectives https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ http://journal.unnes.ac.id LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1) October 2021 __________________________________________________________________________ 46 of fucking, 10 adjectives of fucked up, 3 adjectives of motherfucking, 3 adjectives of fucked, and 1 adjective of fuck‐free. As we know generally that adjective of a sentence is used to describe the noun. In this case, the word fucking and motherfucking are used to describes and emphasizes the noun in the dialogues. Jordan : You know what? If you're happy, God bless you, buddy. Donnie : No, I'm not fucking happy. Jordan : I gotta go fucking talk to him right now! Bo : Listen to me! Don’t go! Bo : Listen to me. That guy Denham, that FBI agent guy, somebody told me he’s got your phones tapped. Your office and your home. Don’t talk on the motherfucking phone! Jordan : Okay. Fuck! I got it. I got it. I got it. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The adjective of fucked up and fucked are another adjective that is found in the movie. Fucked up is an adjective phrase means several points. In The Wolf of Wall Street, fucked up is expressed to describe the condition of intoxicated by liquor or drugs, contemptible, worthless, miserable, damned, utterly fatigued, and exhausted. While fucked is an adjective to be described as completely exhausted, lacking in sanity or good sense, crazy, exceedingly bad or offensive, rotten, or awful. Donnie : I can get you a beer if you want a fucking beer. Jordan : I know, but I don’t drink. You remember? I don’t drink anymore. Donnie : Oh, you wanna go inside and blow some lines of baking powder? Or baking soda... Can’t imagine ever not enjoying getting fucked up. Jordan : How’s Hildy? Good? Donnie : She’s still alive, so my life is fucked, you know? Jordan : Yeah. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Fuck‐free is a made up adjective that is to describe something is free from obscene activity. Jordan (voice‐over) : It was a madhouse. A greed‐fest, with equal parts cocaine testosterone, and body fluids. It got so bad, I had to declare the office a fuck‐free zone between the hours of 9:00 and 7:00. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Adverb There are 85 words of fucking and 68 words of fuck for the adverb. The adverb in the movie is to describes, modifies, and emphasizes verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. As for The Wolf of Wall Street, the word fucking and fuck are to modifies and emphasizes verb phrase. Mark Hanna : Now did you really pitch a stock in your job interview? Jordan Belfort : I had to do something to stand out. Right, Sir? Mark Hanna : I fucking love that. Janet : Jordan! Barry Kleinman’s on the phone from Future Video. Jordan : Who? Janet : I don’t know. he shot at your wedding. He says it’s urgent. Jordan : Urgent? Who the fuck is Barry Kleinman? Jordan : I’m making an honest living, you fucking piece of shit! Denham : Hey, Jordan, let me give you a little legal advice. Shut the fuck up! (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Interjection Interjection is used to express emotional state in a short and sudden way, and it does not have a particular meaning literally. In The Wolf of Wall Street, there are 64 times interjection spoken. There are 55 times interjection of fuck is spoken. There are also several interjection that is modified into what the fuck 4 times spoken, once each for holy fuck, motherfuck, and fuckety‐fuck‐fuck. Jordan : Get off the phone! Naomi : What the fuck, Jordan? Your daughter’s in the house! I hope you know that! Otter : I'm not putting words in your mouth or nothing, but you just said that everybody wants to get rich. Robbie : Holy fuck, you did just say that. https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature 16(1) October2021 p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X 47 Donnie : You gotta take this case, you gotta drive straight home, need you to open up the briefcase, and you take out every single dollar. Don’t leave one dollar inside the briefcase. And once you have it all neatly organized outside the briefcase, I need you to take it and I need you to shove it right up your wife’s Latvian cunt, you understand? Brad : My fucking wife! Donnie : Chill! Chill, bro. Brad : Fuck. You motherfucking piece of shit! Brad : Fuck! Motherfuck! You’re fucking dead! Denham : Let me tell you something else. Honestly, I’m not bullshitting here, this is one of the nicest boats that I’ve ever been on, I gotta tell you. Jordan : I bet it is. Denham : And you know what I was just thinking, too? The fucking hero that I’m gonna be back at the office when the Bureau seizes this fucking boat. Because, I mean, fuckety‐fuck‐fuck, Jordan, look at this thing! It’s beautiful! And you got the beautiful girls there. It’s wonderful. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Verb The “f” word in the movie as the verb has various meaning. It has 20 words mean an obscene. Otter : Hey, JB, JB, JB, JB. You gotta check this fucking chick out. Look at this. Look. Nicky : I would fuck that girl if she was my sister. I would let that girl give me fucking AIDS. Naomi : Who’s Venice? Huh? Jordan : “Who?” Who? Who? Naomi : “Who?” What are you, a fucking owl? Who is she? Some little hooker you were fucking last night? (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The 8 “f” words are also applied for the meaning to betray, and mess up with something in a negative way. Jordan : If that little fucking prick thinks he can fuck with me, we’ll turn his company into a penny stock! You hear me? You got it? Nicky : Yes. I got it! Jordan : So, if I just wanted to get some more information, just to find out what he knows, you could go to his house, right? Tap his phones a little bit, bug him. You could get some information... Bo : You don’t fuck with these guys like that. You don’t fuck with them like that. What are you, nuts or something? (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The other 2 “f” words are used in idiomatic term such as: Mark Hanna : We don't start dialing at 9:30 because our clients are already answering the phone. Three. Two. One. Let's fuck! Jordan (voice‐over) : As you can probably guess, I fucked her goddamn brains out... (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The rest of 6 “f” words are used to be verb phrases, namely fuck off, fuck up, and fuck over. The fuck off in this case means to get away, get out, go to hell, to loaf or evade duty. Fuck up here means doing something wrong and getting oneself into a trouble. And fuck over means to work over someone. Jordan : Oh, God! Naomi : Fuck off, Rocky! Bad dog. Jordan : You have a biscuit or something like that? Naomi : It's okay. Just keep going. Donnie : I don’t wanna die, Jordan! I did a lot of bad shit. I’m going to hell, Jordan! I fucked up! I fucked up so bad! Jordan (voice‐over) : What I’m asking, you Swiss dick, is are you going to fuck me over? Saurel (voice‐over) : I understand perfectly, you American shit. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Noun The word fuck is also applied for a noun in a sentence. The role of the noun “f” word can have different meaning and also can replace some word. The movie mentioned motherfucker 18 times, six times of fuck, four times of Fucksville, three times of https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ http://journal.unnes.ac.id LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1) October 2021 __________________________________________________________________________ 48 fucker, and once for each word of fuckface, fuckload, and fuckhead. Man 3 : Yeah. Fuckface, look at where the stock's at today, huh? Jordan (voice‐over) : We had, literally, a fuckload of money. Aunt Emma could never carry all this by herself. So I thought to myself, who else has a European passport? (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The word motherfucker in the movie has a meaning of a despicable or contemptible man or thing: Jordan (voice‐over) : Okay, walking’s out. All right, think, think. What else is there? Yes! I can crawl. I can crawl like Skylar! Fuck! The kid makes it look so goddamn easy! Think, you motherfucker, think! (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The word fuck has several meaning in the movie, such as; a goddamn, emphatic standard for comparison, and a despicable person: Venice : Wolfie? Jordan : Yeah, it’s my safe word, baby. It’s my safe word. Venice : I don’t give a fuck about your safe word! Man 6 : It's 3 cents a share, that's $3! You cheap fuck! (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) While the Fucksville is a made up name that means of some place of despicable people: Donnie : Hey, what are the citizens of Fucksville doing today when their Emperor’s gone? Is it mayhem? Are people looting and raping? What are all the little fuckheads doing while you’re here? (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) The fucker here means a man, who is despicable, wretched, formidable and an annoying or hateful thing, task, situation: Nicky : They are very ornery by the way, so you gotta be careful with these little guys. Jordan : Safety first. Safety is first, all right? I want somebody with a fucking tranquilizer gun ready to knock this fucker out. Jordan (voice‐over) : After 15 years in storage, the Lemmons had developed a delayed fuse. It took 90 minutes for the little fuckers to kick in. But once they did... Pow! I mean, I had skipped the tingle phase and went straight to the drool phase. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Infix Infix is used and put in the middle of a word or a phrase in order to emphasize it. The 10 infixes of fucking in the movie are mostly used to emphasize a name of a person. While there is motherfucking infix that also is used to emphasize a phrase: Jordan (voice‐over) : Something about laundering drug money through offshore boat racing and a guy named Rocky Aoki, you know, the founder of Benihana. Benihana. Beni‐fucking‐hana! Beni‐ fucking‐hana! Why? Why, why, God? Why would you be so cruel as to choose a chain of fucking hibachi restaurants to take me down? Jordan (voice‐over) : Even though I owned 85% of Steve‐cocksucking‐motherfucking‐Madden Shoes, the shares were in his fucking name. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Functions of Swearing Table 2. Function of "F" Swearing in The Wolf of Wall Street Emphasis Emotion Solidarity Insult Humour 284 118 104 50 15 Emphasis The most function of swearing in The Wolf of Wall Street is to emphasize someone’s feeling or emotion about something. The word fucking is used 223 times to emphasizes mostly anything. The word fuck is also used 48 times. The phrase fuck up is used 10 times to emphasizes the condition of someone, while fucked is used to emphasizes something twice in the movie. And there is also a word fuckload that is for emphasizing somethiing in a large number. Naomi : Jordan, I don’t know what the fuck to do! I can’t help him! Oh, my God. Jordan. Jordan, he’s not breathing. You gotta do something. Jordan, he’s a father! He’s got fucking kids! Do something! https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature 16(1) October2021 p-ISSN 1858-0165 Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id e-ISSN 2460-853X 49 Chantalle : Brad you’re making this too fucking tight! Jordan : Well, this is fucked. Chantalle : Oh. No shit. Donnie : I don’t wanna die, Jordan! I did a lot of bad shit. I’m going to hell, Jordan! I fucked up! I fucked up so bad! Jordan (voice‐over) : We had, literally, a fuckload of money. Aunt Emma could never carry all this by herself. So I thought to myself, who else has a European passport? (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Emotion Swearing to express emotion in this term is tend to be anger, cursing, confusion, and anxiety. There are 40 times fuck is uttered in a strong way. While the rest are fucking 49 times, the fuck 24 times, what the fuck 3 times, and once for each fucked up and fuck over. Although the words and phrase other than fuck might be considered as other function, but the situation when they are uttered is in the state of anger, confusion, and anxiety. Which is why they are considered in emotional expression. Teresa : You! Get out of the fucking car! Jordan : Jesus Christ. Teresa : Son of a bitch! Oh, fuck! Jordan : Relax, sweetheart, relax. Donnie : She's perfect. Hildy : Donnie, what the fuck are you doing? You piece of... Get the fuck out. Naomi : Oh, my God! Nicholas : Oh, hey. Is it Wednesday already? Uh... Man 5 : Oh, don't stop. Nicholas : What the fuck! That is fucked up! Jordan (voice‐over) : What I’m asking, you Swiss dick, is are you going to fuck me over? Saurel (voice‐over) : I understand perfectly, you American shit. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Solidarity The important thing of swearing for solidarity is nobody feels offended when they are getting sworn. It is because both parties feel it is a common thing to swear with each other. The word fucking in current function has the most used word in the movie, which is 53 times. The word fuck is used 42 times. The word motherfucker does not applies as an insult if it is meant to be show a solidarity for colleagues and it is used 4 times. The fuck has been used twice, and the rest is once for each fucker, fuck off, and fucked. Jordan : Come here, buddy. Donnie : Ah, fuck. Jordan : It’s good to see you, pal. Donnie : Yeah, you, too. Jordan : And what’d I do, Kimmie? Go on, tell them. Kimmie : You wrote me a check for $25,000. Jordan : That’s right. Kimmie : Thank you. Jordan : And you know why that is? It’s because I believed in you. It’s because I believed in you, Kimmie, just like I believe in each and every one of you here today. Kimmie : I fucking love you, Jordan! Mark Hanna : Meanwhile, he thinks he's getting shit rich, which he is, on paper. But you and me, the brokers, we're taking home cold hard cash via comission, motherfucker. Jordan Belfort : Right. Mark Hanna : Pop off to the bathroom, work one out any time you can. When you get really good at it, you'll be fucking stroking it and you'll be thinking about money. Jordan Belfort : Oh! Oh, fuckers. Oh! (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Insult The insult word is usually the one with –er infix, such as fucker that is used twice and motherfucker eleven times in the movie. However, the movie also has a various word that is not only –er word. There are also fuck five times, fucksville four times, and once for fuckface and fuckhead. Turns out, the most mentioned insult word is the https://doaj.org/ http://scholar.google.co.id/citations?user=47-YDUAAAAAJ%26hl=en http://id.portalgaruda.org/? http://sinta2.ristekdikti.go.id/ https://academic.microsoft.com/ http://journal.unnes.ac.id LANGUAGE CIRCLE: Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1) October 2021 __________________________________________________________________________ 50 word fucking, which is 26 times. Although it is doubted to be an insult, fucking can be an insult if it is used in a derogatory way. Jordan : They don't know, right? They gotta think about it, they gotta talk to their fucking wives, or the fucking Tooth Fairy. Point is, it doesn't matter what the fuck they say. Jordan : We're talking about whales here. Moby fucking Dicks. And with this script, which is now your new harpoon, I'm gonna teach each and every one of you to be Captain fucking Ahab. Get it? Huh? Robbie : Captain who? Jordan : Captain Ahab. From the fucking... The book, motherfucker. From the book. Jordan : Safety first. Safety is first, all right? I want somebody with a fucking tranquilizer gun ready to knock this fucker out. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) Humour The swearing can also bring laughter beacuse the context of the speaker is to entertain people. In this case, the word fucking brings a laughter by been mentioned 10 times, motherfucker is also mentioned 3 times, and fuck twice in the movie. Jordan : This is our golden ticket to the fucking chocolate factory right here! And I wanna meet Willy fucking Wonka, okay? ? I wanna be with the fucking Oompa Loompas like this! Donnie : Take your little bow tie, get your shit, and get the fuck out of my office! You understand? Jordan : Get the fuck out! MC : So listen. I’ve met some bad motherfuckers in my life. I’m talking about rock stars, professional athletes, gangsters. I’m telling you, some real bad motherfuckers. But this guy, my good friend, Mr. Jordan Belfort, is the single baddest motherfucker I have ever met. (The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013) CONCLUSION The “f” word may be judged starting from the elements of the word and the function of its usage. It turns out that there are different types of word elements and functions from the results found, which are not always meant negative and not always meant positive. It reveals the flexibility of using the “f” word into adjective, adverb, interjection, verb, noun, and infix. And this also points out that it can not be assumed that the “f” word signifies rage explicitly. It can, however, convey emotions, emphasize something, show solidarity, insult others, and trigger laughter as well. It can also not be assumed that the word “f” is an inevitably offensive, derogatory, and impolite word. Notwithstanding the compelling results, this study acknowledges that many elements of the “f” word remain that have not been touched. Similarly, as there are so many hypotheses from the leaders that can still be used as research material, its function is still a lot to be learned. It is also proposed that the study can be enhanced from different facets of the “f” word's flexibility in future research. REFERENCES Andersson, Lars-Gunnar; Trudgill, Peter. 1992. Bad Language. London. Battistella, Edwin L. 2005. Bad Language: Are Some Words Better than Others? (Oxford University Press). English Corpora. Retrieved from http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/ Fairman, Christopher. 2006. Fuck. Horvat, Aleš. 2016. The Etymology, Meaning And The Use Of The Word "Fuck. Jay, Timothy, and Kristin Janschewitz. 2008. "The Pragmatics of Swearing." Journal of Politeness Research. Lodico, Marguerite G., Dean T. Spaulding, and Katherine H. Voegtle. 2010. Methods in Educational Research: From Theory to Practice. John Wiley & Sons. Miles, Matthew B., A. Michael Huberman, and Johnny Saldana. 2014. Qualitative Data Analysis. 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