Opinion Essay, Research Paper

What is a word? A word is defined as a speech sound, or series of them, serving to communicate meaning. People have been taught that certain words have certain meanings, some good, some bad and some both. A word is not responsible for the meaning it is intended to have, and therefore, no word is a bad word. The evolution of slang has played a pivotal role is this.

An example of a word that has two different meanings, both as different as day and night, is the N. word. the reason for my abbreviation of this word will later be explained. The N. word is commonly used between African Americans as a friendly greeting, and by people of other races as derogative name. the same word when said under different intentions, can be two separate but equal words. this occurence can also be witnessed in humor, such as in blonde or racist jokes. a joke can be said and taken as either an insult or an attempt to entertain.

Another example of such words is the category commonly referred to as swear, or cuss words. Words of this type are known well by nearly all people; therefore, out of respect for people sensitive to such words, I will provide no examples. Many of these words have etymologies, which go back as far as the dark ages. Throughout time these words have become corrupted by personal interpretation. This personifies these words by saying that they are bad. The words are perfectly fine in their own right, it just depends on the intention for which the word was used.

Just because a word has no negative meaning to you does not mean that it does not have to others. you can not tell someone what something means to them, and out of respect for them you should not say things which they may interpret as an insult, even if that was not the purpose you say it.

i feel that i am extremely compliant with my beliefs on this subject. Jokes which poke fun at me, or my faults do not bother me. they are just words. i do not joke about someone if i feel it will insult them, because words are more than just words to some people.