What the F

What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains, and Ourselves

By: Benjamin K. Bergen

Narrated by: Benjamin K. Bergen

Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

Nearly everyone swears - whether it's over a few too many drinks, in reaction to a stubbed toe, or in flagrante delicto. And yet, we sit idly by as words are banned from television and censored in books. We insist that people excise profanity from their vocabularies, and we punish children for yelling the very same dirty words that we'll mutter in relief seconds after they fall asleep. Swearing, it seems, is an intimate part of us that we have decided to selectively deny.

That's a damn shame.

Swearing is useful. It can be funny, cathartic, or emotionally arousing. As linguist and cognitive scientist Benjamin K. Bergen shows us, it also opens a new window onto how our brains process language and why languages vary around the world and over time.

In this groundbreaking yet ebullient romp through the linguistic muck, Bergen answers intriguing questions: How can patients left otherwise speechless after a stroke still shout "Goddamn!" when they get upset? When did a cock grow to be more than merely a rooster? Why is crap vulgar when poo is just childish? Do slurs make you treat people differently? Why is the first word that Samoan children say not mommy but eat shit? And why do we extend a middle finger to flip someone the bird?

Smart as hell and funny as f--k, What the F is mandatory listening for anyone who wants to know how and why we swear.

©2016 Benjamin K. Bergen (P)2016 Gildan Media LLC

Critic reviews

"A lively study with the potential to offend just about anyone.... From a linguistic and sociological viewpoint, the book is illuminating, even playful...an entertaining...look at an essential component of language and society." ( Publishers Weekly)

Take A Deep Breath, Hold Your Nose, Dive Right In

Quick! Who here hasn't come across a foreign language and asked, "Yeah, but what are the baaad words?" Well, okay; maybe that's just me...
From the get go, you're immersed in the world of slurs, and taboo words. At first you feel like a frog dumped in a pot of boiling water, but as you get through the text, the water becomes oddly just fine.
After all, this is more than just a book of lists (tho' there are plenty that'll make your jaw drop). It's a fascinating world of cultures, linguistics, religion, and more.
What's most interesting through it all, are the various tests scientists use to analyze and evaluate words/phrases/concepts that I can't list, or Audible will flag my review (and I get the whole "pending approval" thing far too often; I'm a cherub! What are they talking about?!?). You'll listen to studies about brain hemispheres and mouth lateralizations, power and disempowerment, even studies on pain tolerance.
If you can handle the liberal use of questionable (or flat-out extreme) words, this book is for you. Filled with cheeky good-humor, it's a delightful romp into what used to be extreme but is now tame, what is now tame but could be worse.
Quick! When is a finger just a finger?
When you're trying to say "brothers" in Japanese Sign Language... get your mind out of the gutter :)

Seriously, this is amazing!

I bought this audiobook when it was a daily deal on Audible and honestly, it was the best decision I made last week. The book was HILARIOUS! I seriously loved this book so much that if it were a person I would want to marry it.

Benjamin Bergen wrote and narrated this book amazingly well. I am a swearer (as we all are, don't lie to yourself) and I found this book fascinating. I couldn't believe all of the time and research that the author had to put into this book. He presented the facts well, the research methods he used to great, and the psychology nerd in me fell in love.

This book is (obviously) full of swearing so if you cannot handle the extreme curse words you should probably pass on this book. If you enjoy language, psychology, sociology, culture, swear words, grammar and anything inbetween, this is the book for you.

Honestly, this is one of my favorites this year.

Interesting exploration of profanity

This is a fun, short look at profanity. Dr. Bergen explores the evolution, use, and effect of profanity on others. I found the material itself compelling, but what I most enjoyed was the narration. Dr. Bergen's passion for the subject matter is obvious, and he is the perfect narrator for his own book.

I wish everybody would listen to this

sticks and stones, and all those other platitudes. this is a book everyone should read.

Fucking Awesome!

A very good look on how language is colored by swearing. Both humorous and technical. It proves that you can be smart, funny and swear like a drunken sailor! In the right context.

Who knew...

...you could write this much about swearing? This is a surprisingly comprehensive and interesting book. The narration was also very good. I enjoyed it. It's not fluff though. If you are not academically inclined or interested in linguistics, this may not be the book for you.

That's the F!

1) Anyone who has listened to this work in its entirety should receive a Merit Badge in "Humanity" for listening to more expletives per hour than in any other recording.
2) Anyone who has listened to this work in its entirety will probably find that most of reproduced here have lost at least some, if not all, of the power which they may have had before playback was begun.
3) The obvious area of research not covered in this work is the physiological effect of violently letting loose with "f**k" or "s**t" at the top of one's lungs and the enormous rush of endorphins generated by that act.

Fan-f***ing-tastic!

As a linguist by trade and a closet cusser, this book was fascinating to me. Bergen relays the history, grammar, stigmas, physiology, and varieties of profanity across the world. It is accessible and entertaining enough for the less scientific and still portrays enough facts and data for those with a scientific bent. He is professional and straightforward, but allows for the occasional tongue in cheek joke to entertain the reader as well. I learned so much and can't stop talking about it!!

Informative meets entertaining

Warning, if you're sensitive about profane word use, this probably will be a hard one to handle.
But I would expect people to get that from the subject matter.

Beyond that warning, if you like words and language, this will be well worthing the listen. The reader does a great job and the book ends up being a much more scholarly approach to the topic than I would have guessed.

Encylopedic

I believe in swearing. I especially believe in creative swearing. But like any creative endeavour it helps to know the roots and science of a well-honed craft.

Benjamin Bergen provides that in dirty spades in an encyclopedic look at the world of swearing and, unlike the cover, there's no modifying the words used so it's not a book for people whose strongest oath is "jeepers".

The book does literally look at the world of foul language, looking into what's common and unique among world cultures for what constitutes a bad word, including what it references (anatomy, activity, excrement, etc.) and the impact of how the word is formed. It also seeks to answer questions and myths around bad language. Why are so many English words kept to four letters? Are hard consonants essential? There are scientific studies, including case studies of stroke victims who lose the ability to say anything but swear words. (Does that mean they're stored in a difference part of the brain or they just are embedded more deeply?) Why does Japan claim no swear words? How do we decide to say "poop" or "peepee" with children but other words describing the same things are considered obscene?

Beyond the spoken word Bergen also talks about hand and upper body gestures in different countries, some of which seem obscure to we in the US, and places where you should not be giving the peace sign or thumbs up.

It's exhaustive and nearly exhausting but Bergen keeps things moving with new topics and insights. For a book that covers everything from psychology to linguistics/etymology to sociology to neurology the book is fresh and interesting with thorough research. It's not a book that will change your life in any way but it's a good book with interesting angles on a subject we may have all wondered about at one time or another.