[Skywalker]

kud13;235636 said:

At some point in GotM, someone utters "hell"

Here's the quote... its pretty early on in the novel... the Captain in charge of clearing up the Itko Kan massacre thinks it:

Quote

The captain grunted. Request, hell. The Empress has to check her slippers every morning to make sure this one isn't already in them.

[Kalahinen]

After some pondering I think I didn't like the Ruin ruined -scene with the f-cking dragon because I hoped and expected Silchas Ruin to blast the Malazan soldiers from time to eternity.

[cerveza_fiesta]

I laughed a lot when "fucking dragon" got pulled out.

I do think its weird that the fucks and shits got pulled out only lately, but I don't mind em for sure. Swearing ftw.

[Mentalist]

hmmm. I think it might have something to do with the style and feel of the Bonehunters storyarc in RG...
The book is dedicated to Glen Cook, and SE openly acknowledges the influence of the Black Company on BBs, (and subsequently, Bonehunters, I would assume). The BHs story arc is gritty and full of nastyness in RG. I think the swears were incorporated as part of that same atmosphere....

[q21]

The use of swearing doesn't in itself bother me. But the fact that it seems to have just appeared. People don't just suddenly start sprouting words like Fuck and Shit, if the characters weren't using them earlier in the series why have they started now?

[Coco with marshmallows]

in fairness,
there is a use of 'shit' in HoC.

when Fiddler finds out about the events in MoI, he thinks 'aw shit, Hedge' to himself.

though i found it jarring then too.

[Clip]

Personally in fantasy/sci-fi I dislike the authors inventing new swear words that have no sontext at all, they're just a bunch of letters put together.

SE's uses our swear woods like f*** and sh**, but others he replaces with more apropriate ones, for example, instead of saying jesus f***ing christ they replace jesus with another diety or whatever. I think that SE put a lot of thought into those swear words, and they're very catchy. I sometimes find myself thinking Hood when something crap happens.

[Urb]

Hehe..
Though I've yet to start using Malazan cursewords, I have a tendency to use the explitive 'Witness!'

[cerveza_fiesta]

I've been saying gods instead of god lately. That's pretty mild, but next thing you know I'll be whipping out (not literally) "hood's balls" and "togg's teat"

[Skywalker]

I spent a short while saying "Light!" as an exclamation a few years ago... Aah... the pre Path of Daggers WOT days!

Somehow never used a Malazan curse or exclamation... though I did think 'Beru fend!' a coupla times.

Guess I've grown up

[Kalahinen]

It's okay until you say: 'Blood and ashes!'

[Sinisdar Toste]

or 'burn me'

Toste, prefers to burn you

[Silencer]

I honestly didn't notice the curses that much - and you have to admit, the dragon thing carried the sentiments of the moment perfectly.....
I don't know, it would be pretty hard to keep coming up with new and varied curses that fit into the world, and SE has done a stellar job so far, you have to admit that much.

[Goaswerfraiejen]

I was a little thrown back by the use of "shit" and "fuck" in MT (I think it was MT, anyway), since they hadn't shown up prior to then. And they've made a fair few appearances afterward. By and large, however, I've been quite impressed by Steven Erikson's repertoire, which is refreshingly... fresh.

[Mentalist]

Continuing the topic of "words that don't really belong"....
on my re-read of RG, Udinaas uses the word "amen" (pg. 207)

[Lisheo]

Is it possible that maybe the Letherii just use current curses lol? Amen just means I second that or something similar, even if it is used in prayers.

[Dancer+]

It doesn't necessarily have to have a religious connotation like Lisheo has said.

[Gimli's love child]

Ah my issue does not realy lie in ORIGINAL curse words but more with SEs consistancy with the rest of the series. Curses like Hoods breath and fener fend where all introduced to us in the early books and were carried on (correct me if I'm wrong) up to the MOI but after this new terms like shit and fuck began to creep in. SE had created a totally original form of cursing which further complemented the world he had created. Imagine Gandalf standing in front of the witchking of Angmar and shouting 'fucking wraith!' or Aragon calling Boromir a dumb shit! Funny though it may be this would destroy any scene for you because they do not fit with the world presented to you in the rest of the novel

Now I'm not saying that SE has to be original with every curse nor that Shit and fuck are unacceptable but I want consistancy as with the first three books. Now if shit was a commonly used word in the Malaz world then especially in the company of hardened soldiers I would have liked to have heard it in the previous books. When it is suddenely thrown in it breaks the spell and sends you back to realilty

[Mcflury]

well, SE still uses alot of those new curses (like hood's breath and stuff like that) in has later books too...I mean, Toc even bothers explaining those curses to Redmask in RG (it was only then I actually understood the double meaning of all those curses really... it never hit me Hood actually doesn't breath, and Fener doesn't have tits, stuff like that ). So SE still uses the cool curses later on in the series too.

Offcourse, he also starts using the more common curses too, which shows really bad since we're so used to those curses, and we notice them in a second too. In my opinion this is not a bad thing really. I mean, those malazans shit too, and they consider it a dirty thing, just like us, so it's normal they use it as a curse.

Gimli, you say you kinda don't like it because those 'normal' curses tear you out of the story and pull you right back into the real life... well, honoustly (and this might sound fucked-up to you (aye, the old fuck word, sorry, couldn't find a better curse just now since I'm rather tired )), I'm at a point where I start thinking the Malazan curses in my real life... I mean, I've already had a few moments where I was this close (and I hold my fingers real close when saying this) to actually saying 'Hood's Breath' instead of 'Fucking hell'
So what I'm saying is: turn the balance the other way Gimli, start using SE's curses in your real life, and then your usage of those words in real life will make you daydream about that wonderful literature SE gifted us

PS: if this didn't make any sense: just ignore it, I'm quite tired while writing this

[Aptorian]

Mcflury;237600 said:

it was only then I actually understood the double meaning of all those curses really... it never hit me Hood actually doesn't breath, and Fener doesn't have tits, stuff like that )

Are we sure that hood doesn't draw breath? Wouldn't hoods breath sort of be like the wind of death. An extension of him if you will. Toc is merely relaying the peoples superstitions. Hood does for example have balls according to Ruin even though the god of death shouldn't be reproducing.

Also, I think you mean Toggs tits