SWEAR WORDS IN BAD BOYS II: A SEMANTIC ANALYSIS

Johan Tobias Kristiano(1), Priyatno Ardi(2*),

(1) Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta
(2) Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta
(*) Corresponding Author

Abstract


English movies have become a medium for the global spread of English swear words. However, not all people from non-English speaking countries know and understand the literal meanings of these words. This qualitative research aims to figure out the semantic referents of swear words in the film Bad Boys II. Content analysis was employed as its method. The results of this study show that nine semantic referents of swear words were used in the movie, namely sexual references, profane or blasphemous, scatological and disgusting objects, animal names, ethnic-racial-gender slurs, psychological-physical-social deviations, ancestral allusions, substandard vulgar terms, and offensive slang. Thus, Bad Boys II has a vast variety of swear words.


Keywords


swear word; semantic referent; Bad Boys II

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References


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.v21i2.1586

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 LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/llt, e-ISSN 2579-9533 and p-ISSN 1410-7201, is published twice a year, namely in April and October by the English Language Education Study Programme of Teacher Training and Education Faculty of Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia.