Bad Language in Discovery

[Jamie Calderhead]

Really loving Discovery so far. I've been a fan of Trek since 1966 (I was all of 10 years old!) and was delighted when the new series began. Only 1 gripe. Is it really necessary to use language that I wouldn't use around younger fans? (Or anyone for that matter) My son (now 35) has grown up with a Trek dad and now his boy (8) is also being inducted into the Federation and all it's adventures. We were both very disappointed when an 'F-bomb' was dropped the other evening whilst watching with our cadet. I don't think I'm being prudish and I know "language" is heard everywhere but really..... It does nothing for the plot apart from lowering things.
What do my other Trek fan friends think?

 

[Agony_Boothb]

My response was 'Fuck, they just said fuck on fucking star trek'

 

[donners22]

There was no issue with the 8-year-old seeing the violence on the Klingon ship, but there was with a swear word?

I'd be more concerned about the former than the latter, and I'd find things like the Enterprise decon scenes even worse still.

A kid will, unfortunately, likely hear that sort of language out in the real word pretty readily. They're a lot less likely to encounter violence and sex outside of TV and the internet.

 

[Salone31]

Really loving Discovery so far. I've been a fan of Trek since 1966 (I was all of 10 years old!) and was delighted when the new series began. Only 1 gripe. Is it really necessary to use language that I wouldn't use around younger fans? (Or anyone for that matter) My son (now 35) has grown up with a Trek dad and now his boy (8) is also being inducted into the Federation and all it's adventures. We were both very disappointed when an 'F-bomb' was dropped the other evening whilst watching with our cadet. I don't think I'm being prudish and I know "language" is heard everywhere but really..... It does nothing for the plot apart from lowering things.
What do my other Trek fan friends think?

I do agree, my sons (6 and 5) watch star trek with me and the outburst on the show was just out of place. Some people will say get over it. However I would like to shield my kids from that sort of language as much as I can.

 

[Mage]

I'm with @donners22 on this.

If you don't like the word 'fuck' for an 8 year old, but don't mind the gore we've seen sofar, you need to think about your priorities.....

 

[Salone31]

There was no issue with the 8-year-old seeing the violence on the Klingon ship, but there was with a swear word?

I'd be more concerned about the former than the latter, and I'd find things like the Enterprise decon scenes even worse still.

A kid will, unfortunately, likely hear that sort of language out in the real word pretty readily. They're a lot less likely to encounter violence and sex outside of TV and the internet.

And that's why I watch programmes before I let my children.
It's just something else my kids don't understand why they're not allowed to watch it (along with batman vs superman and captain America civil war)

 

[Ithekro]

Taking more offense to swearing over violence is nothing new in the United States of America. Kids tends to repeat words more than the violence they might see, and a kid randomly saying "fuck" in front of their second grade teacher tends to get them in trouble. A lot of trouble depending on the school.

 

[guyute03]

The amount of murder and violence children are exposed to on TV, movies and Video Games is the real problem, not this.

 

[Refuge]

Really loving Discovery so far. I've been a fan of Trek since 1966 (I was all of 10 years old!) and was delighted when the new series began. Only 1 gripe. Is it really necessary to use language that I wouldn't use around younger fans? (Or anyone for that matter) My son (now 35) has grown up with a Trek dad and now his boy (8) is also being inducted into the Federation and all it's adventures. We were both very disappointed when an 'F-bomb' was dropped the other evening whilst watching with our cadet. I don't think I'm being prudish and I know "language" is heard everywhere but really..... It does nothing for the plot apart from lowering things.
What do my other Trek fan friends think?

I didn't take offence and was expecting it in the dialogue at some stage. However it was cringe worthy the way it was dropped in the scene like it was a 'moment'. There was even a pause. I thought someone was going to go over to Tilly and pat her on the head for being so edgy. It was like the geek showing off.

 

[toby]

The real tragedy here is introducing children to Trek with the worst series in the franchise.

 

[Refuge]

The real tragedy here is introducing children to Trek with the worst series in the franchise.

Lol, mind you it is rather sweet. I mean the OP who watched Trek when he was little and then his child and now a third generation. Really he said he only had the one gripe (the language) so that's pretty positive - doing better than me

 

[Roald]

The real tragedy here is introducing children to Trek with the worst series in the franchise.

And of course Ed likes this....

 

[Longinus]

Americans are weird. Hearing bad words don't harm kids. I'm a teacher and I only admonish kids if they use swear words as insults.

My only problem with the cursing in the show is literally a petty canon complaint: the people in the Federation haven't spoken like that in the past, and Star Trek IV confirms that this is not just because it is a TV show. (And no, this is not particularly serious complaint.)

 

[Mage]

The real tragedy here is introducing children to Trek with the worst series in the franchise.

Such a constructive post that really adds more nuance and dimension to this discussion....

 

[dinzy]

It's time to get over this language bullshit. It is just asinine to get all huffy and puffy over a couple words that culture declared as taboo decades ago. It is arbitrary. People use all sorts of language and they are not choosing to offend people by swearing. It is the offended that is forcing their values onto others and then taking offense.

As a scientist and former engineer, I can see how someone would actually say "this is so fucking cool" while starting to learn how something new works. It's not at all an unreasonable scene in today's universities or industry.

I don't understand why adults freak out over swears in modern TV shows when there is so much violence. We have seen living beings vaporized, impaled, sucked into space, mauled, punched, etc in this show. How the fuck is that OK for "an 8 year old" to see but hearing people show excitement using colorful language is not? It is not the 60s-80s anymore where violence was more implied, but even then the implication was shown. People shot people and they died by either vanishing or slowly sliding to the ground.

 

[Tuskin38]

It’s perfectly natural and normal

 

[DimesDan]

Context is for kings and the use of the word fuck was in context and I personally thought it was pretty fucking cool.

 

[Captain of the USS Averof]

I agree with the OP. Fuck that shit.

 

[Agony_Boothb]

It's time to get over this language bullshit. It is just asinine to get all huffy and puffy over a couple words that culture declared as taboo decades ago. It is arbitrary. People use all sorts of language and they are not choosing to offend people by swearing. It is the offended that is forcing their values onto others and then taking offense.

As a scientist and former engineer, I can see how someone would actually say "this is so fucking cool" while starting to learn how something new works. It's not at all an unreasonable scene in today's universities or industry.

I don't understand why adults freak out over swears in modern TV shows when there is so much violence. We have seen living beings vaporized, impaled, sucked into space, mauled, punched, etc in this show. How the fuck is that OK for "an 8 year old" to see but hearing people show excitement using colorful language is not? It is not the 60s-80s anymore where violence was more implied, but even then the implication was shown. People shot people and they died by either vanishing or slowly sliding to the ground.

It's funny isn't it. I didn't see any 'won't somebody please think of the children' threads when Landry was getting her face ripped off by a giant space racoon. No doubt, the scene between Stamets and Culber made some people uncomfortable as well (if comments on reddit and youtube are anything to go by). I'll never not be saddened by the fact that people are more comfortable with people dying and bloody violence than they are with somebody using a swear or two consenting adults of the same sex showing affection .

 

[USS Triumphant]

There was no issue with the 8-year-old seeing the violence on the Klingon ship, but there was with a swear word?

I'd be more concerned about the former than the latter, and I'd find things like the Enterprise decon scenes even worse still.

More concerned with a bit of nudity and mild titillation than with violence. I'm betting you're American. (For the record, I am, too, but I was raised British - by television and books. )

The amount of murder and violence children are exposed to on TV, movies and Video Games is the real problem, not this.

I partially disagree. The purposelessness and dishonor involved in much of that murder and violence are an issue. The episode name was right - context IS for kings. To me, at least, there's nothing wrong at all with someone violently defending themselves or their larger group from attackers, and very little wrong with participating in a combat operation against a valid military target in a declared war (insert pointed side look at the American Congress here). But the games and music that children are being allowed to play despite parental advisories against it that involve random violent crimes ARE an issue.