πŸ“š 4 Books mentioned in "Swearing Is More Important Than You Think | Freakonomics Radio | Episode 540" of Freakonomics Radio

Freakonomics Radio

Podcast: Freakonomics Radio

Episode: Swearing Is More Important Than You Think | Freakonomics Radio | Episode 540

Published on April 20, 2023

Here’s a list of all the books mentioned in this episode. Click on the links to watch specific excerpts on YouTube and feel free to purchase the books if they caught your interest!

Holy Sh*t Cover

Holy Sh*t

by Melissa Mohr

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Moore is the author of a book called Holy [ __ ]. A Brief History of Swearing.

In the podcast, the host Stephen Dubner introduces the author Melissa Moore and elaborates on her book, providing both its informal and formal titles: 'Holy [__]' and 'A Brief History of Swearing'.

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The Stuff of Thought Cover

The Stuff of Thought

by Steven Pinker

Buy The Stuff of Thought by Steven Pinker on Amazon

Question: you've got this kind of euphemism treadmill that Stephen Pinker talks about where it starts off as a bad word, but then people use it more and more, and then you get used to it, and then it falls away, and then you need to come up with another bad word.

The host discusses the 'euphemism treadmill' concept, which is attributed to Stephen Pinker. This idea suggests that a word begins as taboo but becomes more acceptable over time, necessitating the creation of new terms to fill the space of the old ones.

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Why We Curse Cover

Why We Curse

by Timothy Jay

Buy Why We Curse by Timothy Jay on Amazon

If I ask you to give the answer to the title of this one book of yours, "Why We Curse," why do we? How answerable is that question?

In this segment, host Stephen Dubner brings up Timothy J's book, 'Why We Curse', and poses a rhetorical question regarding its title, suggesting the book's significance in the context of the discussion.

β–Ί Watch this excerpt

Woke Racism Cover

Woke Racism

by John McWhorter

Buy Woke Racism by John McWhorter on Amazon

I write a column for the New York Times, and my most recent two books were, "Nine Nasty Words" about profanity and "Woke Racism" about race and cultural issues.

In this segment, John McWhorter discusses his book 'Woke Racism', which tackles themes surrounding race and cultural issues. He references this work alongside his other publication, 'Nine Nasty Words', a book focused on profanity.

β–Ί Watch this excerpt