[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-40707-en":3,"doc-seo-40707-105":29,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":91},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":20,"is_downloadable":20,"audit_status":20,"page_count":21,"language":22,"language_code":23,"site_id":24,"html_lang":23,"table_of_contents":25,"faqs":26,"seo_title":13,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":27,"read_time":28},40707,687197207057,"Sage","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0",9,"Religion & Spirituality","Philosophical Reflections on “the Filthiest, Dirtiest, Nastiest Word in the English Language”","Investigates when it is morally permissible to utter a highly offensive epithet commonly called “the n word,” using “joker” as a placeholder for the targeted term. After drawing distinctions such as use versus mention, the article rejects two extremes that the word is either always wrong or never wrong to utter. It argues instead that some utterances are right and others wrong. It then tests three candidate principles and finds each fails via counterexamples, advocating a pluralistic, non-principled approach inspired by William David Ross.","Article  \nPhilosophical Reflections on “the Filthiest,  \nDirtiest, Nastiest Word in the English Language”1 Keith Burgess Jackson  \nDepartment of Philosophy and Humanities, The University of Texas at Arlington; [kbj@uta.edu](kbj@uta.edu), [kbj4@att.net](kbj4@att.net)  \nSubmitted: 19 July 2021, accepted: 25 February 2022, published: 29 April 2022  \nAbstract: When, if ever, is it morally permissible to utter the word “joker”? (NB: The word“joker” is a placeholder for another word, the mere utterance of which certain people find unsettling or offensive. See the prolegomenon of this article for an explanation. ) After drawing some relevant distinctions (such as that between use and mention), I provide counterexamples to two extreme theses: first, that it is always wrong (i.e., never morally permissible) to utter the word; and second, that it is never wrong (i.e., always morally permissible) to utter the word. It follows that it is sometimes right and sometimes wrong to utter the word. I then examine three plausible principles for distinguishing between those utterances of the word that are right and those that are wrong. Each principle, I maintain, succumbs to counterexamples. I therefore advocate (i) abandonment of a principled (monistic) approach to the matter and (ii) adoption, instead, of a non principled (pluralistic) approach. The pluralistic approach that I develop is inspired by the work of William David Ross (1877–1971) .  \nKeywords: race; language; speech acts; offensive speech; n word; ethics; use and mention; pluralism; William David Ross (1877–1971)  \nHow to cite: Burgess Jackson, K. Philosophical Reflections on “the Filthiest, Dirtiest, Nastiest Word in the English Language”. Journal of Controversial Ideas 2022 , 2(1), 4; doi:10 .35995/jci02010004 .  \n©2022 Copyright by the authors. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4 .0) license.  \n1. Prolegomenon  \nonomatophobia n. An abnormal dread of certain words or names because of their supposed significance. 2  \nJust as one can talk about a hammer without using it (e.g., “This hammer, which I purchased at Home Depot in 2012, cost $23”), one can talk about a word without using it  \n1 Christopher Darden, quoted in Kenneth B. Noble,“Issue of Racism Erupts in Simpson Trial,” The New York Times (14 January 1995) .  \n[2](2 Dictionary.com)[ Dictionary.com](2 Dictionary.com), accessed 26 February 2022, [https://www.dictionary.com/browse/onomatophobia](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/onomatophobia).  \n(e.g. ,“The word ‘hammer’ has six letters”) . But how does one talk about a word without uttering it (as I just did in the case of “hammer”)?3 To put the problem in perspective, consider that one can talk about a hammer without uttering the word “hammer.” All one needs to do is gesture. I might say, for example (while pointing to a particular hammer),“It cost $23.” Since a word is not a physical object (like a hammer), one cannot point toit; and if one cannot point to it, then one must utter it—i.e., speak it or write it—in order to talk about it. We are back where we began: how does one talk about a word without uttering it?  \nThe word that I wish to talk about in this article is a six letter English word that begins with the letter “n.” It is sometimes referred to as “the n word,” or typed with certain of its letters blotted out: “n—–” or “n— r.” I am sure you know which word I have in mind.4 Themere sight or sound of this word unsettles or offends people (not everyone, of course, but some) . It is understandable that use of the word unsettles or offends, for it has along history of use as an epithet5 to demean, humiliate, insult, intimidate, and terrorizedark skinned people (henceforth,“blacks”) . The primary offendees (if I may coin a term) are those to whom the word is directed, but even some of those who merely observe its use are unsettled or offended by it. (The offense in such a case is v","cbCaisZJuvJLS3u0","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaisZJuvJLS3u0","pdf",261433,1,36,"English","en",105,"# Prolegomenon\n## Talking about a word without uttering it\n## The problem of the “n word”","[{\"question\":\"Why does the article use the placeholder “joker” rather than the targeted word directly?\",\"answer\":\"The placeholder stands in for another word that many find unsettling or offensive, allowing the argument to be presented without directly depending on the term’s immediate impact.\"},{\"question\":\"What key distinctions does the article rely on early in the discussion?\",\"answer\":\"It draws relevant distinctions, including between use and mention, to clarify how discussing a word may differ morally from performing certain uses of it.\"},{\"question\":\"What conclusion does the article reach about whether uttering the word is morally permissible?\",\"answer\":\"It concludes that utterances can be sometimes right and sometimes wrong, because both the “always wrong” and “never wrong” positions are defeated by 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does the article use the placeholder “joker” rather than the targeted word directly?","Question",{"text":75,"@type":76},"The placeholder stands in for another word that many find unsettling or offensive, allowing the argument to be presented without directly depending on the term’s immediate impact.","Answer",{"name":78,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":79},"What key distinctions does the article rely on early in the discussion?",{"text":80,"@type":76},"It draws relevant distinctions, including between use and mention, to clarify how discussing a word may differ morally from performing certain uses of it.",{"name":82,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":83},"What conclusion does the article reach about whether uttering the word is morally permissible?",{"text":84,"@type":76},"It concludes that utterances can be sometimes right and sometimes wrong, because both the “always wrong” and “never wrong” positions are defeated by 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