What's wrong with the "F" word?

Vulgarity as an art form is nothing new, but a recent spate of linguistically and visually provocative advertisements is taking this trend to another level in Denmark. Written in English, these ads are pasting billboards with swearwords that would cause major uproar in Britain or the US.

Using foul language to target your audience
The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word vulgar as "lacking sophistication or good taste", "making explicit and inappropriate reference to sex or bodily functions", or "characteristic of or belonging to ordinary people."

First came the ad for Cult Shaker, an alcopop. "F*** me," says the party girl, "I'm famous."  A few months later, Pepsi Max launched its own youth-orientated campaign with the tagline: "P*** off sugar lovers."

Behind the seemingly gratuitous shock factor lies some very carefully thought-out marketing. Hook the kids with aggressive 'street' language, and make the product seem young, cool and international. The language portrays an image of product users as lively, sassy, dynamic and straightforward plain-talkers, who never say 'no' to a party.

Cult Shaker's tagline seems to be well targeted. The product is aimed directly at party-loving youth; it is never intended for adults. It's a sweet cocktail for teenagers. Those who might be offended, such as parents, pensioners or politicians, don't drink it and few ever will, no matter what advert they see.

But Pepsi is drunk by millions of people, of all ages. Although it's marketed as young and cool, it has a broad appeal. And language which many people may find offensive could be a bad move.

Causing offence in English-speaking countries
It certainly wouldn't work in the UK or the US. Neither word would get past the censors – in fact far less offensive words have been vetoed by the UK Advertising Standards Agency. But even if they were allowed to be printed on a billboard or the back of a bus, they would cause too many people to turn away, offended by the vulgarity.

But in Denmark, even if everybody understands it, swearing in English is still a step away from home. F*** and p*** are just words, without any of the connotations and taboos attached, so the message is still hip and cool without being overtly offensive. It’s unlikely that either of the two adverts would work if they were written in Danish.

Interestingly, both ads contain double meanings. P*** off can mean both annoy and go away. F*** me can be taken literally or used as an expression of surprise. Most likely, deeper thought has gone into the ads than simply using English swearwords to sound cool and funky, young and rebellious.

Despite all the thought that's gone into them, these adverts can still be highly distasteful. For many native English speakers, seeing swearwords plastered on walls and bus stops is offensive and cheapens their language.

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WordNerd
In the UK, alcopop is a term for bottled alcoholic sweet drinks with a flavor similar to soft drinks such as lemonade. In the US, they are referred to as malternative drinks.