A Sociolinguistic Study of the Types of Swear-Words used Karen’s Diner’s Servers in the Instagram Reels

Authors

  • Xaverius Juan Tanuwijaya Petra Christian University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.9744/katakita.13.2.232-238

Abstract

This study examines the types of swear-words and the social factors influencing their use by Karen’s Diner’s servers, utilizing Battistella (2005) categorization of swear-word types and Holmes (2013) theory of social factors. This study used a descriptive qualitative method to analyze Karen’s Diner’s servers’ utterances, collected from the company’s Instagram Reels posted between June 2023 and May 2024. Six swear-words were identified, with fuck and fucking being the most frequently used. The findings of this study shows that obscenity is the most frequently used type with no cases of profanity. Analysis of the social factors revealed that most swear-words uttered were used in personal topics and served affective functions, implying that the swearing was intended to express emotion dominant sub-variables and entertain customers. In conclusion, the use of swear-words by Karen’s Diner’s servers supports the restaurant marketing strategy, where taboo language is utilized to entertain and interact with customers.

Downloads

Published

2025-09-11

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 2 (2025)

Section

Articles

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

    1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. 
    2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal. 
    3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).