If a character in story would swear, then I don’t mind it occasionally. But an endless stream of it turns me off. I worked a blue collar job for 37 years. There is nothing I haven’t heard daily, or that would shock me. But I still don’t like to read it.

I don’t use profanity in my stories, or allow it in my humor publication (which cuts out about 90% of modern humor.) Clean humor is harder to do. I am fine with that.

I don’t think swearing has the shock value it used to, and I think it is obvious when people are using it to appear “gritty” or tough or current or whatever people say these days. It comes off as fake to me. And it seems out of place in an essay, to me.

So, I don’t mind a little if it fits the character in a story, but I prefer none at all. Then again, I’m old (58.)