Swearing in Fantasy (again): Any Thoughts?

I just received this comment on my review of The Book of Joby by Mark J. Ferrari, which was reviewed way back in October 2007:

This was just awful. Nothing origin in here just cuss words which completely destroys the etheral, mythological setting and tone the author is trying to go for. Every 'fuck' that is said just pulled me out of any fantasy setting that was attempted. Imagine if a 'Fuck' was thrown out in the middle of Star Wars or Rings? It has no place in a fantasy story. Yes I know its 'adult themed' but its just using swears for pointless shock value.

I would avoid this book like leposy.

I, too, would avoid leposy. It sounds awful. However, stingy as I might be with my review quotes at the moment, I will say this: The Book of Joby is better than leprosy. I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say it's way better. It's a long time since I last read it, but I can't remember that many swear words in the book, which I liked and would recommend. But even so...

What is it with swearing? In the middle of Star Wars and Lord of the Rings I can understand, perhaps. But no swearing in any fantasy novels? Should ethereal, mythological settings be kept free of (really rather old) four-letter words and other variants?

Should the aesthetic side of writing fantasy, keeping it clean and pure and beautiful, win out over realism? Is there a difference between swearing in a book and swearing in a movie? Just a few thoughts that have been swirling in my head since that last comment, and I'd appreciate any thoughts you people have on the subject :)

Let the (friendly) argument begin!

Win A Copy of "The Siege of Krishnapur"!

Win a copy of what? I, at least, had never heard of The Siege of Krishnapur until I bought a wonderful pack containing the six Booker prize-winning novels that had been nominated for the Best of the Bookers award. That pack also contains Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children, the much fêted magic-realist post-Indian-partition novel, which is soon to be made into a movie.


The Siege of Krishnapur tells the story of the Indian Mutiny of the late 1850s against British colonial rule through the eyes of the British people stationed there. Some of the other books I've read in the pack have been good, but a little ... highbrow ... at times, where I wondered whether I was reading it for fun, or just to say I'm reading a Booker prize novel, Isn't this grand. That's not the case with this one. As the quote on the blurb says, "For a novel to be witty is one thing, to tell a good story is another, to be serious is yet another, but to be all three is surely enough to make it a masterpiece." Review soon.

To enter:

• Send an email to: thebookswede@googlemail.com, containing the subject (aka header) "SIEGE"

• No multiple entries -- or I will personally selotape bacon to you :) Whether you like it (and I hope you don't) or not...
  

• Open Anywhere (on Earth...)

• Please also include any Message Boards you frequent, if any

• Make sure your email contains your full mailing address (snail mail!). Please.
  

• Contest closes on the 31st March -- if you enter four months late, as some have, I won't send your entries back in time! ;)