The Rebellion Power of the F-word in Modern Songs : A Corpus-Based Discourse Analysis

Abstract: Abstract: In this thesis, the general use and specific instances of F-words in modern music lyrics have been studied based on the corpora extracted from songs in Billboard year-end charts from 2013 to 2022, which represented the most popular songs in English-speaking countries. By screening the actual meaning and contexts of those F-words in the lyrics, I extracted those special instances in which F-words were used to express rebellious feelings to challenge social norms and fight against authority powers. The theme of those rebellious F-words was first studied by the quantitative analysis by years, which shows a clear time dependence associated with the social and political environments. Notably, there was a significant increase in the use of rebellious F-words in lyrics during the intense social and political crises of 2019-2020. A comparative investigation was then carried out across four distinct music genres: rap, rock, R&B, and pop. Among these, rap music stood out with a higher prevalence of rebellious F-words. However, the impact of these words was diminished due to their frequent occurrence, resulting in a reduced level of audience reaction and shock value. The following textual analysis of grammatical features and literary devices associated with those F-words provided evidence that more assertive and aggressive expressions, such as imperative sentences, were favored when incorporating rebellious F-words in the lyrics. This study provides a comprehensive overview of how modern pop music expresses and conveys rebellious power through the use of profanity.