American GIs are trained in eloquence
“Shut the fuck up!” Obviously an Americanism, but one of the better ones. When one is appealing for a bit of peace and quiet, there’s nothing like being direct, and a high level of distress usually requires this approach.
If the racket isn’t that bad, and you’re still relatively in control of your emotions, sometimes a polite “I say, old chap, would you mind awfully keeping it down a bit – I can’t hear myself fart over here!” might suffice.
And, of course, you shouldn’t use bad language in front of children, so the non-swearing version is mandatory, as in “SHUT UP!” (Or “SHUT UP, YOU MORONIC LITTLE CREEP!”) when addressing those of compromised age.
With more extreme circumstances, the f-word is a must, in order to get the result you are after. Now, before the above Americanism infiltrated our blessed language (via Hollywood, no doubt, and probably, specifically, Eddie Murphy), the only realistic choice was “FUCKING SHUT UP!”
This can be very effective, but the shock factor is at the front, followed by the demand. Certainly, the ‘Fuck’ of ‘Fucking’ usually grabs the offenders’ attention (why is he swearing?), but is followed directly by an anti-climax (aw, he just wants us to shut up!). So the impact is immediately spent.
But with the transatlantic version, the demand is interrupted by the expletive, and gives much scope for dramatic emphasis. Since the intervention is likely to be delivered in a loud, angry voice, the ‘Shut’ instantly grabs the attention, especially as it is recognised immediately as a command. A pause can then precede ‘the fuck’, followed by another pause, then the ‘up’, with yet different emphasis: “Shut! The fuck! UP!”
And, of course, this device can be applied to other exhortations, such as “Get the fuck out!”
