What Is A Taboo Word Essay

Shit is a big part of everyone’s life; you get up in the morning, take a shit, brush your teeth, take a shower, eat, and go on with your day, but for some reason saying this word, which describes a part of your daily life is considered taboo. The word “shit” has become a commonly used word in modern day English, and as a taboo word it is thrown around more often than most. Most people who speak English understand that shit means feces or dung, and it has been this way for hundreds of years, but it is now more often than not used in a fashion that seems quite unrelated. In the past century not only has it grown in usage, it has also acquired several new meaning, which change depending on the context, as in “holy shit!”, or “that’s a shitty way to be treated”, or …show more content…
The story goes, sometime between the 16th and 18th century, pallets of cow pies were loaded onto ships (some say for fuel, while others say it was fertilizer) and were stored in the hold, below deck. As they sailed off, the bilge would accumulate water, making the hold become very humid. Then the shit would become wet begin decaying, leading to a release of methane gas. Once the sun went down, the first one to venture into the hold with a lantern would encounter a harsh surprise as the gas exploded, badly damaged and sinking the ship. After the cause of these mishaps was finally understood, they began storing the pallets high enough above the lower decks that the humidity would not affect them. They made sure to label directions on the side of the pallets, which they abbreviated with the letters S.H.I.T. meaning Ship High In Transit. These pallets did not smell great, and eventually people began saying things like “It smells like shit!” and from this it evolved. While I have seen many comments on the Internet calling this story BS. I still like to think there is a small chance it is not completely