Do the Taboos Still Matter?

January 3, 2018404 views0

Do the Taboos Still Matter?

2018-01-03T12:00:51+01:00

By CNP

In a society that places much emphasis on rightness and wrongness; a society that has several unwritten codes or rules that guide behavior, there were times when some things were considered to be taboos.In the twenty first century where everything goes, taboos are largely on the decline. The strong walls of taboos are fast crumbling. Though there are still areas where some things are not acceptable, it is still normal to talk about boundaries.There were times it was so difficult to use certain words. There were also words that were forbidden in official or professional contexts. Some of these words, including F words like f**k you. The word condom was hardly used in public discourse or social conversation except among friends.Staying on the word condom, we discover that it is shown and mentioned frequently in TV commercials. Public programmes on sex education now freely use some hitherto taboo words.Taboo subjects are decreasing by the day. The social media and the internet also make this possible. There were times when you heard statements like, ‘I never discuss anything concerning sex.’ Please when was the last time you heard that?Nonetheless, there are some topics that are best avoided. Imagine meeting someone for the first time and asking, ‘Are you gay?’It is also better to avoid topics that are known to be provocative when discussing with someone with whom you are not familiar.For people you know so intimately, you can afford to discuss even controversial topics like abortion but never assume that the person you are taking to is comfortable with the taboo topic.