TABOO TALK: LINGUISTIC COMPETENCE AND SHIFTING BOUNDARIES OF SOCIAL DISCOURSE

Abstract

Due to the influence of the mass media and social media which have brought changes in social norms and behaviours people are more than ever free to speak their minds without being censored under the cloak of anonymity, and hidden behind different platforms. This freedom of speech has encouraged them to speak and act the way they would never speak and act otherwise but has it affected the choice of topics they are comfortable to talk about? Are there taboo topics anymore, either cultural or personal? In language, a taboo is associated with things that are not said because of the embarrassment they cause. This paper aims to explore topics young people, college students, from three different societies find embarrassing to talk about with other people and particularly with their parents. They were given a set of questions considered taboo or controversial related to love or sex matters, physical appearance, money, political attitudes, health issues, problems with the law, and similar, and asked to specify who has the right to ask them the given question. They were also asked to tick the topics they find (un)comfortable to talk about in front of their parents, including swearing, and to provide a question they find deeply offensive.