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''Shit happens'' is a slang sentence that is used as a simple existential observation that life is full of unfortunate unpredictable events, similar to " ''c'est la vie''". The sentence is an acknowledgment that bad things happen to people seemingly for no particular reason.
It can also be said less vulgarly, including phrases such as "it happens" or "stuff happens".
The term is used on the back of a car sticker in the episode Speed 3 of Father Ted
In 2011,
History
The fact that people have been remarking that shit happens has been attested from 1964, when Carl Werthman quoted an example in hisUC Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...
masters thesis; the relevant excerpt was published in ''The American City'' (edited by Anselm L. Strauss) in 1968.
Examples of usage
The term is used on the back of a car sticker in the episode Speed 3 of Father Ted
In 2011, Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
n politician Tony Abbott
Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is an Australian former politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and was the member of parli ...
, who was at the time Opposition Leader and leader of the Liberal Party (later becoming Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
), used the sentence in an interview.
Australian toilet paper and essential goods retailer Shhit Happens uses a modification of the phrase as their trade name. Stylised as either 'Shhit Happens' or 'Shh!t Happens'.
See also
* *References
External links
{{Spoken Wikipedia, EN-shit happens-article.ogg, date=2022-12-29 English phrases English-language slang Comedy catchphrases Slogans English profanity 1964 quotations