One of the most
expressive expletives I've heard, and one with a touch of
archaism. The word "
corruption" here
doesn't refer to
bribery and
graft, but rather to
necrosing and
decaying flesh. ("Corruption" is also used to refer to rot and decay in the
King James Bible.) Hence, this is an invocation of
biochemical heck breaking loose -- somewhat reminiscent of the offensive medieval habit of catapulting
filth and rotten
corpses into a city which one is
besieging.
Hagbard Celine mutated this expletive to the equally disquieting "Shit, piss, and industrial waste."