Taboos are frequently interpreted as irrational prohibitions, yet in anthropology, they are understood as essential tools for maintaining social categories. Mary Douglas famously argued that 'pollution'—the violation of a taboo—is simply 'matter out of place.' A taboo does not necessarily target things that are inherently dirty or dangerous; rather, it targets things that blur the boundaries between established classes of objects. For example, a creature that has scales like a fish but lives on land might be considered 'unclean' because it defies the fundamental classification of 'sea creatures' versus 'land creatures.' By prohibiting contact with such anomalies, a society protects the integrity of its conceptual system. The function of taboo is to ensure that the world remains orderly and predictable.