The concept of guilty pleasure seems to have emerged in 18th century England. At that time, it truly was something to feel guilty about, although many an 18th-century Englishman seemed to genuinely enjoy such pleasures. You know, along the lines of visiting a brothel or oppressing the Irish. Nowadays, the “guilty” part of the guilty pleasure has been transformed into something we are more embarrassed about than anything. And it mainly refers to movies or TV shows. Or, Nutella, obviously.