FRAGRANCES

Marlen Elliot Harrison The scented word Context, intrigue, and the problem of olfactory literacy

MARLEN ELLIOT HARRISON Indiana University of Pennsylvania 719 Philadelphia St, #306 Indiana, PA 15701, USA

and with it a new rhetoric for olfaction. As such, the question ABSTRACT: The prevalence of published materials arises: Can a global readership really ever comprehend the describing, advertising, criticizing, and/or discussing the language and rhetoric of the current writing about olfaction? olfactory realm - specifically concerning personal and What exactly are the vocabulary and classification systems household fragrance and as most recently evidenced by being used and what are the implications for universal the rise in internet publications - emphasizes aroma’s understanding? What exactly is olfactory literacy? popularity and is aiding in an exploration of the language UNESCO offers: “Literacy is the ability to identify, understand, with which olfactory experience is translated. In this paper I interpret, create, communicate and compute, using printed attempt to address the possibilities for a universal olfactive and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy literacy through an examination of the English-language involves a continuum of learning to enable an individual to vocabulary, classification approaches, and rhetoric achieve his or her goals, to develop his or her knowledge and currently being used to communicate about olfaction. I potential, and to participate fully in the wider society” (16). It is conclude that like wine and cheese, a universal this definition that I will continue to work with, specifically the classification system is possible, albeit dubious because of idea of literacy itself as enabling communication and both the numerous ideas about and culturally-influenced participation within a specific community (17). words used to describe and intrigue the consumer. However, internet sites are allowing for a new rhetorical exploration of olfaction and aroma via blogs and discussion LANGUAGE AND CONTEXT boards thereby broadening awareness of olfactory language, popularizing commonly used terms, and aiding Before examining terminology, I’d like to introduce an excerpt the development of a more universal olfactive literacy via from anthropologist Alfred Gell’s Magic, Perfume, Dream… the rich contextualizations used to discuss fragrance. which discusses the concept of language in situation: What the characteristic atmosphere of expensive perfume enveloping a woman can do is give us access to THE SCENTED WORD: LANGUAGE AND THE PROBLEM OF an ideal which is perhaps only lamely expressed except OLFACTORY LITERACY by that precise olfactory sensation. Perfume is symbolic, not linguistic, because it does what language could not Throughout the last hundred years, the sense of smell has do – express an ideal, an archetypal wholeness, which come to be regarded as a dismissed human sense, relegated surpasses language while language remains subservient to to a place of importance far behind vision and hearing (1-8). the more or less worldly business of communicating (I In contrast, recent global spending habits on fragrances for agree that language can be used symbolically as well as home and body seem to affirm olfaction’s cultural importance communicatively: poets and magicians do this). Perfume and desirability, helping to produce a diverse market of has to do with the transcendent, the transcendence scented products for both personal and household use (9). The which, while always accessible, can thematize the prevalence of published materials describing, advertising, experienced world. I said earlier that a smell is always criticizing, and/or discussing the olfactory realm - specifically incomplete by itself, that it acquires a meaning not by concerning perfume and as most recently evidenced by contrast with other smells, but by association with a internet publications - emphasizes aroma’s popularity and is context within which it is typical. Where perfume is aiding in an exploration of the language with which we concerned this completion is contextual also: the perfume translate and classify olfactory experience (6). is not completed by the idea “roses, patchouli, musk, With the assertion by 2004 Nobel Prize winning neuroscientists alcohol […]” but by the idea of the actual perfume Axel and Buck that although the human ability for cognitive situation. The constituents of perfume as substance are processing of aroma is largely similar across individuals (10), not the constituents of perfume as experience: just as an actual aromas are difficult to clearly describe and little odour permeates a place, an occasion, a situation, so the consensus exists as to the exactitude of linguistic context comes to permeate the odour-sign and becomes interpretations (11-15). In addition, while the vast majority of inseparably part of it (14, emphasis in original). literary references pertaining to olfaction occur in poetry and prose, classic literature, and medical and religious texts, the Gell’s assertion that the completion of a perfume requires a internet has given rise to a new wave of olfactory literature context or situation should serve to underscore our survey of

6 FRAGRANCES - Supplement to Household and Personal Care TODAY - n 1/2010 FRAGRANCES olfactory vocabulary and to reinforce rhetorician Kenneth how perfumes are ascribed their own situations. Burke’s dramatistic idea of the “scene” or “situation” Milotic (15) lists the following ten fragrance families as the most influencing the meaning of its terms (7, 11, 15, 18, 19). Gell’s common terms used in odour description. These terms are belief that perfume, and here I’ll venture to generalize by based upon both the individual aromas that are combined to replacing perfume with “fragrance”, is not only linguistic, but create a perfume and its overall impression. Milotic also notes also symbolic emphasizes the difficulty of creating and using a that these types of classifications, for the reasons noted in the vocabulary for which to describe it. Just as olfaction is both a quote above, “are not generally well recognized by the physiological process and subjective interpretive experience, consumer” (Table 1). This leads to the question, “For whom are so too is its language subject to interpretation, piling semiotic the classifications for?” It seems as if there are multiple code upon code. As such, I’ll focus on the ways in which both communities engaged in conversation about fragrance, vocabulary and classification difficulties are responded to via though they’re not all using the same language. the contextualization of a fragrance’s semiotic possibilities and the use of Table 1. Common terms used in odour descriptions as noted in Milotic (15). intriguing language.

Illustrating Milotic’s thesis that although there may be AIDING UNDERSTANDING? shared terms, consensus is rarely achieved, famed THE GENEALOGY AND CLASSIFICATIONS OF PERFUMERY perfumer and writer Mandy Aftel (1) lists 16 groups in her seminal work Essence and Alchemy, adding to the above Milotic, a marketing analyst for Colgate Palmolive Australia list (Table 2). ( C P A ) , a s s e r t s t h a t classification can create order: Perfumery has Table 2. Additional terms used in odour descriptions as noted in Aftel (1). a t t e m p t e d t o c r e a t e classifications for olfaction much like wine and cheese have for both gustation and By contrast, fragrance reference writer and reviewer for the olfaction, but unlike the fourfold aesthetics of cheese – scent, International Fragrance Foundation, Michael Edwards (n.d.) taste, colour, texture – perfume, the aroma itself, merely offers these additions (Table 3). embodies one – scent. Additionally, there are other reasons why the creation and acceptance of a vocabulary Table 3. Additional terms used in odour descriptions as noted in Edwards (23). for perfumery has been such a dubious task. Milotic, working with CPA as well as Unilever to understand fragrance As Milotic noted, and as illustrated by these three examples, consumer behaviour and needs, writes: the opportunities for universal classification are present, but Communication (about fragrance) can be difficult consensus is absent. Furthermore, when considering the because an individuals’ perception of fragrance differs inconsistencies and the lack of an obvious denotation among from the words they may choose to describe it. the terms – what exactly is the definition of Oriental? – the Furthermore there is a tendency to name odours on the ability for universal understanding becomes muddied and as basis of objects found in the real world. Fragrances with any language specific to a particular trade, reserved only cannot be discussed easily as there is no universal for those who join the conversation. language for fragrances. Despite recent efforts at Aside from the terms used in classifications of fragrances, bringing odours into school curriculums, children have not perfumes are further given a situation by their marketers when learned different odours as they have colours, shapes or an olfactory pyramid is composed and related to the public. sounds. As a result there is no agreed common For example, the pyramid for 1997’s Lolita Lempicka perfume vocabulary in this area (Dehn, 1991) […] Due to the includes the following notes (individual aromas employed in competitive nature of the industry there is also reluctance the composition that when combined create the overall on the part of ‘fragrance houses’, that develop new effect): “Ivy, anise seed, violet, amarise, licorice, amarena, fragrances, to share information openly. The fact that vetiver, tonka, vanilla, and musk” (24). For those who fragrances are often complex combinations of odours understand these words to be representative of specific that are entirely manmade cloud the situation further (15, aromas, the olfactory pyramid may be an effective way to italics my own). offer information about the perfume. I’ll admit, however that I’ve never heard of amarise or amarena and have no Milotic continues to address the recent attempts at fragrance cognitive or emotional interpretation of these terms. For me, classification within the last 30 years, citing how perfumeries these terms are empty spaces with no colour, memory, or and related interested parties have similar though not aroma associations. unanimously agreed on terms for perfume: “In examining Let’s examine another olfactory pyramid, Clavin Klein’s various applied systems for odour description there are many Euphoria for Women from 2005: “Pomegranate, persimmon, common terms to be found. Taken together these “lush green accord”, lotus flower, champaca flower, black coincidences suggest that there is an opportunity for a orchid, liquid amber, black violet, cream accord, and universal system for odour classification” (16). Classification mahogany wood” (25). This time, added to the list of leaves, may include the use of one fragrance to reference another; flowers, etc are the unique descriptive names of “lush green categorization into families, often called ‘fragrance accord”, “liquid amber”, and colorized scents such as “black genealogy’; and grouping by odour characteristics, etc. For orchid” and “black violet”. How does a black variety of a our purposes, we’ll use fragrance genealogy as examples of violet smell differently from a purple variety? Is amber any both inconsistencies in linguistic/semiotic classification and more aromatic if the essence represents a liquid form?

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Perhaps Gell has provided perfumery with a powerful piece of THE PROBLEM OF OLFACTORY LITERACY: PARIS IS 300 MILES advice in his discussion of aroma and situation, and the more SOUTH-EAST OF LONDON, AND 200 MILES NORTH-WEST OF LYON intriguing the situation, the more intriguing the scent. An unpublished paragraph from Chandler Burr’s (the New York Times’ perfume critic) Emperor Of Scent, a non-fiction account INTRIGUE: “THAT WOULD BE A GOOD NAME FOR A SCENT” of the development of scientist Luca Turin’s theory of human olfaction further illustrates this difficulty. Here, Turin and In their reports on the naming of fragrances, Minton (26) and perfumer John Stephen discuss the subjective nature of Harrison (18) discuss the effect that names have on fragrance linguistic interpretation and the problem of terms: consumers: In fact, the perfumer John Stephen readily agreed with While it remains a question whether male and female Turin that the Carbon and the Sila smelled very different, consumers consciously choose fragrances based on the the sila being vastly nastier and greener. But simply the connotations of the fragrances’ names, several points ways Turin and Stephen had described the molecule’s seem clear. Advertisers choose product names within fairly odours plunged him (when he put them side by side) predictable connotative boundaries, because they feel once again frustratedly into this problem of how to talk these images represent fantasies for men and women (26). about smell. “We run into this problem of the non- standardization of smells” he sighed. “Look at the two of Perhaps the uses of colours and states as noted above create us. I describe the Carbon as “eucalyptus, tiger balsam, the connotative boundaries within which the perfume situation camphoraceous, rich and pleasant”. But John describes is created. But just as the descriptive linguistic interpretation of the same molecule as “solvent-like, ethereal, with a sweet aroma is a highly subjective phenomenon, so too is the fruity powdery back note, almost marshmallow”. And our ascription of a name with all of its cultural connotations descriptions are manifestly different (27). For example, consider 2004’s Full Choke, a but they are not materially different, men’s fragrance by Italian design house and when I smell what he smells, I Francesco Smalto. Using foreign words to add know we’re smelling the same thing an allure of intrigue is not an uncommon because I’m saying Paris is 300 miles marketing tool (28), and in this case English south-east of London, and he’s words are used to give a specific situation to an saying Paris is 200 miles north-west odour created and sold to a largely Italian of Lyon. Still”. He ended, tightly, market. I certainly didn’t understand the “It’s going to be difficult to do connotations of this scent, having never had data mining, molecule-odorant exposure to language about the barrels of a matching, simply because the shotgun as the term choke suggests (29), but I language will be so different” (25 definitely found the name intriguing, just as a lush n.d.). green accord or a black orchid is equally intriguing to me as a consumer interested in Although Stephen and Turin scent. However, intrigue doesn’t equal share a common purpose, understanding. Minton writes: identity (scientist), as well as an If a name may take several referential understanding of each directions, the perfume context suffices to other’s terms (placing emphasize the one with the most sales t h e m i n t o a s h a r e d appeal. Thus, Sirocco (3) presents its facet community of practice), ‘heat’ rather than ‘dustiness and from this example we can oppressiveness”. Brise d’Orient is sure to see the difficulty inherent become more oriental (pictures of exotic in olfactory interpretation. luxury and harems) than breezy. But the T h e s e t w o e x a m p l e s choice of Mistral may not signify anything necessitate the following more than ignorance (26, emphasis in questions: How can one group be original). confident in their creation of a language to convey smell (and associative Is Minton suggesting that consumers bring their own ideas taste for that matter) while another firmly about these names/terms to their understanding of the actual understands the problems inherent in such a task? aroma? If so, it would then seem that consumers are left to How do we know that what we describe will be universally construct their own imaginative situations using linguistic understood outside, or even among our communities of associations as their guides. practice? When it comes to olfaction, are we all illiterate? With classification terms, descriptions of ingredients, and Retreating to Burke, and his discussion of terms and context/ perfume names all being highly open to interpretation - a situation, I might argue that descriptions are also terms variety of which could ostensibly denote the same functioning as advertising or education - their purpose may phenomenon - and perhaps equally open to interpretation as be simply to intrigue equally as much as to educate. But an aroma itself, the average consumer (not part of a specific where does that leave the consumer or connoisseur? Turin’s community of practice who are able to see beyond the example above serves as anecdotal evidence to the marketing rhetoric inherent in the terms) is left to little more than challenges involved in such interpretation. a shot in the dark in trying understand the language of In another example addressing the problem of olfactory olfaction. It would seem from the discussions of vocabulary that literacy, a 2005 article from the popular American men’s indeed little consensus exists; olfactive literacy may be a far magazine, Esquire, offers the magazine’s presumably trickier challenge due to the highly personal nature of both uninformed audience a guide to fragrance: “Scent can aroma and the language with which we use to communicate become your signature, a way for you to be recognized about it. immediately, even by the blind. And when you discover one

8 FRAGRANCES - Supplement to Household and Personal Care TODAY - n 1/2010 FRAGRANCES that truly suits you, you enjoy it yourself, like aromatherapy The below excerpt is taken from a specific discussion board […] Of course, finding this right cologne means navigating all within the community, one dedicated to new members who the language of the fragrance counter and the sheer volume are “just starting out” and need a crash course in the of choices” (26). This one excerpt very keenly summarizes not language used by this unique community of practice. Figure only the metaphorical value and communicative properties 1 illustrates how a new member of the community must be of wearing scent, but also the following challenges to the literate (knowledge of textual discourse and its jargon) to consumer: To navigate the arena of aroma, one is aided by fully participate with other members, even though the the ability to use and understand its language. Beyond the individual considers himself as having a significant simple pleasure of spraying an aroma into the air or onto connection with the subject matter (illustrated by the use of one’s skin lies the ostensibly more complex task of being able another new term, “scentaholic”). The actual jargon being to describe the olfactory experience (for the writer/speaker), discussed above is “decant”, defined by Webster.com (21) and/or to understand the linguistic and semiotic descriptions as: (for the reader/listener). It would be impossible (both in terms 1. to draw off (a liquid) without disturbing the sediment or of time and logistics) to experience every fragrance one has the lower liquid layers, interest in simply by smelling them, and so the marketing of 2. to pour from one vessel into another, fragrance is largely left to the words, saying it rather than 3. to pour out, transfer, or unload as if by pouring. spraying it; in short, marketing to consumers is a driving force Participants in this community of practice have taken this behind such language invention and use (27, 28, 29). term and re-designed it to carry a second definition, related, yet unique. The term, “decant”, shows up more than 1000 times throughout the community (as archived “DECANT”: FACILITATING LEXICAL DEVELOPMENT AND from August, 2005). FRAGRANCE COMMUNITIES On her blog, Aromascope.com, writer and perfume enthusiast Ina Prouty pointedly discusses the phenomenon In the fall of 2000 I began exploring the internet for information of jargon specific to the perfume (fragrance) communities: regarding a specific hobby that I feel very passionate about: It’s been on my mind for a while to do a post on fragrance. My use of internet search engines led me to the perfume fanatic jargon because, let’s face it, we speak discovery of Basenotes.net, a reference guide to our own language, only understood by the fellow understanding the world of fragrance. In addition to a afflicted and/or others in the know. I love perfume searchable database of fragrances that offer information as jargon, for obvious reasons, but also for the fact it’s so to their creation and compositions, including reviews written easy to learn and extremely exciting to teach. Today I’ll by site visitors, Basenotes also maintains an on-line community mostly talk about the jargon adopted at certain online in the form of discussion boards and a chat room. Although perfume communities (Makeupalley, mostly) (22). the community’s participants share a passion and goal for wanting to both discuss and further an understanding of Prouty beautifully answers the research questions I posed fragrance, members bring different levels of lexical earlier by stating that as members of a specific community, understanding to the discussions. At that time I recognized a there is a unique language. Moreover, this language is common concern by users of the site, especially new characteristic of on-line communities. Prouty feels the need community members: Not everyone understood the terms (or to teach this language to better facilitate understanding jargon) that were casually being used by the more and communication among its members. Below (Figure 2) experienced members (see Figure 1 below). are some examples of jargon as noted by Prouty.

Figure 2. Excerpt from Aromascope.com, October 5th, 2006 (22). (http://www.aromascope.com/ wp/2006/10/05/perfume-fanatic-jargon/)

Acronyms: FBW - the obvious one, one of the first questions that usually pops in your head when you smell a new scent. Is it Full Bottle Worthy? HG - the never ending, often futile quest for the Holy Grail perfume.

Borrowed from other languages: Sillage - (French) a trail of scent a person leaves behind or is followed by. Not all perfumes have sillage, and sillage is not necessarily an attribute of a good quality perfume. In fact, I could name a few with devastatingly awful sillage. But not today.

A word given new meaning: Decant - perfume poured or sprayed into a certain size bottle, usually smaller than the original bottle. Typical decant sizes are 2 ml, 5 ml, 6 ml, and 10 ml. A decant is something you want to get if you don’t Figure 1. Screenshot from Basenotes.net, December 3rd, 2006(20) want to/cannot buy a whole bottle or (http://community.basenotes.net/showthread.php?t=190085). just want to sample a scent.

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And here again we see mention of the word “decant”, between the nose and the word, the smeller and the seller, further reinforcing the new and shared definition used the writer and the reader, reality and metaphor, the throughout various written genres within the fragrance fragrance and its context? community. From the examples above, we may deduce that participation in a specific community requires literacy in that REFERENCES AND NOTES in order for a participant to actively engage, he or she will 1. M. Aftel, Essence and Alchemy: A natural history of perfume, North need to learn the language and surrounding customs of that Point Press, New York (2001). community (17). Internet technology, specifically on-line 2. U. Almagor, Human Studies, 13, pp. 253-274 (1990). communities, facilitate the creation and development of 3. M. Bogert, The Scientific Monthly, 39, pp. 345-353 (1934). new lexical language through the proliferation of developed 4. C. Classen, Ethos, 20, pp. 133-166 (1992). jargon such as borrowed terms, words given new definitions, 5. C. Classen, D. Howes et al., Aroma: The cultural history of smell, that are put to common usage within a community such that Routledge, London (1994). outsiders cannot effectively participate without that 6. J. Drobnick, The Smell Culture Reader, Edited by Drobnick J, Berg, knowledge. Oxford, pp. 13-17 (2006). 7. S. Rasmussen, Anthropological Quarterly, 72, pp. 55-73 (1999). 8. L. Turin, The Secret of Scent, HarperCollins Publishers, New York (2006). CONCLUSION 9. J. Harper, The Washington Times, Sept 24th 2006. 10. Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Translating the language of smell I’d like to conclude my exploration of olfactive literacy with (2005), http://www.fhcrc.org/about/pubs/center_news/2005/jun16/ Lehrer’s own conclusion from her research into wine and sart1.html language: 11. M. Benarie, Leonardo, 7, pp. 19-22 (1974). My study of wine words has shown that people do not 12. C. Burr, The Emperor of Scent, Random House, USA (2002).. apply words to things in the same way. Is the domain of 13. C. Burr, The problem of the language of smell (n.d.) ChandlerBurr. wine-discussion an unusual one, or is it fairly typical of com http://www.chandlerburr.com/newsite/content/ speakers’ application of words? If the latter is the case, emperorofscent/unpublished/5.php 14. A. Gell, The Smell Culture Reader, Edited by Drobnick J, Berg, then speakers probably do not communicate with each Oxford, pp. 400-410 (2006). other nearly as well as they think they do, since they 15. D. Milotic, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 3, pp. 179-191 (2003). usually have no way of knowing that others apply words 16. Literacy, The Plurality of Literacy and its Implications for Policies and differently. But perhaps they communicate well enough Programmes. UNESCO, France (2004). for their purposes, even without knowing (30). 17. E. Wenger, Communities of Practice. Learning, Meaning and Identity, Cambridge University Press, New York (1998). Lehrer’s conclusion, drawn about both olfaction and 18. E. Harrison, The English Journal, 74, pp. 38-40 (1985). gustation almost 35 years ago could easily apply to the 19. K. Burke, Language as Symbolic Action: Essays on life, literature, and current discussion of olfaction and literacy. It would be method, University of California Press, Berkeley (1966). interesting to repeat Lehrer’s research with olfaction via 20. Basenotes.net, (2006), Excerpt from on-line discussion board. http:// community.basenotes.net/showthread.php?t=190085 textual analysis of fragrance blogs and online communities in 21. Decant (2006), Webster.com, http://www.webster.com/cgi-bin/ an attempt to explore the actual language most commonly dictionary?sourceid=Mozilla-search&va=decant used to communicate about aroma by those actually 22. I. Prouty, Perfume fanatic jargon (2006), Aromascope.com, http:// consuming it, rather than producing it. Moreover, as many of www.aromascope.com/wp/2006/10/05/perfume-fanatic-jargon/ the currently visible writers on the internet and in publication 23. M. Edwards, Welcome to the Fragrance Foundation directory, have diverse linguistic backgrounds, it would also be FragranceDirectory.info, http://www.fragrancedirectory.info/ worthwhile exploring how these rhetorical and linguistic usadirectory/main/ModuleContacts.asp heritages influence the literacy of olfaction. Due to the 24. Lolita Lempicka, Basenotes.net, http://www.basenotes.net/ variety of approaches to fragrance description - including ID10212178.html the use of intrigue by marketers in classification, naming, and 25. Calvin Klein Euphoria for Women, Basenotes.net, http://www. basenotes.net/ID10210521.html description - having a culturally and linguistically diverse 26. A. Minton, American Speech, 21, pp. 161-174 (1946). group of writers use the same format and approach to 27. M. Danesi, Of Cigarettes, High Heels, and Other Interesting Things: review could yield interesting data further exploring Milotic’s An introduction to semiotics, St. Martin’s Press, New York (1999). claim that although opportunities for universal language 28. S.J. Keyser, New Literary History, 14, pp. 305-334 (1983). exists, consensus has yet to be reached. If no universal 29. L. Simpson, Wildfowlmag.com (2004), http://www.wildfowlmag. literacy can be identified, perhaps we could conclude that com/tips_strategies/shotgun_062304/ the literacy of olfaction requires an ongoing negotiation 30. A. Lehrer, Language, 51, pp. 901-923 (1975).

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