PERFUME AND LITERATURE The Persistence of the Ephemeral Daniela Ciani Forza Simone Francescato Editors [LINEA saggistica] This publication was made possible thanks to the contribution by: ISBN 978-88-996442-9-1 Copyright © 2017 – LINEA edizioni First edition March 2017 Translation from the original Italian edition by Christina Cawthra Front cover: © Museo Palazzo Mocenigo - Venezia foto di Andrea Morucchio Project and graphics:: Idvisual – www.idvisual.it Printing: Idvisual – Padova Published by LINEA edizioni Via San Marco, 193/D-3 35129 Padova (Italy) Tel. +39.049.59.13.045 Fax +39.049.78.40.334 [email protected] www.lineaedizioni.it All rights reserved. None of this book may be photocopied, repro- duced, archived, stored or transmitted in any form or using any kind of electronic, mechanical, photographic or digital means, unless in ac- cordance with the laws covering copyright. Daniela Ciani Forza Simone Francescato Editors PERFUME AND LITERATURE The Persistence of the Ephemeral Cosmetica Italia is proud to present Perfume and Literature. The Persistence of the Ephemeral, a publication that illustrates the extensive, diversified roots of perfume in the universe of literature and world culture. This book is testimony to just what degree smells and the world of fragrances have always played a constant role in so- ciety, at all levels and at various latitudes. It is clear that leading the concept of perfume back to alcoholic compositions is restrictive: per- fume encompasses anything that stimulates the sense of smell, offering emotive sensations that reflect the multiple facets and complexity of interpersonal relationships. When Cosmetica Italia was founded in 1967 with the name Unipro – Unione nazionale industrie di profumeria, cosmesi, saponi da toeletta ed affini (Union of Industries for Perfumery, Cosmetics, Toilet Soaps and similar) – over half of the founding members came from businesses that produced perfume; this is therefore not only proof of how important the world of perfumery actually was in the cosmet- ics sector, but also of how it responded to the taste of a people who stood out with its creativity, innate elegance and sophistication. It was the confirmation of leadership within the tradition, innovation and historical-social legacy of perfume, the history of which goes back to times immemorial, and shows that our country is still the unri- valled protagonist. In addition to this Italian result we can now add the sensitivity and competence of the editors and authors of this pub- lication that, from Venice, the birthplace of the art of perfumery, we hope will contribute significantly to the knowledge of the fascinating and mysterious nature of perfume. Fabio Rossello President of Cosmetica Italia The Personal Care Association CONTENTS XI Editors’ Preface Introduction 3 Olfaction and Perfume in the Rediscovery of the Sensible Life Giuseppe Goisis The Essays 29 Listening to Perfume. The Sense of Smell as Art in Prince Genji’s World Giorgio Amitrano 45 Beyond Jasmine and Spice Elisabetta Bartuli 57 The Alchemy of Words in Turkish. From Stills to a Tradition of Frugality in Everyday Memories Giampiero Bellingeri 75 Gardens in Drama. Perfumes Take the Stage Francesca Bisutti VII 97 Sacred and Profane Perfume. Sensorial Mazes and Paths of Meaning in the Italian and French Renaissance Magda Campanini 113 (Modern) Greek Aromas. An Olfactive Itinerary Caterina Carpinato 133 The Exhilarating Perfume of Cinnamon from the Orient to Lusitanian Lands Vanessa Castagna 147 Créations de l’esprit. Music and Perfume in Edmond Roudnitska’s Aesthetics Diego Cembrola 165 The Permanence and Nomadism of Perfumes. A Migratory Metaphor Carmen Concilio 179 “Who are you, incomprehensible: you spirit.” Perfume in Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century German Literature Massimiliano De Villa 199 Perfume in the American Decadent Movement. James Huneker’s “The Eighth Deadly Sin” Simone Francescato 215 Gabriele d’Annunzio’s “voluptuous nose.” Extracts from the Letters to his Perfumer Pietro Gibellini VIII 237 The Perfume of Virtue. Fragrance and Morale in Ancient China Alessandra Lavagnino 251 Propter odores. Perfumes in Roman Times Paolo Mastandrea 271 The Perfume of the Wilderness Irene Nasi 287 Shakespeare’s Perfumes Sergio Perosa 299 Ivan Bunin. The Scent of Apples and Memory Donatella Possamai 313 The Essence of Hispanic-American Literature Shrouded in Perfumes of Love and Smells of Death Silvana Serafin 331 Perfumes and Sensuality in William Faulkner Giorgia Tommasi 345 Mystics of the Sense of Smell (Mystika Čichu), a Multi-Sensorial Book by Josef Váchal Massimo Tria 361 The Perfumes of Albania. Evanescent Trails Suspended between East and West Giuseppina Turano IX Envoi 378 “A scent, my music” Two Poems by Meena Alexander 385 Further Reading 389 Contributors 401 Index of Names X EDITORS’ PREFace How can you describe a perfume? How can you put into words a presence that is fleeting but intense, embodied in an eva- nescent fragrance? From the beginnings of time, the fascination of pro-fumus – which, being intangible, joins the sensitive with the spiritual – accompanies religious ceremonies, social occasions, personal encounters and memories, offering moments of libera- tion from subjection to the visible, and from the precariousness of the tangible. Similarly, the preciousness of essences and spices is underlined by the onset of important economic and cultural relations amongst peoples, be they close by or far away. Literature, on the other hand, cannot help but reflect the exuberance with which the olfactive sphere pervades its pages – the narrated stories accompanying us with visions and sensations animated by the art of the word: Houses and rooms are full of perfumes ... the shelves are crowded with perfumes, I breathe the fragrance myself, and know it and like it (vv. 7-9) From the very first lines of his most famous poem, “Song of Myself,” Walt Whitman, the great American bard and father of modern poetry, intoxicates us with this image of perfumes per- vading homes and rooms, shelves that are overflowing, and that he himself “knows” and “likes.” Far away from the sophisticated XI preparations of the Old World, and from its iconographic rheto- ric, the perfumes Whitman would evoke later on in the poem ex- hale trails of knowledge as if they were essences. What Whitman’s free verse and immediate language are singing is the ‘perfume of democracy,’ and it is ultimately with this that he wants to iden- tify his country, and in the latter identify himself. One ‘breathes’ knowledge: like a perfume it rises from life, and like life it derives its substance from the surrounding reality; it renews it and places it in a dialogic comparison. Emulating Whitman’s words, we shall therefore look more closely into the relations between writing and olfactive sensations as eloquent signs of world cultures – of the diverse sensitivity with which we each interpret its nuances. The essays in this collection are testimony to this. As regards their style, content, and approach to the subject, they offer a kaleidoscopic overview of a ‘literary- olfactive’ universe. They all deal with different aspects, reflecting on the mystery of perfumes and, more in general, on the sense of smell, the most archaic of the five senses – a reflection that spans literary history from antiquity until today. It ranges from Renaissance culture, Symbolism and the fin de siècleDecadent Movement, finally reaching postmodern world-shaking literary phenomena such as Patrick Süskind’s renowned novel Perfume (1985). Already in the past century such a theme was object of important anthropological and sociological studies, such as the fundamental one by Alain Corbin (1982), which later gave rise, in particular in the Anglo-Saxon world, to olfactory studies, a branch that has investigated this still relatively new universe from an interdisciplinary perspective, resulting in works such as Clas- sen, Howes and Synnott’s (1994). Despite the extensive production of texts on the precious art of perfumery or the history of essences and perfumes, there are still very few studies about the sense of smell in the literary field, although the ones available are of great quality; one such example XII is Hans J. Rindisbacher’s (1992), which is an excellent reference for a more specific, orthodox study of the subject. In an attempt to fill this gap and expand the horizon of these studies, the essays in this collection not only offer enlightened insights into works and authors – some of whom are very well known, whilst others deserve to be rediscovered in a new light – but, above all, they of- fer an innovative and idiosyncratic interpretation of what a study of perfume in literature worldwide actually means. The result is a selection of contributions that explore an intricate, diversified thematic itinerary with both curiosity and eclecticism. The book starts with an introductory essay by Giuseppe Goisis, who offers a systematic reflection on the ‘vicissitudes’ of olfactive perception in philosophic and literary thought from its origins to the modern day. This preface is followed by thematic essays, each of which pres- ents the role that olfactive sensitivity exerts in literary imagination in diverse languages. They range from the classic to today’s vehicular, in- cluding the less common ones that, nevertheless, are an expression of great civilisations and significant artistic and intellectual confluence. Unveiling the versatility of its meanings, the contributions in this volume show that the importance of perfume is anything but secondary in different literatures and to their canonical au- thors. Thus, with his select choice of Shakespeare’s texts, Sergio Perosa illustrates the significant variants with which the Bard describes perfumes and smells in his works; similarly, with its analysis of The Tale of Genji,Giorgio Amitrano’s essay highlights the value Japanese culture attributed to perfume: the conception itself of olfactive ability being not equal to pure aesthetic sensitiv- ity, but to the ability to concentrate that such a practice implies.