PERCEPTION OF ARTFICIAL PLEASANT ODOURS IN THE AGE OF OLFACTORY CONSUMERISM

PERCEPTION OF ARTFICIAL PLEASANT ODOURS IN THE AGE OF OLFACTORY CONSUMERISM Dissertation submitted to the Department of Communication and Journalism in partial fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of

MASTER OF COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM

Carried out by: SRUTHY GOPAL

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM UNIVERSITY OF KEARLA Thiruvananthapuram

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2013

PERCEPTION OF ARTFICIAL PLEASANT ODOURS IN THE AGE OF OLFACTORY CONSUMERISM

Dissertation submitted to the Department of Communication and Journalism in partial fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of MASTER OF COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM

Carried out by: SRUTHY GOPAL

Certified Bona Fide Work

Dr. Subhash K. (Supervisor)

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM UNIVERSITY OF KEARLA Thiruvananthapuram

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I have great pleasure in acknowledging the help of all those who have made this work a success.

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Subhash K. Head of the Department, Department of Communication and Journalism, University of Kerala, for guiding my study.

My thanks also go to many fine people who patiently participated in my survey and thus channeled and shaped the content of my study.

I extend my sense of gratitude and sincere thanks to my teachers in the Department and my friends for their wholehearted support and constructive comments.

Sruthy Gopal

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CONTENTS

1.

Introduction…………………………………………………………1-20

2.

Review of Literature………………………………………………21-34

3.

Methodology……………………………………………………….35-39

4.

Results and Discussion…………………………………………..40-56

5.

Conclusion………………………………………………………….57-59

6.

Bibliography

7.

Appendix

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Knowledge is Experience

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1 Introduction

Smell is a social phenomenon. It becomes a powerful form of communication, when particular meanings and values are attributed to it by different cultures. Throughout the history of human civilisation, smell acted as the building blocks of cosmologies, class hierarchies and social structures. The occupation of perfuming united people, at the same time it divided. It empowered and disempowered. It was treated as divine as well as devils. Until the germ theory was evolved, perfumes were highly associated with heath and healing. Later on as the science developed to reveal the microbes causing diseases perfumes were invested with cosmetic concerns. Quiet inevitably it became a part of consumerism as it is today.

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Olfaction as a Channel of Communication Olfaction is the most powerful channel of communication, the most undermined too.

Odours are unavoidable signals in communication as they share their channel with life breath.

We cannot withhold or seal them. They spread without any external aid. Cutting across physical barriers, they mix up with other odour molecules and erode. The only way to silence an odour is to overpower it with another. Human beings have expertise in this overpowering of natural unpleasant odours, including body odours, through scenting. And this affinity to scents or intolerance to unpleasant odours is a notable difference between Homo sapiens and Apes. That is why D. Michael Stoddart describes man as the Scented Ape. May be because of this particular characteristic, human beings are highly insensitive to feeble smell signals compared to other animals. When other mammals attract their mates through natural body odours we have been trusting upon perfumes derived from other living or non-living objects in nature even though human body possess more scent glands than any other higher primates. (Stoddart, 1990, p7) The theory of evolution proposed by Charles Darwin explains this characteristic of humankind. As Homo sapiens got up in legs around five to seven million years ago, many changes happened in his body structure. Separation of nose from earth, closing down the sensing through excretions and secretions, was one of it. As human sense to smell changed from earthy to airy sight became the primary channel of information as it could provide 180˚ distant view. ‘Those who believe in the principle of gradual evolution will not readily admit that the sense of smell in its present state was originally acquired by man, as he now exists. He inherits the power in an enfeebled and so far rudimentary condition, from some early progenitor, to whom it was highly serviceable, and by whom it was continually used’, says Darwin.(Darwin, 1871, p13) When vision was hailed as the sense of reason, experiment, and science, it became the language of truth, and pushed the other senses to the background. Meanwhile, smell was demoted as the sense of intuition, sentiment, and sensuality, which had acquired negative connotations. The act of deliberately or ostentaciously smelling objects, people, or our surroundings started raising suspicion, especially among the higher social classes, and was therefore best avoided. Smell was an animalist, and altogether dangerous sense, that soon became associated with moral corruption. (Aspria, 2008, p6) Sticking to this theory, some anthropologists and biologists even argue that human nose is a vestigial organ, like appendix and coccyx. (Doty, 1981, p351) Stating the influence

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of odours on our Brains, our Psyches and on different aspects of our Physiology, D. Michael Stoddart cuts this statement (Stoddart,1990, p8).

In order to emphasis the power of smell, Classen, Hows and Synnott quote a man who lost his sense of smell due to a head injury : “When I lost [my sense of smell]—it was like being struck blind. Life lost a good deal of its savors—one does not realise how much ‘savors’ is smell. You smell people, you smell books, you smell the city, you smell the spring—maybe not consciously, but as a rich unconscious background to everything else. My whole world was suddenly radically poorer.” (Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003, p1) Studies say that we can identify the things used by our dear ones through smell, which means, even though we rarely use odours as a source of information, they do register in our unconscious levels.

According to biologists, human nose can recognise and register

thousands of different odours. This effectiveness even in delicacy makes human sense to smell to be attended as a significant channel of communication.

But, olfaction rarely identifies as a signal in communication studies. Maurice MerleauPonty in his work, Phenomenology of Perception (1945) says every sensation belongs to a sensory field. This theory is also in synchronisation with the latest models of communication, which treat source and receiver as a part of the context. The concept of a sensory field implies that every object, which is perceived, belongs to a field of other objects, which are not perceived. Every perceived sensation, therefore, belongs to a field of other sensations, which are not simultaneously perceived by the subject. Again, it is attention that guides subjects’ awareness to specific stimuli within the landscape or “smellscape” in which they are immersed. (Harris RG, 2007, p12) Odours have associative identification. One’s olfactory likes and dislikes are highly associated with his or her cultural background and previous experience. There are two perspectives on the origins of odour preference; the evolutionary perspective and the tabula rasa-based hypothesis, or learning paradigm.

1.

Evolutionary perspective analyses odour preferences based on biological instincts to

keep harmful things away. The theory argues that there are predispositions in human psychology as to whether like or dislike a smell. These predispositions are encoded in human genes as an evolutionary legacy, it says. The physical repulsion towards the odour of rotten egg is such a revolutionary legacy warning against eating that. (Schmidt and Beauchamp 1988, p1136)

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2.

Tabula rasa or learning paradigm says human Brain is empty at the state of birth as the

word tabula rasa, which means blank state indicates. Odour likes and dislikes are formed through experiences only. Smell associated with good experiences will be registered as good smell and those of bad experiences will be rated as bad, argues the theory. This theory backed with a number of experimental evidences fails to explain the predispositions.

(Damhuis, 2006, p4) Both these theories are experimentally proved. Even though they are contradictory, they can co-exist. It is sure that both culture as well as experience influences one’s olfactory likes and dislikes. Indian’s association of the smell of cow dung with divinity in contrast to the westerner’s repulsion towards the same can be considered as an example of this coexistence. This repulsion or tolerance is environmental as well as cultural.

Odours influence both Intrapersonal and Interpersonal levels of communication. They can evoke intense emotions and memories and thus can control thoughts. There was a belief among the tribes of Africa that connects smell with dreams. A piece of ginger kept under the bed will show the future through dreams, they say. (Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003, p155) Through olfaction, individuals interact with interiors as opposed to facades, as they do through vision alone. Further, aromas do not convey direct structural information about the shape, form, and discreteness of entities and, thus, confound the seemingly foundational idea of a “thing” or “object” as a bounded, apparent entity. (Harris, 2007, p7) Anthropologists and psychologists were curious about the ways in which odours play with human psyche. Freud discusses a case study of a woman who was left with a unique state of ‘subjective sensation of smell’ followed by a trauma.( Freud, 1912, p14-27) She had lost all perception of smell and was almost constantly bothered by one or two sensations of smell, which was associated with the situation, lead to trauma. Out of all the sensory perceptions of that scene, the perception of smell was selected as the symbol by her brain.

This shows a sensory bias in that person towards olfaction and how much influential it is in intrapersonal levels of communication.

While in the case of Interpersonal communication, odours rarely act as a sharp communication signal, in the modern society. However, ethnographic studies among tribal cultures explain how it can still be a powerful channel of communication. As in the case of animals, these tribal people use smell as a signal to hunt there prey. Their belief systems suggest that the food one eats can change his body odour. And they manipulate their body odour by controlling their food, which they think will deceive their prey (Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003, p134).

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This sharp sense to smell is not completely lost for civilised man. There was a commonly held belief among historians and military officials of the Vietnam War that American smell had betrayed their positions. Adam Flynn suggests the importance of smell in tracking and being tracked. American military command urged soldiers to treat patrols “just like hunting deer” and minimise their use of deodorant and aftershave, while army doctors noted a pattern of front-line refusal to wear mosquito repellent for tactical reasons. ( Flynn, 2011). To recount this theory he quotes one of the military records: After six days in the jungle, the combination of stale sweat and plain old body odour made us all stink. But the smell could actually be an advantage. Your diet gave you a distinct aroma. The gooks smelled like rotten fish. We had been eating Vietnamese indigenous rations for the past two weeks, just to pick up their smell. If any trail watchers got downwind from our team, they would just think we were another VC unit.’

(Recondo: LRRPs in the 101st Airborne Larry Chambers, New York: Ivy Books, 1992) The role of the sense of smell is vital in personnel relations also. There are experimental evidences to prove that we can identify things used by our dear ones. Children identify their mothers with smell. Smell in the context affect thoughts and there by influence every bit of our communication, either in a positive or negative manner. Often, we are not aware of the subtle smell in the contexts.

Odour played a significant role in the social categorisations too. Colour formed class hierarchies and apartheid and odour variations derived through different life styles helped this compartmentalisation to prevail. George Orwell describes the reason for class apartheid in west: “Here you come to the real secret of class distinctions in the West– the real reason why a European of bourgeois upbringing, even when he calls himself a Communist, cannot without a hard effort think of a working man as his equal. It is summed up in four frightful words, which people nowadays are chary of uttering, but which were bandied about quite freely in my childhood. The words were: The lower classes smell.”(Orwell, 1937, p116) Olfaction functions as a social channel employed by individuals in many ways, including the judgment of others. It has the potential to be employed in the stereotyping of others based upon the expected and presumed. Categorisation is not predicated on the visual alone (e.g., skin color, clothing, and weight), it also transpires via the olfaction as well, arising from an individual’s expectations of others and their smell. Thus, an individual’s

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perception and characterisation of odours may been seen as a sort of moral labeling, and as the above as well as other similar examples support, such labeling of class, ethnic, and other groups are accompanied by very real social squealae. (Harris, 2007, p90, 91) Odours not only compartmentalise, they can unite people in many contexts. The burning of incense in Catholic churches is an example of a ritual where group identification occurs through smell. Here, the odour of incense itself has indeed become invested with liturgical connotations. Obviously, the symbolic meaning of smell extends well beyond the religious sphere. It can draw cultural boundaries, or create social distance; it can be a warning signal, a status symbol, an impression management technique, or even a sign of protest (Moeran, 2005, p97).

Classifications of Odours The act of smelling is strictly a subjective experience, thus odours do not possess common names in languages. Instead, we use certain categories to identify odours. These categories can be certain actions or words with intense odour by nature. Examples are fishy, flowery, fruity and degrading etc. We use the word fishy not only to denote fish or similar aquatic organisms. Things with a flowery smell need not be flowers. Even a new shoe can have a degrading smell. This means odours have associative memory. We connect every new odour with the one registered in our frame of references. These associations represented in literature made a common meaning that could be used to symbolise odours.

Still, odours are nameless, and are mediated though associations only.

There are classifications of odour such as foul and fragrant, dirty and clean etc. These classifications with elastic overlapping boundaries vary with culture and context. Proposing an olfactory classification model Marcello Aspria suggests: [‌] the diametrical opposition between sameness and otherness, integrated and marginalised, desirable and undesirable can be rendered by the olfactory contrast between foul and fragrant. This contrast is not static or universal; although it may be true that some odours are liked or disliked by people of all cultures, foul and fragrant must be understood and analysed within their cultural context – just like the absence of smell can be perceived as pleasant or disturbing, depending on the specific social setting or environment.

(Aspria, 2008, p4)

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The diagram implies an opposition between 'clean' (B, D) and 'dirty' (A, C), as well as between the 'natural' (A, B) and 'artificial' (C, D) realm. Both axes represent social contrasts: what is dirty or clean, foul or fragrant is as much a reflection of moral values as the opposition between virtue and vice. Hence, there is the differentiation between 'deodorized' and 'sterile' around the center of the diagram, the latter being defined as the 'artificial' counter to the former. Examples in each quadrant represent, i.

The public dimension of the smell

ii.

The body

iii.

Definitions of femininity

Figure1: Olfactory classifications in contemporary Western societies proposed by Marcello Aspria This classification is insufficient to explain the origin of odour preferences and role of culture and background in it. Examples in this diagram show clear personnel bias too. For example, mountain smell need not be a pleasant smell for everyone. It is difficult to draw a line between pleasant and unpleasant as they may vary with cultures. In addition to that,

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odours can have different layers of meaning under different contexts, so that same examples may be repeated in different quadrants. Bodily cleanliness can be both natural as well as artificial and mountain smell can be both pleasant as well as unpleasant.

Still we have to have a structuralist approach for an empirical study in order keep it focused. The two-dimensional diagram can play an important guiding role in olfactory research design: it helps in making the elusive more tangible, and forces the researcher to think in binary oppositions, stereotypes, stratifications, and hierarchies. This is, at the same time, a major downside to the structuralist approach: if we are bound to predetermined categorisations,

we

risk

being

lead

into

essentialisations,

oversimplifications

or

misrepresentations of social reality. Moreover, these categorisations are limited by the paucity of our olfactory vocabulary. (Aspria, 2008, p10). We focus on the fourth quadrant of this classification, artificial pleasant odours, assuming that perfumes covers major area of this.

Cultural History of Perfumes Marshal McLuhan classifies media as ‘Hot’ and ‘Cold’. Hot Medium is one that intensifies that extends one single sense in high definition and cool medium is one of low definition. On the other hand, hot media do not leave so much to be filled and completed by the audience. And Hot media are therefore low in participation and cool media are high in participation or completion by the audience (Mcluhan, 1975, p22). Likewise, natural odours may be treated as cool medium which demands more participation from the audience while perfumes can be hot medium that extends olfactory sense in high definition. Culturally there was a huge difference between Eastern and Western civilisations in use and perception of these media.

Our knowledge about the role of scent in antiquity is formed through inference from ancient writings. Greek and Roman writings give the picture of a rich olfactory tradition in west, which was highly influenced by ancient Middle East, especially Egyptians.

Scents were available in a variety of forms: as toilet waters or oils, as dry powders, in thick unguents, or as incense. Whereas when we think of perfumes today, we inevitably imagine them as liquids, an inhabitant of the ancient world would be just as likely to enjoy perfume in the form of a thick ointment, to be smeared liberally on the body, or a fragrant smoke, infusing the air with its odour. Our own English word ‘perfume’, in fact, literally means ‘to smoke through’, indicating the importance this method of imparting fragrance had for our ancestors. (Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003, p16)

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Perfuming was a social occupation in ancient civilisations. Writings on their feasts, weddings, public entertainments, battles and even funerals have rich descriptions of perfumes. Perfuming was an important element in their culture. They synthesised perfumes and this was treated as an art in ancient Europe. (Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003,p13-48 ) During the medieval ages, Christianity came to power and the Church leaders considered the personal use of perfumes as a frivolous luxury tending to debauchery. While much of the art and artifice of scent disappeared with the fall of the Roman Empire, perfumes were too embedded in the ancient way of life. Therefore, Christianity gradually incorporated and sublimated many traditional olfactory practices and beliefs. Thus by the sixth century, incense, as a symbol of prayer, had become an acceptable part of Christian ritual. Fragrant flowers and odours, in turn, figured in many Christian legends, serving as symbols of virtue or miraculous signs of grace (Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003, p50,51) The age of industrial revolution was not only of more production but also of more amounts of organic wastes. In eighteenth century writings cities were always depicted with a an ‘air poisoned by thousand putrid vapors, among butchers’ shops, cemeteries, hospitals, drains, streams of urine, heaps of excrement, dyers’, tanners’, curriers’ stalls.(Louis Sebastian on Paris).

Until the Industrial Revolution, bad odours were generated primarily by organic waste and, while unpleasant, they tended to be accepted as a natural part of the cycle of life. As country folk knew, odoriferous manure made for plentiful harvests. As for the industrial waste which came later, ordinary people had no control over it and factory owners no wish to invest in reforms.( Classen, Hows and Synnott, 2003,p56) Along with the growth of industrial malodors, another industry has been growing to a billion dollar business- the perfume industry. It nourished the hatred towards malodors and even the natural body odours became intolerable.

But, the Indian cultural history of perfumes is little different. Western thinkers were mainly concerned with understanding the temporal world, but the pre occupation of Indian thinkers was with the transcend world. Eastern especially Indian Schools of philosophy, focused on the holistic approach of life. The body was given least importance and thus the body odour too. Thus compared to western tradition perfumes were subtle in Indian culture.

Indian concept of five elements is related to five senses. The five elements were thought of as the medium of sense expressions- earth for smell, air for feeling, fire for vision water of taste and ether (aksha) of sound.

Ancient Indians paid attention to smell, in fact

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not only to smell but to all senses, and that was a spiritual occupation for them. Traces of this culture that appreciate natural odours can be still found in Indian culture. . Analysing the sense bias in Indian culture Classen and Howes wrote: Perhaps the most splendid example of stimulating all the senses to the same extent at the same time is provided by the traditional Indian courts: ‘The fulfillment of every sense was considered an art in the Indian courts. Scents were blended to suit moods and seasons and were believed to complement the colour of clothing’ – thus, musk was worn with winter silks; vetiver was associated with lemon scent, and gossamer went with summer garments’. The complex combinatorics of emotions, seasons, and sensations played out daily in these courts has no western equivalent. (Howes and Classen,) Rother in 1890 described the greeting of the hill people from Khyoungtha in India: Their mode of kissing is strange; instead of pressing lip to lip they apply the mouth and mose to the cheek, and give a strong inhalation. In their language they do not say ‘Give me a kiss’ but they say ‘Smell me’.

It will be significant to go through the evolution of this smell culture that appreciated natural body odour and treated it as a powerful signal of communication.

The Indus civilisation left only archeological evidences for their existence. There were only few sculptures and structures to understand their ways of living. Their writings are not yet decoded. Anyhow, from the available details, this civilisation of 2500-3000 BC, lead a simple life and they were not even paid attention to dress and ornaments. Nevertheless, they were aware of hygiene.

Mohenjo-daro had impeccable sanitation arrangements, and was probably the cleanest city in the world. Its streets were flanked by covered brick sewage channels, which were provided at intervals with manhole covers to clean them. […] equal care was taken for the disposal of household garbage, which was conveyed through chutes built into the walls of houses into brick bins outside, from where it was presumably cleared by municipal sanitation workers. (Eraly, 2004, p22) There might have been an act of perfuming, but more than that the ancient Indus civilisation paid attention to cleanliness, shows this writings. A curious structure of obviously religious nature in the Mohenjo-daro was the Great bath, a pool in a cloistered courtyard, somewhat like the Hindu temple tanks of later times. This Great Pool also shows a possible act of perfuming which is social as well as possibly religious.

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Coming to the Vedic period, we could find a number of examples of the use of perfumes in ritual as well as social aspects. In Vedic period, people were little more luxurious in India. On ceremonial occupations, they used special dresses and jewellery.

Though their dress was simple, Vedic Indians, both men and women, were loaded with jewellery-necklets, earrings, anklets, bracelets and rings, all preferably of gold- and even the warrior rode in to battle heavily bejeweled. Amulets were worn for good luck. People were fond of perfumes and flower Garlands, and boys and girls are described in Vedas as wearing lotus garlands and playing on swings. [‌] Aryans paid particular attention to grooming their hair. Woman, according to Atharva Veda, braided their hair in three different styles, and decorated it with flowers. (Eraly, 2004, p121, 122) Nothing natural was considered as foul in the Indian tradition. They kept horses and castles in their houses. There was a ritual to begin with the construction of houses, at which the Atharva Vedic priest recited: Right here do though, O house, stand firmly, Full of horses, full of cattle, Full of abundance, Full of sap, full of ghee, full of milk‌ (Eraly, 2004 p199) It was in recent years after the colonialism and the ongoing neocolonialism the smell of cow dung and urine became repulsive in collective consciousness of India.

Smell had a role in the rituals also. Abraham Eraly, a famous Indian historian describes a Vedic rite: For the rite, the sacrificial animal was led to a stake fixed on a consecrated ground spread with sacred grass and adorned with garlands and other decorations.

There it was tied securely, anointed with ghee, and ceremonially slaughtered. The omentum of the animal was first offered to the gods on fire. The sweet smell of the roasted omentum was considered irresistible to Vedic gods.( Eraly , 2004,p137) The pleasant smell in the above description is those of sacred grass, garlands and ghee. The description does not evoke feelings of strong scents as in the case of western rituals. Still the role of odours is prevalent.

In the normal Vedic funeral rites, the corpse was first washed and anointed, his hair, beard and nails trimmed and lay on the ground freshly daubed with cow dung. [‌]

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the omentum of the cow was placed on the face of the corpse, its kidney in his hand and the whole body is covered with its skin. (Eraly , 2004,p150) This description is in quite contrast with the present practice of funeral rites in India.

Today we fill the air with different kinds of perfumes, cinnamon, agarbathis etc. Our present atmosphere of funeral is a battleground of foul and the fragrant. In Vedic period, the odour of cremation was not considered as foul. Even though it was, the Vedic Indians were not bothered to cover it. Instead, they burned a cow along with the corpse.

For ancient philosophers the human body was foul smelling. ‘Foul smelling and insubstantial is the body, a mere agglomeration of skin, bones, sinews, marrow, flesh, semen, blood, mucus, tears, rheum, urine, faeces, bile and phlegm- what is the good in enjoying desires in such a body?’- asks King Brihadratha in Maitri Upanishad. They were also aware that perfuming does not cure dirtiness of the body. Moreover, that was the major difference between East and West.

Post Vedic literatures like, Kumarasambhava by Kalidasa, Kamasutra, Arthasasthra and Agnipurana, there are writings on the scientific perfumery. Aromatic ingredients were leaves, flowers, fruits, barks, woods, roots, exudations from plants and organic products like musk, lac and civet. (Krishnamurthy, 1987, p76) Even though Kings, Merchants and Rich landlords used perfumes, our religious customs rarely gave priority to perfumes in ancient and medieval ages as it is now.

After visiting the Pagoda of Madhura, W. Urbick wrote in 1885: “The favorite idols are plastered with oil and red ochre; and there is a general greasiness about the precincts by no means fragrant or cleanly. “(Urbick, 1985, p55) As we know, today our religious centers are filled with rich fragrance. Flowers are no more the only agents of fragrance. We use rose water, cinnamon and perfumed oils and a number of artificial and natural scents in places of worship. Today the status of no odour is treated as repulsive at least in Shrines.

Smell was a key element of the social structuring in India as in the case of western cultures. Mahabharatha , Indian epic written in the Vedic period, depicts contains a sub-story of a fisherwoman named Malsyaganghi (one with fishy odour). As her name indicates, she smelled fishy until a Brahmin- Parasaran- fell in love with her. After their mate, she was blessed with sweet lotus smell and renamed as Sathyavathi. Later on, a King marries her as he was attracted to her body odour. The story indicates the ways in which odour determined

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the exclusivity of a caste and how love and sensuality could break this exclusivity maintained through endogamous marriages and taboos.

Taboos related to castes and its olfactory associations are still prevail in Indian society.

The Hindu writes on frequent deaths of sewage workers across the country: The four men, all Dalits, were not provided with safety gear. They entered the sewer with only a handkerchief for protection. They were hit by the foul-smelling methane gas and delayed in their escape by the thick muck that lines the sewer. […]Sewerage workers, traditionally Valmiki Dalits, employed by civic bodies such as the Water Board, Public Works Department (PWD), Municipal Corporations, have, for generations, relentlessly toiled, continually risking their health and life to ensure upkeep of the sewerage system. But save for hurt, exploitation and untouchability, they have received little in return. Despite proactive orders of the Gujarat High Court (2006) and Madras High Court (2008), the implementation of the directives remains unrealised, in the wake of frequent deaths.

(The Hindu, 29th July 2013) Still, Dalits are doing stinky jobs, not because of the caste system today, but because of the class structure created through caste systems of past.

Keralites, like many other societies in pre-colonial India, had been used natural scents, such as flowers of Ilanji and Kaita to keep their cloths perfumed. These flowers have subtle pleasant odours. But Western writings about colonial India often described Indians as stinky.

When liberated, the Indian market was well set for the perfume industry to exploit our inferiority complex. Thus, olfactory consumerism grew in India as in west.

Olfactory Consumerism Consumerism is characterised by man’s desire to buy things for their style rather than for their function. Advertisers keep on saying that we are imperfects in our original status and better people around are watching us. Therefore, in order to impress them we buy things that we believe will improve our image.

This phenomenon of image marketing is more apparent in the advertising of deodorants and fragrant than any other products. The control of body odour is a major preoccupation of Westerners, who have made the deodorant and toiletry industry into a billion dollar business. Although natural body odour is stigmatised and suppressed, artificial body odour—in the form of perfumes and colognes—is condoned and even celebrated. Thus, while

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deodorants strip the body of its natural olfactory signs, perfumes invest it with a new, ‘ideal’ olfactory identity. The ‘dream merchants’ of the perfume industry who assure consumers that all good things come to those with the right scent promote these ideal identities. (Classen, Howes and Synnott, 2003, p180) This olfactory consumerism is not only limited to toiletry products. It is their in a wide variety of products ranging from detergents to fast foods. However, for advertisers body odour is the perfect subject for a marketing campaign on nameless fears.

Studying different advertisements on this Classen, Howes and Synnott observe: Individuals are unaware of their own smell, it cannot be ‘seen’ (as one’s visual appearance can) in a mirror, and politeness decrees that it should not be broached by ‘even your closest friends’. It is only through the ad, which speaks with the voice of an ‘objective’ third party, that one can be openly warned of the dangers of body odour.

(Classen, Howes and Synnott, 2003, p192) Advertisers worked on a number of such fears- stinking mouth, sweat, dirty homes, and malodor in car interiors. In addition, this was proved an effective strategy in creating market.

The widespread consensus about the offensive quality of natural body odours is a capitalist tendency. Ruth Winter observes: "The self-consciousness about our own and others' body odour is fed constantly today by television, newspaper, and magazine advertisements. We are literally told that we stink our mouths, our armpits, and our genitals need special products to make them and us socially acceptable. As a result of this obsession, we have done our best to repress smell in our world. Billions and billions of dollars worth of vented bathrooms, household and body deodorants, perfumes and other anti-smell devices have been developed (and become integral parts of our lives)."( MacPhee,1992, p89) There have been advertisements showing that one’s appearance and impression created though it will fight for him and bring him success. Appearance includes the body odour too. Such advertisements repeatedly said, natural body odours are repulsive, intolerable and anti-social.

Deodorants and Perfumes were the projected solutions. Deodorants made one socially acceptable by killing his natural body odours and Perfumes were attributed with ability to present one as attractive, efficient and successful irrespective of his actual abilities as a human being. Deodorization and perfuming became an act of personality development from a social occupation.

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Today perfume advertisements uses terms similar to sensuality, enchantment and mystery, directed to a single element of life. Often the bottle is given more important than the fragrant inside. Perfumes now reflect a social status too. Many of us can distinguish between the intense smell of a low class perfume and the classy smell of a branded one. Companies inject pride among its users to create brand loyalty and to keep their market safe.

As the subcultures exploded to globalisation, perfuming became a part of Indian lifestyle too. This must be an anticipated reaction of an oppressed community to be like the oppressor. Moreover, Westerners frequently described Indians as stinky in their writings as they did to any other culture unfamiliar to them. Anyhow, Western perfume industry created a good market in India, during the colonial as well as postcolonial ages.

Now, in India also, artificial pleasant odours are used to sell a number of products- from detergents to sanitary napkins. There must be a consumer psychology that makes people buy such products only because of their fragrance even though their actual function is not perfuming. Public bias towards artificial pleasant odours demands a discussion on the notions attributed to artificial pleasant odours.

Notions of Artificial Pleasant Odours In antiquity, pleasant odours were thought to be divine and were highly associated with rituals. In medieval period, pleasant odours were associated with hygiene.

During the scourge of the Plague of the Black Death, which swept across Europe in the fourteenth and fifteenth centauries, vast quantities of perfumes, scented herbs, pot pourri of dried petals and fragrant woods were sniffed, daubed, crushed, strewn, sprinkled and burned in a vein attempt to exclude the plague from the air and so to keep it away from the body.

(Stoddart, 1990,p1) During that period it was believed that bad odour causes diseases. The word malaria itself stood for bad air (mal- aria). And the only precaution doctors have was pleasant odour.

They urged people to burn pines in every corner of the city. Some threw sulfur to it and filled the atmosphere with yellow fumes.

It was after the germ theory, which suggested that it is not the air but the germs in it caused diseases, concepts of cleanliness and hygiene changed. Still, perception of natural unpleasant odours including that of sweat is associated with filthiness and insanity. And because of this, perfumed bodies are easily associated with cleanliness.

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By then perfumes became an inevitable part of socialisation. They helped people to fitin to groups. They also made them standout in functions. Pleasant odours were associated with personality and attractiveness.

Perfumes soon started creating identities. Consumerism and growing competition in this field gave people a number of choices to replace their stinking body odour perfumes became one’s identity.

When some class is said to have foul odour, they come to believe it, says Classen, Howes and Synnott, quoting a study conducted by J. Dollard on Caste and Class a Southern Town of New York. Many blacks, repelled by their olfactory image, turned to perfumes and deodorants. Their use of these products, of course, could do little to dispel a prejudice, which was fundamentally cultural in nature and not physical. Any perfumes used by blacks would simply tend to emphasize their status as ‘smelly’, just as the perfumes used by the working classes in England were said to be an indication of their ‘coarse’ tastes. (Classen, Howes and Synnott, 2004, p 168,) Every one wanted to associate themselves with a pleasant odour, rather than with their natural stench of sweat. They were also attempting to say that, they do not belong to a working class who does not have power. In contemporary urban life, the strong man is not the sweaty labourer, but a clean de-odorized businessperson or professional. We are supposed to work hard, yet smell like we are not working at all. In order to maintain the facade that one has high status and is living the good life, one must eliminate the traces of perspiration odour associated with physical labor. (MacPhee, 1992, p92 ) Advertisers worked on this strategy of power also. They attributed meanings of social status with their brand. Thus, every one wanted to smell a brand rather than a nameless sweetness. Branded scents were thought to be more powerful in creating images.

Most widely used adverting appeal in marketing perfumes is sex and sensuality.

Advertisers attribute power to attract opposite sex on artificial pleasant odours.

As an ode to these notions, some consider artificial pleasant smell as a sign of diplomacy, tactics and plastic nature. They find natural odours as pure, genuine and lively.

This group believes that perfuming do not enhance communication, instead this silence an otherwise powerful channel of communication by killing original odours.

Modernity has waged a “total war against smells,” wrote the sociologist Zygmunt Bauman; “Western culture . . . is founded on a vast deodorization project,” declared Alain

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Corbin. (Jenner,2011, p338 ). These sociologists suggest that modernity has lost its sensitivity to scents and tolerance towards stenches.

Classen argues that olfactory classifications stem from differentiating structures of class, race, and gender: "Odours are symbolically employed by many cultures to serve as identifying marks of different classes of beings. [...] As a rule, the dominant group in a society ascribes to itself a pleasant or neutral smell within this system of olfactory classification".

(Classen, 1993, p101-102) Notions of artificial pleasant smell varied with use of perfumes. The historiography of personal hygiene amplifies this tale of deodorization. During antiquity Westerners practiced dry forms hygiene in which the body was cleansed and sweat removed by rubbing the skin with aromatic oils and perfumes. Studies of Europe and North America have shown that from the late eighteenth century, and particularly from the mid-nineteenth, this practice changed to novel regimes of regular bathing. During the same period, the middle and upper classes increasingly distanced themselves from the stink of the unwashed lower orders. Over the course of the twentieth century, this drives to bathe, shower, and deodorize continued and spread through society. Soaps, deodorants, and other hygiene products were at the forefront of mass consumer culture, promoted by energetic education and advertising campaigns that stigmatised and sought to eradicate bodily odours. By the 1960s, anthropologists could argue that “the extensive use of deodorants and the suppression of odour in public places” had made America “a land of olfactory blandness.”

An “olfactory revolution,” it seems, had

occurred; modern society had become deodorized (Jenner,2011, p339). This made perfumes commodities invested with pride, attractiveness, power and anything suit with advertiser’s logic.

On the other hand, in India, the practices of personnel hygiene from antiquity itself were related to water, one of the five elements. Perfumes were never attributed with hygienic notions but used by rich and powerful as a cosmetic. Lower castes were associated with foul odours, not because of their perfumery practices, but because of their occupations. In other words, stinky jobs were assigned to lower castes. In that sense, Indian culture related pleasant odours to Caste system and thus to Pride and Power. In post colonial India, this notion strengthened because of western influence. And those influenced by western culture, were praised among common people as for them Whites, or Westerners denoted power.

Knowingly or unknowingly, people build their social world through such associations.

They actively construct meanings through communication. Social significance of smell is also portrayed through the act of communication. Hence, it will be significant to analyse notions of

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artificial pleasant odours in present Indian societies and thus this study is proposed. Our perceptions on smell may be influenced by western lines of thought because of the extensive exposure to their culture and lifestyle though media. Use of deodorants could be the result of one such influence. It will be relevant to analyse the extent of this influence of deodorants in our communication.

Meanings attributed to pleasant odours can influence and shape the preconceptions related to Place or People. The study attempts to analyse the nature of meanings attributed to artificial pleasant odours by people and its role in formulation of preconceptions in interpersonal communication.

Objectives The general objective of the study is to analyse the perception of artificial pleasant odours and its influence among people.

Specific objectives are: ďƒ˜

To analyse the nature of meanings attributed to artificial pleasant odours

ďƒ˜

To analyse whether the presence of artificial pleasant odours influences preconceptions in inter-personal communication

ďƒ˜

To verify whether there is any variation in the perception of artificial pleasant odours based on age and gender.

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References 1. Aspria,M., 2008: Cosmologies, Structuralism, and the Sociology of Smell, ScentedPages.com 2. Classen,C., 1993: Worlds of Sense: Exploring the Senses in History and Across Cultures, London: Routledge

3. Classen,C.and Hows,D, 2013 : Doing sensory Anthropology, www.sensorystudies.org 4. Classen,C., Hows,D Synnott,A., 2003: Aroma- the cultural History of Smell, Taylor & Francis e-Library 5. Damhuis,C., 2006: There is more than meets the nose: multidimensionality of odor preferences, A Sense of Smell Institute White Paper 6. Darwin,C., 1871: The Descent of Man, e-book published by www.andrew.cmu.edu 7. Doty,R.L. 1981: Olfactory communication in humans, Chemical Senses Volume 6 Number 4, p351-376 8. Eraly, A., 2004: Eraly Araham, Gem in the lotus, seeding of Indian civilisation, India: Penguin Books, 2004.

9. Flynn,A., 2011: Under the Iron Snout: A First Take on Olfactory Imperialism, www.thestate.ae 10. Freud,S., 1912: Selected Papers on Hysteria and Other Psychoneuroses, Translated by A. A. Brill, New York: The Journal Of Nervous and Mental Disease Publishing Company, New York: Bartleby.Com, 2010 11. Harris,R.G., 2007: Social Emanations: Toward Sociology of Human Olfaction, PhD Thesis, University of North Texas 12. Jenner,M.S., 2011: Follow Your Nose? Smell, Smelling, and Their Histories, American Historical Review , April 2011, p335-351 13. Krishnamurthy,R., 1987: Perfumery in ancient India, Indian Journal of History of Science 14. MacPhee,M., 1992: Deodorized culture: anthropology of smell in America, Arizona Anthropologist 8:89-102, University of Arizona 15. McLuhan,M., 1975: Understanding Media, Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd, London 16. Moeran, B., 2005: Japanese Fragrance Descriptives and Gender Constructions: Preliminary Steps towards Anthropology of Olfaction, SENSES Vol. 18, No. 1 , pp. 97-123 17. Orwell,G., 1937: The Road to Wigan Pier, Autobiography of George Orwell, e-book styled by Limpid soft

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18. Schmidt, H.J. & Beauchamp, G.K.,1988: Adult-like Odor Preferences and Aversions in threeyear-old Children, Child Development, 59: 1136-1143 19. Stoddart,M., 1990: The Scented Ape: The Biology and Culture of Human Odour, Cambridge University Press 20. Urbick,W., 1985: India 100 years ago,

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2 Review of Literature

It was by the end of 20 th centaury sociology

of

olfaction

gained

researcher’s

attention as a significant area to be explored.

Studies in olfaction developed or are developing in multiple directions. The first and foremost area is the science of the sense of smell.

Followed by the biologists psychologists started discussing the ability of smell to evoke certain emotions. Finally, there is sociology of olfaction that describes the smell relations and notions in the society. The sociological and psychological studies on smell treat olfaction as a significant channel

of

communication.

These

studies

analysed the potential of the channel and its influence on individuals and the society.

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Studies on communication through smell It has been a major area of olfactory studies. In fact, it started in the 70s itself. The primary question of that time was whether smell can be an effective communication channel for man as in the case of other animals. Several behavioral studies have sought to establish whether auxiliary odors can provide information to humans regarding gender identity and whether males and females differentially prefer such odors.

Russell in 1976 conducted an experiment among 13 women and 16 men. They were asked to wear T-shirts for 24 hours without bathing or using deodorants. The armpit regions of these shirts were then presented to subjects in a triangle odour test where the subject's own Tshirt, a strange male's T-shirt, and a strange female's T-shirt were used as stimuli. Each participant was asked to first identify his or her own odor, and then to report which of the two remaining odors came from a male. Nine of the 13 females and 13 of the 16 males performed both of these tasks correctly, suggesting to Russell that "at least the rudimentary communications of sexual discrimination and individual identification can be made on the basis of olfactory cues."

(Russell: 1976) Sexual discrimination based on olfactory cues was further researched to analyse its psychological aspects. In a set of experimental studies, conducted by Doty R.L. in 1978, the relation between intensity of odour and sexual identification was analysed. In the first of these studies, a set of auxiliary odors from nine males (collected on gauze pads that had been taped in the armpits for approximately 18 h) and a blank control pad were presented to 10 male and 10 female judges in sniff bottles. They were asked to identify the sex from which each of the odour come from. Following this task, the subjects gave magnitude estimates of the relative intensity and pleasantness of the stimuli. In the second study, a set of nine female odors and a blank control were presented under identical conditions. In the third study a set of five male odors, four female odors, and a blank control were similarly presented. The results of these studies confirmed out that the stronger (and more unpleasant) the auxiliary odor, the more likely it was to be assigned to a male gender category, regardless of the true sex of its donor. These results suggest that the ability of humans to "detect" gender from auxiliary odors may depend upon quantitative, rather than qualitative, aspects of the odors, and that strong odors are judged as having come from males and weak odors as having come from females, regardless of the true sex of the odour donor. (Doty:1978) In a review of studies related to the ability of Homo sapiens to communicate basic nonspecific biologic information via body odors, R.L. Doty suggests that humans, like many other Mammals, have the potential for communicating basic biologic information via the smell medium.

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In addition to evaluating reports that humans can detect individuality, gender, and reproductive state from olfactory cues, studies claiming that odors are involved in producing menstrual synchrony and other phenomena are also critically examined in this review. Anatomically, humans possess a variety of secretary and excretory systems which potentially provide a rich substrate for olfactory communication, although odors from only a few of these sources have received experimental attention. Behaviorally, humans can establish gender, at least probabilistically, from breath, auxiliary and hand odors, although the degree to which such determinations depend upon quantitative factors is not known. Human infants appear to be able to detect odors from their mother's breast, and exhibit a preference for odors from their own mother to those from a strange mother. Similar in general respects to results from some animal studies, fluctuations in the intensity and pleasantness of vaginal odors have been noted during the menstrual cycle, as have fluctuations in perceptual sensitivity to several types of odorants.

(Doty:1981) These initial studies attempted to analyse the nature human sense to smell and compared it with other mammals and they were to a great extend biological studies in nature, even though they adopted sociological research methodologies.

Further studies in this area

focused on variations in perception with age, gender and qualities of the olfactory signal.

Smell identification ability was measured in 1955 persons ranging in age from 5 to 99 years based on a rapidly administered microencapsulated test of olfactory function.

On the average, women outperformed men at all ages, and nonsmokers outperformed smokers.

Peak performance occurred in the third through fifth decades and declined markedly after the seventh. More than half of those 65 to 80 years old evidenced major olfactory impairment. After 80 years more than three quarters evidenced major impairment. Given these findings it is not surprising that many elderly persons complain that food lacks flavor and that the elderly account for a disproportionate number of accidental gas poisoning cases each year.( Doty:1984) The process of odour perception is considered as a classic information-processing task in the study conducted by Pamela Dalton in 1996. Perception is assumed to be guided by both data-driven (sensory) process and concept-driven (non-sensory) processes. Data-driven or 'bottom-up' processing relies almost exclusively on the 'data' or the information presented in the stimulus to guide perception. In contrast, concept-driven or 'top-down' processing relies heavily on information in memory, expectations and even the perceiver's affective or emotional state to guide perception. The study explored the role of 'top-down' processing on perceived odour intensity. The primary goal of the research was to determine whether a purely cognitive factor, such as information concerning the perceived health risk from exposure to an ambient odor, could influence the perceived odour intensity. In this experimental analysis, sixty individuals were

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selected and divided in to two groups and are provided with nine odors. One group was asked to rank these odours from most healthy to least healthy and they were told that the purpose of the study is to gather information on odors that could be added to products to reinforce the perception of healthiness. The second group was asked to rank the same set of odours from most to least hazardous in order to gather information on odours could be added to dangerous chemicals to reinforce the perception of hazard. The results showed that the pre- exposure characteristic of the odorant could alter the evaluation of odours.

In another experiment, researchers asked subjects to rate the intensity a particular ambient odour in order to analyse whether there is any change in perception based on the information about the odorant that subjects received prior to exposure. 45 subjects were randomly assigned to one of three groups, each of which received different characterizing information or bias about the nature and consequence of exposure to the odorant. The positive group was told they would be exposed to a natural extract from balsam trees that was often used in aromatherapy and had been reported to have positive effects on mood and health. In contrast, the negative group was told they would be exposed to an industrial solvent which, following longterm exposures, had been reported to cause problems with health and cognitive functioning. The neutral group (control) was told they would be exposed to a standard odorant that had been approved for olfactory research. The most important observation from this experiment was that the cognitive bias condition influenced judgments of threshold intensity but did not affect threshold sensitivity.

Both the studies present convincing evidence that the perceived intensity of odours can be influenced by factors that promote a cognitive or 'top-down' processing of odour information.

(Dalton:1996) In a study to examine the influences of age, gender, cognitive abilities, and personality styles on odour identification, a group of researchers of America mailed questionnaires comprised six scratch-and-sniff microencapsulated odorants to 606 participants and they were asked to scratch and sniff each odour panel and to answer a number of questions. The study indicated that both detection and identification of olfactory information were impaired with age. Gender had no effect on detection or identification. Hierarchical regressions revealed that proficiency in semantic memory, intensity perception, and personality style (i.e., neuroticism, impulsivity, and lack of assertiveness) were potent predictors for successful odour identification, even when individual variations in chronological age, sex, education, and global cognitive functioning were taken into account. . However, in contrast to odour identification, odour detection was unrelated to cognitive parameters and personality traits. Four potent factors for successful odour identification were identified: age, semantic memory aptitude, intensity perception, and personality style. The fact that proficiency in odour identification was unrelated to fluid intelligence, short-term memory, and

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episodic memory strengthens the notion that semantic memory (i.e., crystallized intelligence) and odour identification tap the same cognitive domain. (Larsson : 2000) In 2000, Pamela Dalton analysed the Psychological and behavioural characteristics of olfactory adaptation. Sensory adaptation allows organism to reach behavioral equilibrium with the ambient environment and respond primarily to changes in stimulation. Given its functional significance, it is not surprising that adaptation in the olfactory system exhibits many of the same characteristics as adaptation in other sensory systems, including vision. Repeated or prolonged exposure to an odorant typically lead to stimulus- specific decreases in olfactory sensitivity to that odorant, but sensitivity recovered over in the absence of further exposure. Psychophysical analysis showed that olfactory adaptation results in elevation in odour thresholds and in reduced responsiveness to supra-threshold stimulation. Further, the magnitude of the decrease and the time course of adaptation and recovery are depended on the concentration of the odour and on the duration of exposure. It is generally agreed that olfactory adaptation can occur at multiple levels in the olfactory system and can involve both peripheral (receptor level) and more central (post-receptor) components (Dalton: 2000) In 2001, a group of scientists of the University Of Utrecht and the Institue Europeen Des Sciences du Gout conducted a study on Implicit Learning and Implicit Memory for Odour Identification and Retention of Time. In this study, 152 subjects divided into eight groups were exposed to a room with low concentration of ether orange or lavender and to an odorless room.

Neither the subjects nor the experimenters were made aware of the presence of odour in the experimental conditions. Later they were asked to indicate how well each of 21 odour stimuli including the experimental and control odours, befitted each of 21 visual contexts, including the exposure rooms. At the end of this session, they rated the pleasantness and the familiarity of the odours and identified them by name. The results confirm the earlier finding that non-identifiers implicitly link odour and exposure room, whereas identifiers do not show such a link. It is suggested that episodic information is an essential constituent of olfactory memory and that its function is comparable to that of form and structure in visual and auditory memory systems. No significant gender differences in the familiarity ratings were found. As in the case of pleasantness, exposure had no significance in the familiarity of the odours. (Degel: 2001)

Studies on Olfactory likes and dislikes In 1990, Dr. Michael Stoddart combined biology and sociology of smell for the first time in his book, The Scented Ape: The Biology and Culture of Human Odour. He suggested the essentiality of being interdisciplinary to understand the social phenomenon called smell. He

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believed that zoology has something to offer to ethnography, just as the study of man’s cultures may help to resolve some zoological puzzles (Stoddart: 1990).

Nevertheless, these streams, biology and sociology, kept their exclusivity for a long time at least in the case of olfaction and still keeping it to a large extend. The initial sociological studies related to olfaction were focused on the olfactory likes and dislikes, and variations in it with culture and age and gender.

Such studies made the first move to frame certain common

theories on the evolution of olfactory likes and dislikes.

In 1992, Marybeth MacPhee conducted a historical analysis of deodorized culture in America. In her review, she discussed the social history of smell in America. Quoting a number of literatures, studies and advertisements of 19 th centaury, MacPhee describes the evolution of olfactory preferences among Americans. Cultural perceptions of smell are assessed according to Maiy Douglas's models. They are also related to American views of disease and social structure.

According to him, Prior to the association between odour and disease, stink was the norm and fashion even promoted the enhancement of body odour with perfume and oils based in excrement and animal secretions (musk, civet, ambergris) as a means to increase attractiveness.

By the end of 18th century, aromatherapy became popular in France as a medical prescription and the pleasant odours were associated with good health. These ideas were carried over to the 19th century also. The study concludes with a note on the popular American notion that ‘by nature we are offensive to each other’. (MacPhee: 1992) The study conducted by Saho Ayabe-Kanamura el al in 1998 analysed the perception of odour and previous experience with them. In this study, the responses of 40 Japanese and 44 age-matched German women to everyday odorants were compared. Subjects were presented with 18 stimuli in squeeze bottles and asked to rate them according to intensity, familiarity, pleasantness and edibility, to describe associations elicited by them and, if possible, to name them. One-third of the odorants were presumed to be familiar to the Japanese only, one-third to the Germans and one-third to both populations. Significant differences were found between the two populations on all measures. Better performance by the Japanese in providing appropriate descriptors for 'Japanese' odorants and by the Germans for 'European' odorants supported the pre-selection of stimuli as culture-typical. Particularly clear differences between the two populations were found in pleasantness ratings. In general, a positive relationship was found between pleasantness and Judgement of stimuli as edible, suggesting that culture-specific experiences—particularly of foods—may significantly influence odour perception. Somewhat unexpectedly, significant differences were also found between the two populations in intensity ratings for some odorants. These differences did not seem simply to be artifacts of the test

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situation and raise the possibility that experience may even influence such basic aspects of odour perception as stimulus intensity. (Ayabe-Kanamura : 1998) The study by Han-Seok Seo el al in 2011, aimed to determine whether there are regional influences on attitudes toward olfaction. 1082 participants aged 21–50 years from 4 different regions (Mexican, Korean, Czech, and German) were asked to rate general attitudes toward olfaction in everyday life. To examine affective attitudes to odors (i.e., pleasantness), participants were also asked to list 3 odors as being the most pleasant or unpleasant, respectively. Next, the mentioned odour names were attributed to 1 of 4 main categories: ‘‘Food & Drink,’’ ‘‘Social relationship,’’ ‘‘Nature,’’ and ‘‘Civilization’’ and the distribution of these categories was compared across regions. Mexicans were significantly different to the other regions in their general attitudes toward olfaction. In addition, in all regions, in comparison with men, women indicated a higher interest in the sense of smell. Moreover, a significant positive correlation was present between individuals’ self-rating of olfactory sensitivity and general attitudes toward olfaction. Finally, there were significant cross-regional differences in affective attitudes toward specific categories of odors. These results demonstrated that peoples’ attitudes toward olfaction can be affected by region. (Seo: 2011) These studies along with so many similar historical and ethnographic analyses suggested that odour preferences are purely culture driven. But another set of studies carried out in parallel to these studies focused on the genetic coding or inherent odour preferences.

Studies of young children have failed many times to demonstrate adult-like odour preferences in children less than 5 years old. This made the theory of inherent odour preferences difficult to prove. Hilary J. Schmidt and Gary K. Beauchamp experimentally proved for the first time that children could have Adult-like odour preferences. This study gave scientific backbone to the Evolutionary perspective of odour preferences, which is based on the predispositions in human psychology as to whether like or dislike a smell. A simple Experiment, embedded in a game was used to contrast 3-year-olds' and adults. Subjects were asked to smell 19 odorants, and if they liked the odour, they had to point to one puppet, but if they did not like the odour, they had to point to another one. Analyses revealed essentially the same pattern of preferences in both groups. In general, the odorant was a much better predictor of its hedonic quality than was the age of the subject. However, children and adults did differ in their ratings of some odors, and response patterns indicated that children might be more sensitive than adults to some odorants.

This study demanded a re-evaluation in the predominant view that hedonic re-actions to odors do not exist until between 5 and 7 years of age. (Schmidt and Beauchamp: 1998) Some studies clearly described the co-existence of these two theories. The study conducted by C. Chrea et al in 2003 to evaluated the effect of culture on the relationship between

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psychological dimensions underlying odour perception and odour categorization was one such analysis. In a first experiment, French, Vietnamese and American participants rated several perceptual dimensions of everyday odorants, and sorted these odorants on the basis of their similarity. Results showed that the three groups of participants differed in their perceptual judgments but agreed in categorizing the odors into four consensual groups (floral, sweet, bad, and nature). Three dimensions––pleasantness, edibility, cosmetic acceptability––discriminated these groups in the same way in the three countries. In a second experiment, the participants sorted only fruit and flower odors to evaluate whether a consensus emerges at a finer level.

Results showed that American, French and Vietnamese participants differed in their judgments for several perceptual dimensions. However, they shared some common general odour representation structured in a few categories, and used the same perceptual dimensions to categorize the odors, such as pleasantness, edibility and cosmetic acceptability. These findings seem to support the claim that some universal cognitive mechanisms might underlie the perception of the world. But, At a finer level, the consensus between cultures on odour representation stayed consistent only for two of the three groups of participants: the American and French participants’ representations. This result maybe due to differences in the function attributed to the odors. Indeed, American and French participants described clearly fruit odorants as candies and flower odorants as cosmetics or cleaning products, whereas Vietnamese participants did not use such descriptions. This may come from the fact that, as post-industrial cultures, French and American people are exposed to similar standardized odors from international trades, while Vietnamese people encounter more local aroma, which correspond to their own culture (Chrea: 2003).

Jan Havlíček and S. Craig Roberts, in their study conducted in 2012, further discuss the interaction between culturally and biologically evolved olfactory preferences. They say, biologically evolved preferences work in conjunction with the culturally evolve preferences. Such considerations have led to the idea that individuals might select perfumes, which in fact complement their own body odour. In their experimental study, they found that even if the same perfume interacts with individual body odours, then it would have positive effects in some individuals and negative effects in others. In another study, they found that an individual’s body odour would be judged more positively when blended with the wearer’s preferred perfume compared with one assigned by the experimenters. Thus, they concluded that people might choose perfumes in an individual fashion to complement their own body odour and it is more than just masking. (Havlíček and Roberts: 2012)

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Social Meanings of smell Some sociological studied extended themselves beyond olfactory likes and dislikes, treating smell as a social phenomenon. These studies analyses the notions of smell and their variations with culture, gender, age and time.

In a random survey conducted among 989 English-speaking individuals selected in Water Tower Place shopping mall in Chicago, Alan R. Hirsch analysed the relations of olfactory evoked recalls with age and gender. Survey results revealed the existence of olfactory evoked recall.

Eighty-six and eight tenths percent of those born after 1930 displayed olfactory-evoked recall, whereas only 61.3% of those born before 1930 displayed it. these results were not surprising since olfactory ability decreases with age. 50% of those over 65 and 75% of those over 80 years of age exhibited a reduced ability to smell. Those born from the 1930s on were more likely to have nostalgia induced by food odors and less likely to have nostalgia induced by nature odors than those born before the 1930s. There was a significant difference in olfactory likes based on age. Those born before the 1930s cited smells of nature including pine, hay, horses, sea air and meadows, whereas those born in 1930 to 1979 were reminded of their childhood by such smells as plastic, scented markers, airplane fuel, vaporub, sweet tarts, and play dough. . No statistically significant difference was shown between the genders in their self-reports of odor-evoked nostalgia. (Hirsch:1992) In the study, Towards an Aesthetics of Smell or the Foul and the Fragrant in Contemporary Literature, Danuta F Jellestad examines the olfactory landscapes in Toni Morrison's Sula (1973), Jamaica Kincaid's The Autobiography of My Mother (1996), and Jeanette Winterson's Written on the Body (1992), to show how these novels offer highly intriguing configurations of smell, gender, and ethnicity. The analysis reveals that the three novels engage in re-coding of the conventional olfactory landscapes. The three writers reconstruct notions of foul smells, constructed throughout the Enlightenment project to deodorize and standardize the public and the private spheres as the sense of unreason, madness, savagery, and animality, as the sense of love and relationship, while fragrant scents are associated with falsehood and death.

According to the researcher, Morrison, Kincaid, and Winterson capitalize on the conventional gendering of smell as a female (not to say feminine) sense and expose the conventionality of representing women in terms of "nice" smells both by explicit references to the scents' sexual powers and by making "unpleasant" odors carry the same power of sexual attraction as scents.

Finally, study proposed that smell might offer a distinct epistemological alternative to sight and hearing. (Jellestad:2001)

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In 2007, Regina Gray Harris analysed whether the meaning and social relevance of odors and the olfactory sensorium changed throughout different periods of history and the way in which those in the lineage of eminent sociological thinkers addressed the phenomenon of human olfaction during these periods. Regarding theoretical aim of this discourse, insights are drawn from Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenological theory of human perception for the generation of a framework for the sociological study of olfaction. Methodology adopted was a Historical monograph, undertaken with an analytical approach from the social sciences. The researcher used data gleaned from books, advertisements, articles in popular non-scientific magazines, as well as from the findings of studies published in medical/neurological, psychological, anthropological, and sociological scholarly journals to reach the conclusions along with texts regarding historical accounts of health and medicine, mythology, poetry, and literature. This study analysed information about Western ideas regarding the olfactory sense from the days of Plato and Aristotle, through the range of Christian philosophers, to Hegel and Marx, and beyond is presented in an attempt to determine whether the meaning and relevance of odors and the human olfactory sensorium have changed throughout different periods in history. The study expounds how perfumes have gone from profane, to holy, to an industry worth billions. And how does the dominant paradigms and scientific innovations affected these changing notions. (Harris: 2007) In a latest study conducted by Mark S R Jenner analyses how the significance of certain odours changed over a period. The analysis gives emphasis to the odours in environment rather and their representation in historical records. The analysis suggests that cultural significance of olfaction has declined in modern times. Jenner also explains the reasons for this supposed diminution of the olfactory- Detachment from natural surroundings, evolution of vision as the primary channel of communication and sense biases in different cultures. According to Jenner, scholars should not assume that changes in the scientific models of sensory perception were or are necessarily translated into equivalent transformations in subjective understandings of sensation or perception. Constructing or examining taxonomies of the senses does not reveal very much about how sensory perception worked in particular historical settings, the study says.

(Jenner:2011) Studies on deodorants and perfumes In an experimental study by S.Craig Roberts et al suggested that human body odour is important in modulating self-perception and interactions between individuals. And deodorants play a role in this moulding. The experiment tested the effects of a double-blind manipulation of personal odour on self-confidence and behaviour. Researchers gave male participants either an

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aerosol spray containing a formulation of fragrance and antimicrobial agents or an otherwise identical spray that lacked these active ingredients. Over several days, they found effects between treatment groups on psychometric self-confidence and self-perceived attractiveness.

Furthermore, although there was no difference between groups in mean attractiveness ratings of men’s photographs by a female panel, the same women judged men using the active spray as more attractive in video-clips, suggesting a behavioural difference between the groups.

Attractiveness of an individual male’s non-verbal behaviour, independent of structural facial features, was predicted by the men’s self-reported proclivity towards the provided deodorant.

(Roberts: 2009) A survey study examining the relative importance of various social and physical traits in heterosexual attraction was conducted in 2002 by Rachel S. Herza, Michael Inzlicht. Data from 198 male and female heterosexual college students revealed that women considered a man’s smell to be more important than ‘‘looks,’’ ‘‘voice,’’ or ‘‘how his skin feels’’ when selecting a lover.

The influence of smell also outranked all social factors, except pleasantness, and was valued considerably more highly than money or ambition (resource potential). Moreover, in contrast to response to fragrance use, liking someone’s natural body odour was the most influential olfactory variable for sexual interest for both men and women. Men rated a woman’s good looks as most desirable and as more important than any other factor except pleasantness. When a potential lover was at least average in all physical characteristics, women believed that better-than average smell was more important than superiority in other physical traits, whereas men thought they would prefer a woman to be above average in looks. This suggests that for women, a man’s smell, more than merely establishing a baseline of acceptability, is preferred over other physical features.

The research also elucidated how the hedonics of body odour and the use of personal fragrance are evaluated by men and women. The data from Topic 3 showed that women had a more intense response to odour cues overall than did men. This is not surprising given that women evaluated odour as more important in their mate choice responses than men did. This study illuminated the relative importance of smell in comparison to other physical factors in mate selection. (Herza and Inzlicht: 2002) Another study conducted by Jan Havlicek et al in 2008 replicated these results in contexts that are note related to mate selection. They also analysed the cross-cultural differences with respected to the previous study. A stratified sample survey was conducted among 717 high school students of Czech Republic and compared the results with previous results from US. They found that women valued olfactory cues significantly more than men in non-sexual contexts did.

37

The Czech high school students rated body odors more positively, and were less visually oriented, than the US university students of previous work.( Havlicek: 2008) A survey conducted among 120 students of Sinhgad TechnicalnEducation Society, Lonavala analysed the buying preferences and attitudes of adolescents towards perfumes. The sample selected for the study comprised males and females of 20 to 25 years old. The methodology employed for the study was intense interview based on open coding technique.

Feelings and Frequency of using the perfumes, Readiness to switch the brands and frequency of switching the brands, Intensity of Interest in perfumes and Money spent on it over the last one year were subjected to analysis based on gender. The study revealed that adolescents are largely interested in perfumes and they think it could create a good Image. It was found that males and females in the targeted age group have similar buying pattern. Price and brand are two major factors influencing the buyers’ preferences. But, they are not Brand loyalty and possess a general tendency to switch brands frequently. (Borgave and Chaudhari: 2010)

38

References 1.

Ayabe-Kanamura,S., el al, 1998: Differences in Perception of Everyday Odors: a Japanese-German Cross-cultural Study, Saho Ayabe-Kanamura, Ina Schicker, Matthias Laska, Robyn Hudson, Hans Distel,Tatsu Kobayakawa and Sachiko Saito, Tatsu Kobayakawa and Sachiko Saito, Chem. Senses 23: 31-38, 1998

2.

Borgave,S. and Chaudhari J.S., 2010: Adolescents’ Preferences and attitudes towards Perfumes in India, Journal of Policy and Organisational Management, Vol. 1, Issue 2, 2010, PP-01-08

3.

Chrea,c.,et al, 2003: Culture and odour categorization: agreement between cultures depends upon the odors, C. Chrea, D. Valentin, C. Sulmont-Ross, H. LyMai, D. Hoang Nguyen ,H. Abdi, Food Quality and Preference (2004)

4.

Chu,S. and Downes,J.J., 2000: Odour Evoked Autobiographical Memories: Psychological Investigations of Proustian Phenomena,

Department of Psychology, University of

Liverpool , Chem. Senses 25: p111-116 5.

Dalton,P., 1996: OdourPerception and Beliefs about Risk, Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, March 1996

6.

Dalton,P., 2000: Psychological and behavioural characteristics of olfactory adaptation Monell Chemical Senses Centre, Philaldelphia, Chem senses 25, 2000, p487-492

7.

Degel, J., et al, 2001: Implicit Learning and Implicit Memory for Odour Identification and Retention of Time, Joachim Degel, Dag Piper and Egon Peter Koster, University Of Utrecht, and Institue Europeen Des Sciences du Gout, Chem. Senses 26: 267-280, 2001

8.

Doty, R.L., 1978:

Gender and Reproductive State Correlates of Taste Perception in

Humans in Sex and Behavior: Status and Prospectus edited by McGill, T., Dewsbury.D.A. and Sachs,B. Plenum Press,New York, p. 337-362, cited in Olfactory Communication in Humans by Richard L. Doty 9.

Doty, R.L. 1981: Olfactory communication in humans, Chemical Senses Volume 6 Number 4, p355

10.

Harris, R.G., 2007: Social Emanations: Toward Sociology of Human Olfaction, M.A., O.T.R, University Of North Texas

11.

Havlíček,J. and Roberts,S.C., 2012: The perfume-body odour complex: An insightful model for culture-gene co-evolution

39

12.

Herza,R.S. and Inzlicht,M., 2002: Sex differences in response to physical and social factors involved in human mate selection: The importance of smell for women, Evolution and Human Behavior 23 (2002) 359–364

13.

Hirsch,A.R.,1992: Nostalgia: a Neuro-psychiatric Understanding, Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation, LTD, Advances in Consumer Research Volume 19, p 390-395

14.

Jellestad,D.F., 2001: Towards Aesthetics of Smell or The Foul And The Fragrant In Contemporary Literature, Blekinge Institute of Technology, Sweden

15.

Jenner,M.S., 2011: Follow Your Nose- Smell, Smelling, and Their Histories, American Historical Review, April

16.

Larsson,M., et al, 2000: Odour Identification: Influences of Age, Gender, Cognition, and Personality, Maria Larsson, Deborah Finkel, and Nancy L. Pedersen, Journal of Gerontology: PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES by the Gerontological Society of America, 2000, Vol. 55B, No. 5, P304–P310

17.

18.

MacPhee,M., 1992: Deodorized Culture Anthropology of Smell in America Roberts,S.C., et al, 2009:

Manipulation of body odour alters men’s self-confidence

and judgments of their visual attractiveness by women, S. Craig Roberts, A. C. Little, A. Lyndon, J. Roberts, J. Havlicek and R. L. Wright, International Journal of Cosmetic Science, p47–54 19.

Russell,M.J.,1976:'Human olfactory communication', Nature, 260, 520-522., cited in Olfactory communication in humans, R.L. Doty

20.

Schmidt,H.J. and Beauchamp, G.K., 1998: Adult-Like Odour Preferences and Aversions in Three-Year-Old Children, Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia

21.

Seo,H.S., el al, 2011: Attitudes toward Olfaction: A Cross-regional Study, Han-Seok Seo, Marco Guarneros, Robyn Hudson, Hans Distel, Byung-Chan Min, Jin-Kyu Kang, Ilona Croy, Jan Vodicka and Thomas Hummel, Chem. Senses 36: 177–187

22.

Stoddart,M.,I990: The Scented Ape: The Biology and Culture of Human Odour, Cambridge University Press

40

3 Methodology

Most research is Positivist in nature. However, the Positivist stream of research has its limitations especially when the objective of the research is to understand meanings that people hold. People through their participation in the social world actively construct these meanings of the world. These meanings and or “truths� influence,

if

not

directly

impact,

human

behaviour and interaction. The method adopted for the study is Intense Interview. This could be seen as a more relevant and useful way of understanding and or conceptualizing social, cultural, group and or individual meanings.

41

Intense interview Traditional structured questionnaire survey establishes a priori categories and then asks pre-established questions aimed at capturing precise data that can be codified, categorized and generalized. Here the researcher is like a highly trained instrument and remains substantively situation and the respondent.(Fondana, 2003,p54) The interview has been reconceptualised survey as an occasion for purposefully animated participants to construct versions of reality interactionally rather than merely purvey data. Because the respondent’s subjectivity and related experience are continually being assembled and modified, the truth value of the interview responses cannot be judged simply in terms of whether those responses match what lies in an ostensibly objective vessel of answers.

Rather the value of interview data lies both in their meanings and how meanings are constructed.

These what and how matters go hand in hand, as two components of practical meaning making.

The entire process is fueled by the reality constituting contributions of all participants, and interviewers. (Gubrium and Holstein, 2003,p34) Personal interviews are the most flexible means of obtaining information because the face-to-face situation lends itself easy to questioning in greater depth and detail. But, compared to the traditional perspective of surveying, this approach seems to invite unacceptable forms of bias (78). The direction of intense interview id determined by the interviewer and will be shaped by his or her frames of reality. Since interviewing is always staged and less spontaneous, resulting conversations are less realistic than a natural interaction (Gubrium and Holstein, 2003,p78).

Sampling Technique Purposive sampling is the sampling technique adopted to select respondents. 60 subjects were selected ensuring equal participation of male and female respondents. The sampling also ensured equal representation of people belonging to different age groups.

Sample Description Table: Male

Female

Below 30

10

30-46

10

46 and above

10

Below 30

10

30-46

10

46 and above

10

42

Interview Schedule The Intense Interview relies on an Interview Schedule. It is not an unstructured interview, the research agenda is always kept in focus, and the Interview Schedule is prepared accordingly.

The function of the Interview Schedule is to: 1.

Ensure that the researcher covers the same terrain in roughly the same order with all respondents

2.

To ensure that “prompts” are carefully scheduled

3.

Allow the researcher to pay attention to what the person is saying

4.

Channels the scope and direction of the discourse

Data Analysis and Interpretation For any research, data is what researcher observes and think relevant to answering the research question. Data collection is the process of selectively choosing empirical phenomena and attributing relevance to them with respect to our research question. Therefore, data is nothing but interpreted observations. Our findings always depend upon this data, which is always selected.

The multiple subjects that could possibly stand behind interview participants add several layers of complications to the interview process as well as to the analysis of interview data. To analysis and build meanings out of these data an ethnographic method, open coding is adopted.

Data analysis is about classification and coding.

Categorization is putting a number of things into a smaller number of groups. A category is an idea (word or phrase) that stands for a set of objects or events with similar characteristics.

Classification is the rule or rules by which such allocation is made. Knowledge and meaning are understood and communicated through categories.

Data analysis involves organizing data by categorizing, and looking for relationships and patterns amongst categories. This is carried out by Coding. The study adopts open coding where the researcher starts developing Categories from the data, as units that “hold” meaning.

Categories in open coding are never exhaustive.

Interpretation involves attaching meaning and significance to the analysis, explaining categories, patterns and relationships. It is not separate from Analysis.

43

Operational Definitions Artificial pleasant odours: Odours that are created and marketed by man to mask natural unpleasant odours.

Meaning: to what someone associates a signal Social Meaning: to what someone associates a signal in a social context Affective Meaning: personal feeling or attitude towards a signal Perception: the way in which someone identifies things Interpersonal communication: direct exchange of meanings between two people Preconception: an image created in a person’s mind regarding place or people who are unfamiliar to him or her.

Category: an idea (word or phrase) that stands for a set of objects or events with similar characteristics Confidence: degree of power one assumes to himself or herself Freshness: experience of bring untainted Attraction: the quality of arousing sexual interest Temporality: the condition of being not permanent Artificiality: quality of being not natural but made, produced, or done to seem like something natural Filthiness: a state characterized by foul, unclean or disgusting dirt and refuse Irritating: things that upset someone’s state of mental or physical stability Acceptance: state of getting a favourable reception or approval from the society Social status: position in a social hierarchy Identity: Identity is the definition of a person in a society Character: The mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual Faking: act of projecting qualities that are not genuine Luxury: act of spending money or superfluous things Impurity: state of being mixed with foreign matter; adulterated

44

References 1.

Fondana,A., 2003: Postmodern trends in Interviewing, Postmodern Interviewing Ed. Gubrium,J.F., Holstein, J.A.,Sage publications, p51-65

2.

Gubrium,J.F., Holstein, J.A., 2003: Postmodern Interviewing Ed. Gubrium,J.F., Holstein, J.A.,Sage publications, p21-49

45

4 Analysis and Findings

People are meaning endowing; they interpret and construct their social world, rather than just respond to external stimuli in a simplistic manner.

The

long

interview

attempted

to

appreciate these meanings. But, meanings are not present in the social world to be retrieved; it has

to

be

Respondents

constructed participated

from in

interactions. the

intense

interviews gave a general feeling that they are not bothered about the presence of artificial pleasant odours in their initial responses. But, while talking on the absence of artificial pleasant odours, they revealed their notions about artificial

pleasant

odours.

They

associated

artificial pleasant odours with diverged senses and significations. Transcriptions of interviews, when coded for analysis offered two distinct categories of meanings, Affective meanings and Social meanings.

46

Affective meanings Affective meanings refer to the individual’s feelings or attitude towards artificial pleasant odours. The affective meanings found in the study are: 1.

Confidence: Confidence is the degree of power one assumes to himself or herself. It is a kind of power to mingle with the society. When someone gets confidence, he will be empowered to intervene. 23.33% of the sample associated artificial pleasant smells with confidence. It denotes a feel of empowerment an artificial pleasant odour provides to mingle with others who seems more powerful in social hierarchies.

2.

Freshness: Freshness is an experience of being untainted. This denotes a cognitive experience of not getting involved with busy things, even when we physically do.

Freshness is a state where people are at their maximum potential. 21.67% associated artificial pleasant smells with freshness pointing towards a general tendency to feel at leisure even under stress.

3.

Attraction: Attraction is the quality of arousing sexual interest. Olfactory industrialists ascribe perfumes and deodorants with this quality. It is the most projected meaning of artificial pleasant odours by the advertisers through mass media. Still only 16.67% feels that, artificial pleasant smells can attract opposite sex. This result says that meanings of artificial pleasant odours are not those imposed through mass media, rather it is those constructed through social interactions.

4.

Temporality: Temporality denotes a condition of not being permanent. 15% of the sample identified artificial pleasant odours temporary. They denoted that every other positive affective meanings attributed to it are temporary in nature. Moreover, they identified natural body odour as a permanent reality, which cannot be suppressed or altered for a long time. These people do not ascribe artificial pleasant odours with high power in social interactions.

5.

Artificiality: Artificiality denotes a property of being not natural but made, produced, or done to seem like something natural. 11.67% associated artificial pleasant odour with artificial manipulation of natural body odour. They used words like chemical and synthetic to denote artificial pleasant odours. These people were bothered about the negative influence of artificial pleasant odours in health. They preferred natural body odour over the intense stenches of artificial chemicals. This association stands for a feeble resistance among people to the alteration of originality.

47

6.

Filthiness: Filthiness is a state characterized by foul, unclean or disgusting dirt and refuse. 10% of the sample associated artificial pleasant odours with filthiness. They shared the feeling that those who stay unclean use artificial pleasant smell to manipulate their body odour. This meaning associates artificial pleasant odour with disapproval in social interactions. Roots of this viewpoint can be traced back to ancient Indian association of neatness with bathing. A small percentage of culturally rooted people associates artificial pleasant odours a western means to cover filthiness.

7.

Irritating: irritants are things that upset one’s physical or mental stability. 5% of the respondents opined that artificial pleasant smell would physical or mental state of health.

But, this opinion has no relation with their habit of using artificial pleasant odours. Even those who have an aversion towards artificial pleasant odours use them to satisfy some social needs.

Affective Meanings

%

Confidence Freshness Filthiness Temporary Attraction Irritation Artificial

23.33 21.67 10 15 16.67 5 11.67

Table 1: Affective meanings of artificial pleasant odour

48

16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Confidence Freshness

Filthiness

temporary Attraction

Artificial

Irritation

Fig1: Affective meanings of artificial pleasant odour While evaluating affective meanings associated with artificial pleasant odours, it is evident that people tend to perceive artificial pleasant odours positively in general. Majority identifies artificial pleasant smell as a confidence booster, which facilitate their interaction with society. Secondly, it is associated with freshness. Freshness is a state where people are at their maximum potential. Only a small percentage believes that it can cause sexual attraction.

The negative affective meanings are primarily because of its characteristics like temporality and artificiality. Some associates perfumes with filthiness as they think people without personal hygiene depends upon artificial pleasant odour to hide their malodour.

Social meanings Social meanings refer to those associations of artificial pleasant odours that gains significance only in a social context and social relations.

1.

Acceptance: Social acceptance is a state of getting favourable reception or approval from the society. Social acceptance is a basic need of every human being. 35% of the total sample associated artificial pleasant odours with social acceptance. When someone associates artificial pleasant odours with social acceptance, it indirectly denotes his or her inferiority complex to appear as such facing the society. Social acceptance can be a term used by less empowered, in terms of money profession and gender status. They

49

feel they have to cover their foul smells to make themselves appealing for others. Others, who constitute the social surroundings of a being, are more powerful for him or her.

Artificial pleasant odours, they believe, will improve their role in social associations by hiding their natural body odour.

2.

Social status: Social status denotes one’s position in a social hierarchy. It is the power to influence and persuade people. 23.33% of the total respondents associated artificial

pleasant odours with social status. These people opine that the quality of a deodorant or perfume can be sensed through smell. The term quality denotes money spend on artificial pleasant odour and one’s taste. Often, people who use mild, lasting fragrances are believed to be from good educational, professional and economic background. When an artificial pleasant odour is vested with money or professional status, it can play a significant role in persuasive communication. A large share of respondents believe that artificial pleasant odours to communicate one’s power and thus influence others.

3.

Identity: Identity is the definition of a person in the society. It stands for some characteristics used to identify a person in a society. 18.33% of total respondents opined that artificial pleasant odours could contribute to those features that define one’s identity.

They associated artificial pleasant odours with brand loyalty. Human beings generally cannot identify some one other than spouses with natural body odour. But respondents opined that they can identify some people in their social environment with their artificial odour. This suggests that perfumes are well integrated to our lifestyle, so that we can consider it as an identity feature at least for a small percentage.

4.

Character: Character is mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual. One’s character exists only in the consciousness of people to whom he interacts. one’s character registers in other’s mind through his or her social interactions. 8.33% of the total respondents believe that artificial pleasant odours can impress others by evoking a feel of good character. This may be a reflection of a self-perceived sense of pleasure and confidence developed with artificial pleasant odours.

5.

Faking: Faking is the act of projecting qualities that are not genuine. It is a kind of manipulation to get acceptance and power. 15% of the sample associated artificial pleasant odours with fake identities. They feel people use perfume to mask their defects and to project a false identity.

6.

Luxury: Luxury denotes an act of spending money or superfluous things. 13.33% identifies artificial pleasant odours as a part of luxurious life style. They opined that manipulation of natural body odour is not essential to get social acceptance.

50

7.

Impurity: Impurity is a state of being mixed with foreign matter. 1.67% associated artificial pleasant odours with impurity. Association of artificial pleasant odours with a state of impurity can be linked to the adulteration of traditional ways of life with western culture. Artificial pleasant odours are foreign products adopted by Indians and this contaminated our ethnicity according to this small percentage.

Social Meanings % Status 23.33 Acceptance 35 Impurity 1.67 Faking 15 Luxury 13.33 Character 8.33 Identity 18.33 Table 2: Social meanings of artificial pleasant odours Social meanings of artificial pleasant odours reflect a social anxiety. 35% percentage of the respondents believes that artificial pleasant odours can cover their defects and make them acceptable for the society. This impart that people generally are bothered about their natural body odour and firmly believe that one’s natural body odours are repulsive for others.

Another large share feels the use of artificial pleasant smell will speak for their social status. A small portion think perfumes create social identities and some believe it will impress people. All these associations stand for a power relation in communication. People generally feel they are inferior with their natural odours and to impress, influence and to be acceptable for others they trust upon artificial pleasant odours.

Artificial pleasant odours are negatively associated with luxury, faking and impurity.

These associations are

51

25

20

15

10

5

0 Status

Acceptance

Impurity

Faking

Luxury

Character

Identity

Fig 2: Social meanings of artificial pleasant odours Variations in Affective Meanings based on age 45% of Respondents below 30 associated artificial pleasant odours with confidence.

People belonging to this age group are at their initial stages of social interaction and are conscious about their perception by others. Out of respondents above 30 and below 46, 10% associated artificial pleasant odours with confidence. 15% of respondents above 45 also gave a similar association. People belonging to this age group are at their initial stages of social interaction and are conscious about their perception by others. In addition, they rarely have the benefit of economic and professional supremacy. In Indian contexts, youngsters are less powerful in terms of money and status thus they are more anxious about their image in society.

Youngsters associated artificial pleasant odours with confidence more than aged did. They use and perceive perfumes as a confidence booster, which would hide their natural foul odour and thereby improve self-perceived degree of power.

People above 45, did not associated artificial pleasant odours with freshness. 20% of young and 45% of middle-aged respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with freshness.

Freshness is a state of mind to feel at leisure. This emotional association also points to a state of youthfulness, with its absence in the frames of people above 45. Since youngsters are fresh by their age, they are not much bothered about this quality. On the other hand, middle-aged people,

52

who constitute the performing category associates artificial pleasant odours with freshness mostly. Middle age is state where people start loosing their natural freshness. Thus, they relay on artificial pleasant odour to improve their self-perceived status of freshness. At the same time, people above 45 recognise this effect of freshness as a temporary one and might be thus never associated artificial pleasant odours with freshness.

Variations in association of artificial pleasant odours with temporality can be interpreted as a fact in support to the foresaid observation. Aged people associate artificial pleasant odours with temporality more than youngsters and middle aged. When 10% of youngsters and 15% of middle aged associated artificial pleasant odours with temporality, 20% old respondents shares a similar constructive meaning. As their experience with life increases, people tend to associate artificial pleasant odour with a quality that transform with time.

Irrespective of age, people tend to associate artificial pleasant odours with sexual attraction. This may be an influence of advertisements. 15% young, 20% middle aged and 15% old respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with sexual attraction. Quite notably, only a small percentage feels that artificial pleasant smell can cause sexual attraction. This shows majority are either not bothered about this aspect of pleasant odours or do not find such artificial odours effective in sexual attraction. Since there is no variation in this association with age, it can be considered as an influence of advertisements, not an actively constructed social meaning.

Youngsters and middle aged do not associate artificial pleasant odours with artificiality, while old and middle-aged people do. 10% of respondents between 30 and 45 and 25% of respondents above 45 associated artificial pleasant odours with a tendency to appear natural while not being natural. People born in a pre-globalised era, are more likely to value and appreciate natural body odours.

Even though they attribute some positive social values to

artificial pleasant odours, they also associate it with artificiality. This denotes a change in social concepts aroused from the difference in exposure to western culture. Youngsters do not think artificial pleasant odours with artificiality; instead, they appreciate it as an essentiality, which is quite natural.

20% of respondents above 45 associate artificial pleasant odour with filthiness along with 10% youngsters. Youngsters associated artificial pleasant odours with a state of not bathing citing their personal experiences, while people above 45 expressed a concern about this attitude of youngsters. They associated the state of filthiness with deodorization or perfuming more negatively. At the same time, youngsters were never hesitant to share their habit of not bathing or washing cloths. This denotes a declining divinity of bathing in Indian social context, which could be seen as a western influence.

53

15% of people between 35 and 45, consider artificial pleasant odours irritating. No other categories expressed a similar concern. It can be treated as a personality trait.

Affective meaning Confidence Freshness Filthiness Temporary Attraction Irritation Artificial

Below 30 45% 20% 10% 10% 15%

30-45 10% 45% 0 15% 20% 15% 10%

46 and above 15% 0 20% 20% 15% 25%

Table 3: Variations in Affective Meanings based on age Generally, it is evident that, when youngsters are more mindful about the positive aspects of artificial pleasant odours, aged group tend to speak on the negative aspects of the same. Associations of aged group are more balanced than that of youngsters. Middle- aged people found to be exhibiting and intermediate profile, which is inconsistent and highly influenced by their profession and social contexts.

10 9 8 7 6 5

Below 30

4

30-45

3

46 and above

2 1

c ia l Ar tif i

Ir r i

ta tio

n

n At tra ct io

ra ry Te m po

Fil th in es s

Fr es hn es s

Co

nf id en

ce

0

Fig 3: Variations in Affective Meanings based on age

54

Variations in Social meanings based on Age Irrespective of age, people tend to associate artificial pleasant odours with social acceptance and social status. This denotes role of artificial pleasant smell in power relations of social communication. This survey results shows that people belonging to all age categories feels the need to be accepted and to influence. They use and perceive deodorants as a signal of social status and social acceptance. 20% of young, 25% of middle aged and 25% of old respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with social status. 40% of young, 40% of middle-aged and 45% of old respondents associated it with social acceptance.

30% of youngsters related artificial pleasant odours with identity. With age, this association tends to decline. Only 15% of middle-aged and 10% of old respondents was able to identify artificial pleasant odour as a social identity. It can be because of the declining sensitivity to smell which has been proved in previous studies or may be because of the changing attitudes towards smell. Youngsters born and live in a globalised, crowded and fast-paced society integrate artificial pleasant odours to their lifestyle and regard it as a social identity. For older generations it is a means to achieve some values in a society and they do not think it can be an identity. Still, they share a feeling that, attar, a perfume used by Muslims holds some identification value.

Only 5% of aged respondents feel that perfumes can create good character impression among people. But 15% youngsters think presence of artificial pleasant odour will create a good impression. They feel that perfumed people will be treated as nice persons. Only people who use artificial pleasant odours in intensities appealing get this kind of acclamation. This association can be a social reflection of a general feeling that people who consider other’s likes and dislikes use perfumes for other’s comfort.

20% of old respondents in two categories associate deodorants with fake identities. For youngsters it is only 5%. Youngsters identify artificial pleasant odours as a means to satisfy social needs, while people above 30 shows a tendency to recognize it as a means of altering existing identities. This observation is in accordance with the general tendency of youth to associate artificial pleasant odours as essential commodities, use of which is quite natural. Since

people

below 30 are exposed to the globalised tendencies from their childhood itself, they are not concerned with clash of cultures. On the other hand, for people above 30, there is a clash of concepts aroused from exposure to western culture. Thus, they are much bothered about the identity projected with perfumes and deodorants, which for 20% is a fake one. For youngsters, Identities projected through perfumes are not different from that of one’s original identity.

20% old respondents and 15% of middle-aged respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with luxury. Only 5% of young respondents associated perfumes with luxury. This

55

observation underlines the foresaid observations on attitudinal difference between age groups.

When younger generation identifies artificial pleasant odours as a social need, older people consider it as a luxury.

Social Meaning Status Acceptance Impurity Faking Luxury Character Identity

Below 30 20% 40% 5% 5% 5% 15% 30%

30-46 25% 40%

46 and above 25% 45%

20% 20% 5% 15%

20% 15% 5% 10%

Table4: Variations in soical manings based on age Aged people share an opinion that perfumes are not essential but youngsters find it essential for social interaction and relation building. Older generation also associate artificial pleasant odours with faking, covering up of actual characteristics, but only small percentages of youngsters share this opinion. As in the case of affective meanings, here too, aged people tend to attribute negative connotations to artificial pleasant odours. On the other hand, youngsters associate it with social relations and interactions. Irrespective of age, people view artificial pleasant odours as agents of power in social interactions.

10 9 8 7 6 5

Below 30

4

30 -45

3

46 and above

2 1

nt ity Id e

Ch ar ac te r

ur y Lu x

g Fa kin

Im

pu r

ity

e

Ac ce pt an c

St at us

0

Fig4: Variations in social manings based on age

56

Moreover, for youngsters, artificial pleasant odours are expected and they are not bothered about their influence on one’s identity. In other words, they consider perfumes as one’s identity feature. For them, there is not an identity, which is pure and original. They accommodated perfumes as apart of their identity. On the other hand, aged people view artificial pleasant odours as a foreign stuff that alters one’s existing original identities. This adds on to the negative associations of artificial pleasant odours by them.

Variations in Affective meanings based on Gender While analyzing the results we could find that females attribute artificial pleasant smell with more positive values. 30% of total female respondents associated artificial pleasant smell with confidence and 26.67% associated it with freshness. Females are found to be more sensitive to smell in previous studies. Since they are more sensitive to natural body odour, they must be more bothered about it. The present finding can be associated with this female characteristic.

Artificial pleasant smell they think will give confidence to them by hiding their natural foul smell from others and from themselves. This will in turn give a fresh feeling. Only 16.67% male respondents associated artificial pleasant smell with confidence and freshness.

Only female participants rated artificial pleasant smell as irritating. 10% of female respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with physical irritation. But, they use artificial pleasant odours without running the risk of being perceived as malodorous.

Male respondents largely associated artificial pleasant odours with filthiness compared to females. 16.67% male participants associated artificial pleasant odours with filthiness, while only 3.33% of female respondents made similar association. They shared a common association that those who stink use artificial pleasant odours.

Male respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with sexual attraction more significantly. When 20% male participants associated artificial pleasant odours with sexual attraction, only 13% female respondents related in the same way. This may be because of the prevailing social structure that assigns male respondents with more power to speak explicitly on sexual attraction.

23.33% Male participants rated artificial pleasant odours as temporary, only 6.67% of female respondents shared this opinion. Similarly, male respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with artificiality more significantly.

The analysis shows that female participants attribute artificial pleasant odours with positive meanings, while male participants associated it with negative meanings.

57

Affective Meanings Confidence Freshness Filthiness Temporary Attraction Irritation Artificial

Male 16.67% 16.67% 16.67% 23.33% 20% 16.67%

Female 30% 26.67% 3.33% 6.67% 13.33% 10% 6.67%

Table 5: Variations in Affective meanings based on Gender

10 9 8 7 6 5 4

Male

3

Female

2 1

Ar tif ici al

Ir r i

ta tio

n

n At tr a ct io

ra ry Te m po

Fil th in es s

ne ss es h Fr

Co

nf id en

ce

0

Fig 5:Variations in Affective meanings based on Gender

58

Variations in Social meanings based on Gender 66.67% female respondents associated artificial pleasant smell with social acceptance, while only 20% of male participants made association in the same way. This reveals a general psychology of women who tends to be appealing to the society, which is powerful than her. While men could be sweaty and unpleasant without loosing any of their masculine identity, women feel they would be treated as objects of disgust. This may be because of the natural foulness attributed to women reeking of unpleasant body fluids, such as menstrual blood. Being socially less empowered she associate artificial pleasant odours with social acceptance. On the other hand, being more powerful, men are less bothered about social acceptance.

Only female participants believed that one’s perfume or deodorant would reflect his or her character. 16.67% associates artificial pleasant odours with character.

Both male and female participants associated artificial pleasant odour with identity. 20% female respondents and 6.67% male respondents think that they can identify people with their smell. The slight domination of female respondents can be attributed to their increased sensitivity to smell.

Men and women equally associate artificial pleasant odours with social status. Both feel such artificial odours will help to influence less powerful people in their social surroundings, by reflecting their social status in terms of money and power. 23.33% of total respondents associated artificial pleasant smell with social status.

23.33% male respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with fake identities, while only 6.67% of female respondents made similar association. When 20% of male respondents associated artificial pleasant odours with luxury, only 6.67% of female participants associated it with luxury.

Social Meaning Status Acceptance Impurity Faking Luxury Character Identity

Male 23.33% 20% 3.33% 23.33% 20% 16.67%

Female 23.33% 66.67% 0 6.67% 6.67% 16.67% 20%

Table 6: Variations in Social meanings based on Gender

59

25

20

15 Male Female

10

5

0 Status Acceptance Impurity

Faking

Luxury

Character Identity

Fig 6: Variations in Social meanings based on Gender

Preconceptions in interpersonal communication Status: 43.33% think people with good body odour belong to high social status. This preconception indicates a distinct power gap existing between two people participating in the communication because of the presence of artificial pleasant odour. This power variation cannot be exclusively attributed to the presence of artificial pleasant odour. It is enhanced with physical appearance, colour, body language and many other factors.

Neatness: 13.33% of total respondents say there will be preconceptions related to neatness of a person based on the presence of artificial pleasant odours. This group associates natural body odour with untidiness. This association denotes a shift in Indian line of thoughts influenced by westernization.

Attention seeking: 13.33% associate the presence of artificial pleasant smell from a person with his desire to get attention. These people perceive people who use artificial pleasant odours as insubstantial.

Good Character: 3.33% associates presence of artificial pleasant smell as a sign of good character.

60

No preconception: 26.67% of total respondents claimed that they do not make preconceptions based on the smell of their partner in interpersonal communication contexts.

Respondents generally feel that presence of a good artificial pleasant smell can create a good communication atmosphere and there will be positive preconceptions regarding a pleasant smelling person. A relatively small percentage assumes that presence of artificial pleasant will not create any preconceptions about a person. Some respondents think artificial pleasant odours would create negative impression about a person, assuming that those people strive to get attention in a crowd.

Nature of preconception

%

No Preconception

26.67

High Status

43.33

Neat

13.33

Attention Seeking

13.33

Good Character

3.33

Table 7: Nature of Preconceptions

Preconceptions

No Preconceptions High Status Neat Attention Seeking Good character

Fig 7: Nature of Preconceptions

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Summary of Findings: 1.

Meanings of artificial pleasant odours can be classified in to two. Affective meanings stand for individual’s emotions and attitudes. It is a sense. Social meanings are significations in social contexts.

2.

People largely associated artificial pleasant odours with Confidence and Social Acceptance. Confidence is an affective meaning, while Acceptance is a social meaning. Both can be associated with power to interact in a society.

3.

Another major affective meaning was with freshness. Freshness is a state of leisure where human potential is at its maximum. This denotes a general perspective that assumes high status to executive jobs. People want to smell good, as if they are not working.

4.

Youngsters are more likely to associate artificial pleasant odours with positive meanings like freshness and confidence. On the other hand, aged people tend to associate perfumes with temporality, filthiness, and artificiality.

5.

Young people below 30 associates artificial pleasant odours as an identity feature while people above 30 views it as a foreign object that alters existing original characteristics of a person.

6.

Women associate artificial pleasant odours with social acceptance and confidence more than men do. They are much bothered about the risk of being perceived as malodorous. This may be because of the fact that women are women are suspected of being naturally foul, reeking of unpleasant body fluids, such as menstrual blood.

7.

People generally construct positive preconceptions related to one’s social status, neatness and character based on the presence of artificial pleasant odours.

8.

Association of artificial pleasant smell with neatness denotes influence of western culture in Indian tradition that accepted and acclaimed natural body odours.

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5 Conclusions

The study was an attempt to analyse the meanings of artificial pleasant odours, its variation with age and gender and its role in the formulation of preconceptions. Out of the meanings

generated

from

long

interview

transcriptions, it was found that people tend to associate

artificial

pleasant

odours

with

confidence, freshness, social acceptance and social

status

above

all.

These

prominent

meanings share some common space in the sphere

of

significance.

Confidence

and

freshness are individual perceptions associated with artificial pleasant odours, while social acceptance and social status stands for a social significance

of

artificial

pleasant

odour.

Confidence denotes an individual’s ability to strive for social acceptance, a social power.

Association of these aspects with artificial pleasant odours refers to its decisive meaning power in social interactions.

63

Freshness is another prominent affective meaning of artificial pleasant odours, which can be related to the second prominent social meaning, status. Freshness denotes a state of leisure, which in turn stands for a state of not doing sweaty jobs. This affective meaning can be associated with social status, which denotes power to influence.

When l acceptance and confidence represent empowerment, freshness and social status stand for influential power.

To underline this key identification of artificial pleasant odours with power, another fact emerges out of interrelated categories. Women and young respondents, who are socially less powerful in economic and structural terms of Indian cultural society, largely associated artificial pleasant odours with confidence and acceptance. Those who are less powerful identified artificial pleasant odours vested with positive values.

Western influence in people’s attitudes, especially among youngsters was also evident throughout the analysis. Westerners are attributed with high power and thus their ways of life are influential for our society. When someone follows western ways of life or attitude, he is likely to get power in the society. This general attitude is reflected in habits of perfuming also.

In analysis of preconception also, people tended to denote artificial pleasant odours with social status, indicating its role in manipulating the power relations in communication contexts.

Holding a strong association with power, artificial pleasant odours plays a key role in shaping the direction of flow of information, its perception and effect.

Scope and Limitations The study was an exploratory attempt to analyse the meanings of artificial pleasant odours in contemporary Indian society. Olfactory communication is one of the most undermined, at the same time a significant area of communication research. The role of olfaction in communication is still quite unexplored. Among the available studies, those on Indian contexts are rarest. Being a culturally diverged society with a dynamic history, olfactory studies in Indian context will be an exciting area of communication research.

The present study adopted a phenomenological approach, which is the principal advantage of the study. Nevertheless, it failed to define researcher’s frame of meanings, which might have influenced the respondents during interview. Researcher’s background, notions and concepts might also have influenced the qualitative decoding of meanings and concepts projected by the respondents. Since the study was conducted among an undefined population, it failed to analyse meanings contextually.

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Suggestions for future Research 

Studies on olfactory meanings have to be conduced on a phenomenological approach in which research fames of meaning and context of population are well defined.



Ethnography is the most suitable method to analyse meanings in a population.



To get a common meaning, there must a common context among respondents, thus, the population has to be well defined and specific.



Participatory observations will be much effective tool to analyse olfactory meanings than long interviews or questionnaire surveys.



For quantitative studies on meanings of odours, sense bias in popular arts and literatures can be studied.

65

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APPENDIX Interview Schedule 1. Socio-demographic detatils: a) Age b) Gender c) Profession 2. Do you use deodorants? a) If yes, how do you feel the difference when you use it?

Or b) If no, is there any reason for not using a deodorant?

3. a) b)

What are your favourite flavours, if you like deodorants?

Or Do you have any aversion towards artificial pleasant smells? Explain.

4. Can you recall any artificial pleasant odours that caught your attention?

5. Is there any advantage of using deodorants? Share your experience sighting examples of peoples and places.

6. Can you recognise people with their smell?

7. Do you know people who smell good or bad? Detail out experience.

8. Do you think one’s body odour can influence your communication experience with them?

9. How will you rate a person who use artificial pleasant odours?

69