smell good for Him!

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 Deborah Green's “The Aroma of Righteousness” addresses the erotic and appealing nature of scents in the context of rabbinic texts in a very eye opening way and I was quite drawn to her statements on women and smell. It was and still is common practice for women to use perfumes in order to have an appealing smell to them, even a bit expected of them. The consequences of patriarchal societies are seen in all kinds of historical texts and in Greene writings you can really see the impact that this has on women and how they are depicted and seen in a religious context.

Women are expected to smell good, though when that smell is recognized and thought to have a seductive pull, those women are now viewed as erotic temptations that test and wickedly trick mankind. It was surprising to see how such suggestive texts can be seen in religious contexts, but the ways that these are often used against women was not as shocking to me. This can be seen in current society just through beauty products aimed towards women. I remember one Christmas I opened my stocking to find a perfume bottle with the name “man-eater” plastered on the front. I looked at my mom amused and laughed at how ridiculous this name was. What does “man-eater” even smell like? And why was my mom buying it for 13 year old me? Walking through any perfume aisle it seems that most of the names don't even have to do with the scent, they just push some ridiculous (normally sexist) image onto the product. Why is it that the scent of a woman has to be seen as inherently sexual and seductive? In modern day, the sexual power women can have is often seen as empowering, which can explain the dramatic naming of so many beauty products, but why must that be one of the main ways that women are represented as powerful in media and advertisement? How can the perfume you decide to put on one morning alter the way you're depicted by society?

https://itsblossom.com/blog/2019/08/16/sexist-vintage-makeup-ads/


Comments

  1. Jonathan Brumberg-KrausApril 19, 2022 at 7:48 AM

    "How can the perfume you decide to put on one morning alter the way you're depicted by society?" Great question! How would you answer it? I suppose while it may be nice to have power, when female power is so narrowly defined and thus restricted to sexual/erotic power in patriarchal culture, it's definitely a mixed blessing. Real power would would be less pigeonholed by others' definition of it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sarah McGrailMay 12, 2022 at 10:57 AM

    It's very odd to me how America can boast being one of the freest countries in the world for women and yet still basically only be viewed through the male gaze

    ReplyDelete

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