I like to smell flowers not smell like flowers

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 Deborah Green's book the Aroma of  Righteousness and the points she made on people liking smells that others hate reminded me of the fact that I hate flowery or citrusy smells when it comes to deodorant, but a lot of people do and then that made me think of how women are "supposed" to smell flowery and men are "supposed" to smell musky or manly and how that is so messed up one time. I remember one time when I was ten or eleven I couldn't find my deodorant so I used a stick of my Dad's and my Mom yelled at me for it. Who cares.  Why do we think this way! Who's idea was this! Why are we gendering smell!

The point is we need more non-flowery smells for deodorant and that we as a society need to stop gendering smell 


Comments

  1. Liv GregoryMay 5, 2022 at 6:13 PM

    This is a really great point I feel that we associate smells with different things and therefore like to keep them segmented in our mind. Like you said, I don't like to smell like everything that I think smells good, and therefore shouldn't be expected to smell like or be associated with the smell of flowers just because I am a woman.

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  2. Emerson McEvoyMay 6, 2022 at 9:25 AM

    I agree. Although scents have been gendered historically (and still are today), I think we need to work on not compartmentalizing them as "male" and "female" scents.

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  3. Ellie RederMay 12, 2022 at 4:23 PM

    I also really hate the fact that smells are gendered. I think it's pointless. I have some sensory issues around smell and really artifical 'flowery' smells really make me feel miserable. I'm not a fan.

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