Scents&Sensibility Perfume in Victorian Literary Culture by Catherine Maxwell

A book that will be treasured, this one, by all that people great estimators of Victorian literature, poetry, and...scents and perfumes.

Just some weeks ago Oxford University Press published Scents&Sensibility Perfume in Victorian Literary Culture by Catherine Maxwell.

Starting from the anecdote that scents became famous and preponderant during Victorian Age and that in particular middle and upper class enjoyed the most of scents at first, discovering personal hygiene and baths as well, this book will reveal the preponderant role invested by scents in Victorian Age "read" in literature, poems. Letters exchanged by various poets and writers with their dear ones embellished using scents's perceptions, sensations and metaphorical descriptions for presenting the intensity of a moment lived and experienced thanks to a peculiar perfume.

From the human smell, the first one, passing through the underwear of models donated and wanted  for trying to capture the young sexual smell for being reproduced later (I admit that this one was a genial idea for collecting other people's used underwear, tastes are tastes...), we will understand the delicate touch and fragrances that at first conquered most poets and writers.

Violet was the most appreciated scent by women.
Men, there will be a radical change with dandies, didn't love to add perfume, but they didn't disdeign to bring sometimes a handkerchief with some drops of scent with them. What they loved the most, like Swinburne did, was the scent of nature, sea, flowers.

Browning compares in a poem friends to smell, scents, perfumes. Who knows what scent we will leave behind us? It is a vibrant part this final part of Sordello.

I found very interesting the story of the eau de cologne. The creator an italian one, but also the evolution of scents with the decades and the entrance in scene of dandies and my beloved Oscar Wilde.
Perfume with and for Dorian Gray meant a change: it was a signal of  strength, sensuality and sexuality. A game of senses, luxury, importance, richness, excess.
Scented bath soap started to become the normality at the end of 1800.

Highly suggested to all perfumes, eau de cologne, scents addicted and to all that gentle souls in love for delicacy and for the most beautiful part of the world; the one of scents and...sensibility, of course.

Wonderful gift!


I thank Oxford University Press for the physical copy of this book.

Anna Maria Polidori