Patrick Suskind- Perfume Essay

Reflective Statement sumPerfume by Patrick Sskind, exposed me to a series of literary texts, news reports and ideas. It also opened me to a variety of cultural developments that happened throughout the book.Through the interactive oral I gained a better sense of the historical context and Parisian lifestyle. When yarn I had superficial k flat takege and I never really analyze the periodical moment that the book was set in. The presentation helped me broaden my understanding of the French lifestyle by explaining the streets of Paris and the lack of sanitation. I now understand the importance of where Grenouille was innate(p) and the significance it holds and then I also found myself astonished of the extreme conditions humans could endure and vocal everyday life. The fact that the author chose to set the book in that metre period, where Paris was at its filthiest, and decided that the main character shall be born with the gift of feel. This fact gave me an interpretation of t he authors choice in location.It was also through this interactive oral that I got a stronger win of the connections in the midst of Grenouille and the other gifted abominables that were mentioned in the beginning of the novel. When initially training the book, I lost the real connections of the characters. It was through the interactiveoral that I made the vital connections between Grenouille and Marquis de Sade and the others that were mention as well. These historical figures were also known for their terrible acts against humanity. As the group draw each of them, I was thoroughly interested because I was surprised by some of the horrific things some of them had done.I was most engrossed by the Marquis de Sade hes personality and lifestyle as repulsive as it was, interested me a lot and I realise I got the same reaction from him, as I did from Grenouille. I became advised of Sskinds setive with such connections. It besides strengthens my opinion on how Sskind antagonized Grenouille from the beginning because of the equations to the horrific figures from history. This interactive oral gave me a wide but direct understanding of the cultural context, by explaining 18th nose candy Paris. I appreciate Sskind choice of location and including those historical figures, as foreshadowing. Overall I reached an improved understanding of Perfume. Word Count 400Stolen Innocence The geographic expedition of the shares of naturalness from the fallen victims of Grenouille as he begins and ends his pick up for the net fragrancy in Perfume The story of a murderThe roles of pocketable characters atomic number 18 gravely important to the development of a story. Their character, their actions and what they symbolize lead the ace to different foreshadows of the beginning or to the conclusion of their gos. This is clearly shown in Perfume by Patrick Sskind, as the protagonist Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is led on violent death pander in search for a certain el ement for his last-ditch look the minor characters aid him as the gas pedal and conclusion of his quest.The fairly little girl of the dark Parisian streets unknowingly awakened Grenouilles impulse for what he perceived to be the ultimate scent. Her role as a minor character was to be the catalyst of Grenouilles journey, her scent captured him and led him to the splity that a scent standardised that was conceivable. She was a fleeting character, that in the book but her presence and representation brought on the altogether premise to Grenouilles voyage. Sskind never gives the ratifier a direct characterization of the plum tree girl but it isthrough her scent that he establishs a personality that the reader is supposed to unravel when he describes her scent we get an indirect form of characterization of her character Her sweat smelled as fresh as the sea breeze, the tallow of her hair as sweet as nut oil, her genitals were as fragrant as the bouquet of piddle lilies, her skin as apricot blossoms and the harmony of all these components yielded a odorize so rich, so balanced, so magical (pg. 41).Linking her scent to her personality we argon obliged to believe she was a girl of adoration, because of the description of her scent. The comparisons of her fragrance be all things that one would find beautiful. the scent was non much stronger. It was scarce purer, and in its augmented purity, it took on an even greater power of attraction. Grenouille walked with no will of his own. (pg. 40). Everybody admires beauty and its through this that Sskind admits that even Grenouille is inefficient to resist beauty fore this beauty was in the scent.Sskinds diction further allows the reader to entwine the beauty and harmonise the plum girl with innocence despite the little context the readers are given. like a piece of thin, shimmering silk and yet again not like silk, but like pastry soaked in honey-sweet milk- and try as he would he couldnt fit those two t ogether milk and silk (pg. 40). The comparison of her scent with milk brings back Jeanne Bussies thoughts of the smells of a baby, the link between their milky scent and their innocence. The authors choice to link the plum girl with those simple forms of innocence shows how she is one of the representations of purity. The plum girl was the catalyst to Grenouilles quest as it was through her that he gained the incentive to further his knowledge and vision to capture scent.During this time, the enlightenment was at its stronghold, as parvenue scientific experiments took place, and as it took on the form of individuality where man was combat for their rights. The people of the enlightenment began to drift apart from the social norms of that time and began to associate themselves as their own being. This was something Grenouille soon realized he lacked as he came to terms that he had no essence to call his own. The thing that in his perspective made everyone who they were, was what wa s absent from him. As Grenouille is led on his journey to capture his intrinsic scent, as he embarks on his killing spree Sskind leads thereader to believe that Grenouille is seeking a certain element for his perfume. After his first kill every girl that followed next was in one way or another, a form of innocence. From the girl of the rosiness fields who was young, so very young, to the young Italian girls of the migrants, the Sardinian washer-woman, and the carpenters daughter they all shared something apart from their youth. the college of care for examine the bodies of the shorn beauties to determine the state of their virginity.It was found that they had all remained unaffected (pg.197). All the girls were virgins. Virgins are a universal symbol for purity and innocence, the point that Grenouille was attracted to their scents further incites the feeling that he in fact was trying to provoke what they had and that was their sense of purity. It strongly suggests that Grenouil le was seeking the element of innocence for his perfume. Sskind shows the reader that Grenouille has an exact plan and process ones that correspond to the enlightenment. As he journeys we discover different aspects to Grenouilles nature that resemble aspects of the enlightenment. We see this through his methods and his overall perspective throughout the novel as the enlightenment was entirely well-nigh experimentation, the individual rights of man and finding oneself.Sskind perhaps proposes that through the quest as he seeks the ingredients for his ultimate perfume Grenouille is also creating a expression for himself. Grenouilles whole being responds to the views of the enlightenment as he is searches for self-awareness through science and experimentation. Where the plum girl represents the beginning of his quest, it is only through Laure that he concludes the journey. Her role as a minor character was to be a physical representation of Grenouilles end goal, to conclude his quest. She was the d epic poemtion of the ultimate innocence and it was shown all about her, through her appearance, her age and her scent She scarce had the rudimentary start of breasts In a word the girl was placid a child (pg. 170-171). Sskind clearly illustrates that Laure was a girl of astonishment and beauty this allows us to make the connections of Grenouilles craving with one associated with himself.Grenouilles goal was to be someone that overwhelmed people, someone who could bewitch people adept like he predicted Laure would. She too like the other girls had something that Grenouille treasured, that element of innocence he required for his perfume. As she was the end goal, the others girls were different components to his personation ofinnocence, and Laure was the despotic scent. She was his epiph either, and she completed his composition. In a year or two this scent will be ripened and take on a sombreness that no one, man or woman, will be able to escape. pile will be o verwhelmed, disarmed, helpless before the magic of this girl (pg. 171). provided through Laure would he be able to achieve what she could achieve by just being, and only through her and collecting her scent did Grenouille finally add together to self-realization, its only after he had completed his quest did he come to gather the worthlessness to this earth.He had completed what he wanted and only then did he come to terms that there was slide fastener else in this world that he would want. He had overwhelmed people, disarmed them, and bewitched them. It simply was not enough. Her character was the physical embodiment for his masterpiece that he would call his scent. The minor characters are the basis structures that aid the main character in any journey he or she sets of to accomplish they symbolize different aspects of the theme that the book tries to convey.All the girls were symbols of innocence in one form or another, different ingredients for the ultimate scent. The roles o f these girls were to create the hunt for Grenouille, as the plum girl began his quest and Laure brought it to an end. It was only through the quest and these minor characters did he create his recipe for himself and came to self-realization. It was through the quest that Sskind allows the reader to believe that Grenouille was the epic depiction of the enlightenment as a whole. Word Count 1316Work CitedSskind, Patrick. Perfume The Story of a Murderer. Trans. John E. Woods. New York Vintage, 1986. Print.ere different components to his depiction of innocence and the end goal, the others were merely components to the overall