A thought struck me the other day. There are certain scents we associate with femininity, and we call them perfumes. Men like the smell of these scents. They are pleasing to the nose. Some can even arouse a male’s sexual desires. As much as men like the smell of these scents they would never think of wearing them themselves. They are “only for women.”
There are other scents we associate with masculinity, and we call them colognes. Females like the smell of these scents. They are pleasing to the nose. Some can even arouse a female’s sexual desires. As much as women like the smell of these scents they would never think of wearing them themselves. They are “only for men.” While there are some scents that are uni-sex (meaning they appeal to members of both sexes), most fall into one of the categories described above.
My question is whether the association of certain smells with certain genders is culturally learned or innate. Do other cultures associate the same smells with the same gender? Is it universal, or local? Could men wear Channel in Africa and feel manly? Would women be attracted by the scent? Do certain scents tend to attract men everywhere, and certain scents tend to attract women everywhere, or do certain scents attract different sexes in different cultures? Is our gender-smell association learned or built into us?
Thinking to Believe 