PERFUME+-+GRENOUILLE+(Part+2)

Basic Summary of chapter 2: In order to search for better methods of distillation for extracting finer smells, Grenouille begins his journey to the town of Grasse where he can find it. However, on his way to Grasse, he realizes that the human odor had oppressed his sense of smell. He feels disgust towards humanity and realizes that all along, instead of hating the world in general, it was the people he disliked. He becomes so disgusted by humanity, that he stayed in "Massif Central of the Auvergne" (peak of the mountain) for 7 years. It is a place that is devoid of human odor (described as purer air).However, One day, he wakes up from a dream and realizes that he could not smell his own odor. Grenouille travels to Montepellier where he is subjected to the scientist 'Marquis de La Taillade-Espinasse's' experiments and he goes // through the //fluidium letale //treatment, which is supposed to revitalize him. During this time, he ends up being cleaned up and transformed into a gentleman. Grenouille in turn uses this chance to create perfume in the laboratory that represents human odor. This odor allows people to accept him as he mingles in the crowd. However, he isn't satisfied with being accepted and instead, he wants to be able to create a scent so special that whoever smelt it will love him wholeheartedly.// Analysis: -His lifestyle in the mountains were non-human. "He had no use for creature comforts either..." -He was compared to "penitents, failures, saints or prophets." because of the common purpose of seeking out solitude. However, he did not do this for religion, or self mortification etc. Instead, he did it to enjoy basking in his own existence. -He awoke to a dream in which he was being suffocated by a fog (his own body odor), and realized that even though he knew that the fog was his odor, he couldn't smell it. The terror is described by a long, dreadful scream. "as if he was being burned alive" is the simile that described the pain in this realization. -"Grenouille was fitted out in a silk shirt, with white jabot and white ruffles at the cuffs, silk stockings, frock coat, trousers, and vest of blue velvet, and handsome buckled shoes of black leather..." --Perfume with the scent of the human odor is described as "a sweaty-oily, sour-cheesy, quite richly repulsive basic theme that clung to all humans equally..." Negative view of humanity and it can be evidence of Grenouille's misanthropic nature. -"He who ruled scent, ruled the hearts of men"- he wants to manipulate humanity by creating a scent that was superhuman.

=Back to Perfume Page=