tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post263576822516103946..comments2024-02-20T16:10:31.948-07:00Comments on First Nerve: Fifty Shades of B.O.: The Olfactory Fetishes of E.L. JamesAvery Gilberthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18104017679971839738noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-57581998190924087772012-09-12T07:15:38.001-07:002012-09-12T07:15:38.001-07:00Perfumaniac:
Quite amusing, the "argh!"...Perfumaniac:<br /><br />Quite amusing, the "argh!" thing.<br /><br />Personally, I found Anastasia's repeated use of "holy cow!"--also delivered at moments of arousal--to be rather . . . quaint.<br /><br />But I didn't blink at "argh"; figured it was James attempting to phonetically capture sexual vocalizations. Which isn't easy to do. <br /><br />P.S. For some reason, this reminds me of <i>National Lampoon</i>'s "How to talk dirty in Esperanto".Avery Gilberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18104017679971839738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-796181435942022732012-09-11T20:09:08.350-07:002012-09-11T20:09:08.350-07:00On what planet is "he smells of body wash&quo...On what planet is "he smells of body wash" erotic? It's probably Axe, too!<br /><br />I cannot bring myself to read one word of this drivel. Especially after reading this, which you must, Avery:<br /><br />"50 Shades of Argh!"<br />http://www.theawl.com/2012/06/50-shades-of-arghPerfumaniachttp://yesterdaysperfume.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-15561515463051654062012-08-14T21:06:40.002-07:002012-08-14T21:06:40.002-07:00Ah, so it really is Porn for Women!
Thanks for su...Ah, so it really is <a href="http://www.chroniclebooks.com/titles/porn-for-women.html" rel="nofollow">Porn for Women!</a><br /><br />Thanks for such an engaging post. elizabethhttp://www.nosygirl.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-14763900758401058272012-08-14T19:56:19.307-07:002012-08-14T19:56:19.307-07:00elizabeth:
You make a good point. James's fai...elizabeth:<br /><br />You make a good point. James's failure to describe Anastasia's natural scent is purposeful. Her scent neutrality makes it easier for the female reader to put herself in Anastasia's place. (Same reason real estate agents don't want family photos on display when they're showing a house . . .)<br /><br />Gray smells clean and fresh and bodywashy because, in fact, he's always taking showers and pays attention to grooming. Picture a soccer mom on Sunday afternoon, curled up with a cup of tea and volume two of <i>Shades</i>, fixing her husband with a withering gaze. He hasn't shaved ("it's the weekend!"), his hair is greasy, he's wearing a sweaty T-shirt with salsa stains, and he's burping Budweiser. The idea of him smelling like fresh linen is already in fantasy territory--no need for more olfactory detail.Avery Gilberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18104017679971839738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-9166041871955842082012-08-14T10:11:45.207-07:002012-08-14T10:11:45.207-07:00I love this close-reading! I haven't read the ...I love this close-reading! I haven't read the trilogy yet either, but was grateful & intrigued to get these fragrant excerpts. It's curious how, even with these repeated mentions of Christian's Christian-y smell, there's so little sense of what he might smell like. Clean and fresh and delicious and "unique" and like that luxurious spiced body wash, but mostly he smells of him. <br /><br />I sometimes wonder if writers avoid describing smells because it's a case of the monster you imagine being more terrifying--the "delicious" and "unique" smell a reader imagines may not include any of the same scents the writer imagines, so let readers dream up delicious for themselves--perhaps especially important in erotica/romance novels to let the reader fill in what's delicious. But the circular he smells like him description makes me feel cheated in the same way I do when a writer opts to sum up an entire, necessary sex scene with an ellipsis and a "later"--not, I'm sure, a problem here. elizabethhttp://www.nosygirl.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-66326950815282594872012-08-09T16:52:47.747-07:002012-08-09T16:52:47.747-07:00Mrs. Scents:
A shrewd guess.
From the Molton Bro...Mrs. Scents:<br /><br />A shrewd guess.<br /><br />From the Molton Brown ad copy: "Fiery black peppercorn oil with bergamot and oakmoss. Our award-winning bodywash <a href="http://www.moltonbrown.com/store/bath-body/bath-bodywash/re-charge-black-pepper-bodywash/MR001/" rel="nofollow">fires up the senses</a> in an instant. Hot. Spicy. Rousing."<br /><br />Lather up!Avery Gilberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18104017679971839738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-89032015868163762832012-08-09T15:51:23.885-07:002012-08-09T15:51:23.885-07:00Unlike most women (it seems) I haven't had the...Unlike most women (it seems) I haven't had the chance to read 50 Shades yet, but from what I've read here you're spot on with how E.L. James has used olfaction to further define her characters. Anastasia, the virgin, is sweet, good, and divine while Christian, mr. charming and suave, is sexy, hot, inebriating (etc). These descriptive words definitely set a different tone for each character! <br />Also, I wonder if it will be Molton Brown's Recharge Black Pepper Body Wash that will win the product placement! (although, at $30 a bottle, is that premium enough for Mr. Grey?!)Mrs. Scentshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02424100182018019060noreply@blogger.com