Love In Perfume Analysis

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Commentary on the Theme of Love in Perfume The novel, Perfume, written by Patrick Süskind contains social commentary and thoughts on today’s society. It follows the story of Grenouille, an abomination that has an extraordinary sense of smell but has no feelings for other humans. The novel details his journey as he seeks the perfect scent, committing atrocities along the way. Patrick Süskind uses devices such as imagery, tone and mood, metaphors, and characterization to illustrate the theme of love. Towards the end of the novel, Grenouille catches the scent of Laure, and is completely intoxicated and enamored by it. The passage details Grenouille’s thoughts and actions a year after first smelling Laure and he promises himself that he will …show more content…
He uses metaphors to show Grenouille as a monster that feels no emotions towards other human beings. Grenouille thinks about Laure and describes her as “the incomparably beautiful flower…her sap was running, she was growing, expanding”. Laure is compared to a flower. While this could be a compliment, in Grenouille’s case he only sees Laure as an object. This is further proven with the phrase “her sap was running”, as if Laure is a plant whose sole purpose is to be harvested. Grenouille’s disconnect with other people is clearly demonstrated in this scene. Süskind uses other examples of distancing Laure and showing her as more of an object than a person. He describes Laure as “driving forth the most exquisite rank of buds” or as “a spring that grew ever fuller”. With each comparison, Laure is seen as more of an object. While the story is written in third person, it is said that these are Grenouille’s thoughts. As such, it’s obvious that Grenouille only sees Laure as an object rather than another human being. This is seen in other parts of the book where Grenouille views other humans as being lower than him, even to the point where Grenouille refers to himself as Grenouille the …show more content…
As mentioned before, the description and imagery of the scene is beautiful and elegant. Grenouille views Laure’s scent as wonderful and exquisite. However, Grenouille does not feel for others; he is an abomination. Yet, he still feels and experiences love towards Laure’s scent. Süskind’s viewpoint on this is that his love remains a valid form of love. Proof of this is seen in the overall tone and mood of the passage. Süskind describes Grenouille as he catches the scent of Laure once more: “his heart beat more loudly and he felt the blood in his veins tingle with pleasure”. The overall tone is of a man who has just fallen in love. Grenouille’s heart beat increases, a common sign used in literature for someone in love. Süskind shows that this form of love isn’t so different from other forms of love by specifically using an experience that most people can relate to. Süskind continues with this love-struck tone using phrases such as “exquisite”, “faint, smooth”, and “blissfully”. The overall mood of the passage is happy and joyful. Again, what Süskind is doing here is developing a happy and serene scene seen through an abomination’s eyes. While Grenouille remains a monster, his love is no different from the rest of society. Süskind’s viewpoint is that love is simply coveting something or someone else. As such, emotions such as lust, jealousy, and greed are all different forms of

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