English Version

There are gifts that seem otherworldly, but far from being a blessing they can become a condemnation. They can isolate you and separate you from the rest of the people, as your being becomes only that which defines you, then it becomes more than an obsession.

That's what I want to comment on in this post about the book ‘Perfume: A Murderer's Tale’, a novel that I read for the first time quite some time ago and that left me with an unsettling feeling.

Patrick Süskind is the author of the book, a German writer born in the last century. In this intense work that mixes horror, mystery and fiction, he describes in detail the life of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, from his birth to his death. A man marked by a supernatural sense of smell.

_{Patrick Süskind, author of the book,
Source}

Grenouille's sense of smell is not simply acute, it is absolute. He does not smell like other people, he breaks down each olfactory particle, memorises it, controls it and treasures it forever in his mind. His nose is everything, it is his guide and his defence, but also his condemnation.

Grenouille's way of perceiving the world is intimate and unique. He does not get excited by observing what surrounds him, nor does he enjoy a caress, nor does he pay attention to what his ears can hear. Although he possesses the other senses, they are unimportant to him. He experiences, feels and interprets the world exclusively through his sense of smell. What surrounds him is not defined by colours, lights, shapes or beauty, but by its smell.

Thanks to this gift he is able to recognise and decipher the soul of his surroundings, objects, animals, plants and people. And his obsession is to capture that soul in an essence, which becomes the centre of his life and his reason for existing.

From the time he was born, in the midst of one of the most pestilent environments in Paris, in 18th century France, and throughout his childhood, Grenouille is rejected, ignored and feared. He was born without his own smell and this makes him a different being, almost invisible to his peers.

However, his super-developed sense of smell allows him to perceive even the slightest aromatic particle in his environment. Over time he discovers that people love or hate according to the smells emanating from their bodies, these aromas are often not perceived consciously but they do arouse emotions and empathy. That is why he dedicates every moment of his life to create a scent capable of provoking love, devotion and veneration. If people cannot love him naturally, then they will worship him through his creation, his Perfume.

But his quest for the perfect perfume borders on the mystical and monstrous. His sole desire to achieve his own scent leads him to learn and perfect the technique of scent making, creating a process that pushes the boundaries of what is allowed. Grenouille seeks to encapsulate a scent capable of awakening compassion, love and passion, and to achieve this he is willing to kill.

_Source

I was impressed by how the author turns smell into a universe where everything revolves around scent and where people, especially women, are the tools to perfect an art that Grenouille wants to master.

If you haven't read the book yet, I recommend you do so. I am sure you will enjoy it and, as I did, you will find it hard to forget.

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_{Contenido original del autor. 2025 @jordy0827. Todos los derechos reservados.}

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