PERFUME, subst. masc., [p rfyüm]
by Catherine Örmen
Let us apply ourselves to the fragrance and not care about the bottle, provided it intoxicates! (Alfred de Musset).
Perfume is an agreeable and penetrating odour, a synonym for aroma, emanation, fragrance, scent. It can be liquid or solid, of natural (plant or animal) or artificial (synthetic) origin. It comes in a bottle, as a spray, and in former times, in a small pot. Heady, discreet, heavy, vulgar, annoying, subtle, violent, flowery, woody, amber, musk... whatever it is, it fills
the air, grows, lingers, emerges, exhales and spreads its fragrance;
we breathe it in, we inhale it, while it spreads in bursts. It recalls a touching evocation, a delicate atmosphere, or even, a taste like the “scent” of Proust’s cup of tea, because, incorporated into beverages or foods, it becomes the taste itself, pistachio or chocolate... In this way the fragrance vaguely and indefinably adds and evokes something more: is this not a lack of scent, of innocence, mystery, sadness, pleasure? But, careful, fragrance can also smell bad, stink, reek, pong. And with that, there is no more intoxication!