Aroma

by Constan Classen

Aroma breaks the 'olfactory silence' of modernity by offering the first comprehensive exploration of the cultural role of odours in Western history - from antiquity to the present - and in a wide variety of non-Western societies. Its topics range from the medieval concept of the 'odour of sanctity' to the aroma-therapies of South America, and from olfactory stereotypes of gender and ethnicity in the modern West to the role of smell in postmodernity. Aroma will make essential reading for students of cultural studies, history, anthropology and sociology.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?