Paper short abstract:

This talk engages ethnomethodology and semiotics of text to explore practical methods of non-professionals employed to articulate their experiences through olfactory talk.

Paper long abstract:

Throughout the history of western thought, scents and the sense of smell have been marked as particularly difficult—if not impossible—to discursively capture. Olfaction is often characterized as a "mute" sense as it is pointed out that western languages lack specialized vocabulary to express odor qualities. This take on olfactory communication parallels a set of ideas on the inferiority, dispensability, and superseded nature of the human sense of smell. While it is widely accepted that it structures our memory, eating habits, awareness of air pollution, and has a potential prognostic value in neurodegenerative conditions, human olfaction is commonly judged as less essential than vision, audition, and the somatic senses. This "primal" sense—a sense that connects us to other animals—is also associated with seduction and sexuality while frequently regarded as non-serious and feminine. Since language tends to be conceived as a trait that defines what is, by and large, unique to humans, it is not surprising that this incarnated sense is understood as not particularly apt to be "expressed" through language. Notwithstanding all of this, people manage to talk about smell. How do they do it? And what, in turn, does this tell us about language and communication? To deal with these questions while reaching beyond professional domains (such as perfumery, olfactory science, etc.), this talk will align with STS sensibilities and engage ethnomethodology and semiotics of text. It will discuss how such an approach can function as a mode of accessing and exploring practical methods of laypeople employed to articulate their experiences through olfactory talk.