Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Discuss this in an anthropological way: Are smell and memory connected?

When studying a phenomenon in a anthropological way, we are looking at the study of humans, looking at issues like social factors and culture. Thus, when examining whether smell and memory are connected, you might look at the different ways in which we perceive smell by culture.
For example, in Westernized society, we are primarily visually orientated, and public areas tend to be more fragrance-free. Therefore, when these people encounter scents along with memorable visual stimuli, they might be able to better connect scents with certain memories in their mind.
Additionally, you might also consider how memories are formed. When strong emotions occur, memories are more likely to form. Therefore, when people are having strong emotions, such as the excitement of going to see a movie as a child, smelling the scent of popcorn might be ingrained in your mind. You may find, even years later, that smelling popcorn instantly triggers the memory of going to the movies!
http://www.fifthsense.org.uk/psychology-and-smell/

https://www.david-howes.com/senses/Consert-Odor.htm

https://www.livescience.com/44833-what-is-anthropology.html

No comments:

Post a Comment

What is the theme of the chapter Lead?

Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...