Kenneth Rexroth's poem, "Proust’s Madeleine" (from his collection The Collected Shorter Poems) alludes to novelist Marcel Proust, the author of the multi-volume novel À la recherche du temps perdu, translated as In Search of Lost Time (and also previously as Remembrance of Things Past).
The "Madeleine Effect" is the sparking of a memory from a related object. For Proust, it was a madeleine cookie and cup of tea, and for Rexroth, poker chips. Though Rexroth's memory of his father comes from an object rather than a fragrance, he includes "His breath smelling richly / Of whiskey and cigars."
I believe that many memories have an attachment to a fragrance, pleasant or not. There is a clear but mysterious connection between fragrance and memory. I don't want to get stuck in the science of it (limbic system, amygdala, and hippocampus) but research has shown that memories associated with smells are more likely to be remembered. Why? Because they are more emotionally evocative and vivid autobiographical memories tend to be the result of emotional events.
We gathered submissions back in 2005 about memories triggered by objects, but for this call for submissions, we ask for poems about memories triggered by fragrances. I use the more poetic word "fragrance" which suggests something pleasant, but your memory might be better described as an odor or smell.
Click the link if you want to learn a bit more about that Proust cookie connection and read the relevant passage.
Follow this blog for all things poetry.
To see our past prompts and more than 300 issues,
visit our website at poetsonline.org
No comments:
Post a Comment
* * All comments must be approved by the site administrator before appearing in order to prevent spam.