Imagery is a great literary tool that writers use to make their work more interesting to their audience. To fully harness the power of imagery, a writer has to appeal to the five human senses of his or her audience. Therefore there are different types of imagery depending on the type of sense a specific type of imagery affects. We are specifically going to look at olfactory imagery in this article.

The definition of olfactory imagery

Stevenson and Case (2005) define olfactory imagery as “being able to experience the sensation of smell when an appropriate stimulus is absent.” Olfactory imagery is phrasing (in imagery) that exploits or makes use of the sense of smell. Olfactory imagery is simply imagery that depicts what we smell.

The importance of olfactory imagery

Writing can be fun until you want to explain to your audience how good a room, food, flowers, anything in any of your scenes smells like and you can’t do it. It’s frustrating sometimes. Olfactory imagery makes it very easy to describe all the kinds of smells you deem fit for your narrative and your audience will experience the same. All you have to do is master the use of olfactory imagery.

Examples of nouns for a pleasant smell

Vanilla/ Butterscotch

Wine

Licorice

Chamomile

Cardamom

Chocolate

Coconut

Popcorn

Lemon/ Lime

Cinnamon

Anise

Orange

Pineapple

Mint

Meadows/ Lavender/ Honeysuckle/ Tuberose/ Jasmine/ Roses

Toast

Examples of nouns for an unpleasant smell

Burnt toast

Rotten eggs

Fish

Burnt tire

Sulfur

Burnt food

Burnt rubber

Morgue/ Corpse

Dirty socks

Greasy clothes

Burnt plastic

Sewage

Sweat

Greasy underwear (pretty gross! Right?)

Ammonia/ Bleach

Examples of adjectives for an unpleasant smell

Acidic

Burnt

Decaying

Noxious

Nauseating

Stale

Fetid

Caustic

Greasy

Putrid

Rancid

Dank/ Damp

Pungent

Examples of adjectives for a pleasant smell

Scented

Perfumy

Refreshing

Wooden

Aromatic

Lemony

Fragrant

Floral

Redolent

Oceanic

How to use olfactory imagery

Establish the type of smell

You have to establish the type of smell you want to describe in your story. Is it a pleasant smell? Is it an unpleasant smell? What produces the smell you want to talk about? Does it have a natural source? Is it artificial? Once you answer these questions, it will be easier for you to describe your intended smell. For example, if you are talking about a natural environment such as a forest, using (natural) floral scents to describe what you smell will be more appropriate than using artificial scents.

Establishing the type of smell you wish to describe will also sharpen the effect of your words on the reader. For example, if you are not sure whether the smell you are describing is good or bad, you won’t use appropriate words and the whole idea of the smell will come out awkwardly to your reader.

Use appropriate words when describing a smell

Take a look at the following examples:

The morning air smelled really good. (Example one)

The morning air was full of a fresh jasmine scent. (Example two)

Now, as much as the first sentence describes a good smell, it is almost vague to the reader. It only gives the reader an idea that the smell is good.

For the second sentence, the reader gets a precise olfactory image. The reader automatically imagines the smell of the morning air combined with the scent of fresh jasmine.

More examples of the use of olfactory imagery

The smell of caramel popcorn in the alley behind the cafe made Karrueche hungry.

He held his handkerchief tighter to his nose as if it could block away from the strong smell of wet paint.

As she leaned closer to hug him, her cherry blossom perfume filled his nostrils and he loved it.

The contractors who were supposed to renovate the old store were treated to the smell of rotten eggs and dead mice.

Sources

https://oakwords.com/olfactory-imagery-literary-examples