This article in the London Times discusses the history of bathing and cleanliness. It appears that what we think is cleanliness is not universal or timeless – but a complicated, constantly evolving phenomenon. Every culture defines cleanliness for itself, choosing what it sees as the perfect point between squalid and over-fastidious.
The nose is adaptable. Twenty years ago most aircraft, restaurants, hotel rooms and most other public indoor spaces were thick with cigarette smoke - now that these places are usually smoke-free, we can tell instantly when there is smoke in the room. And…..as the author notes, there is no evidence that the birth rate ever fell because people were too smelly for sex……
3 comments:
I came from a family of smokers and I honestly do not remember coming home and thinking that the house smelled disgusting. Now, as you said we notice immediately if someone has been near a smoker or someone lit up a cigaret or worse cigar.
The number of hygiene products never fails to amaze me, yet what I consider pleasant a nice perfum is banned in many places like gyms where we do get sweaty and unpleasant. Guess they want to avoid the mix of the two.
We don't need to travel through time to notice differences in attitudes towards hygiene a tour of the world will reveal differences even among so called advanced societies.
Time to go and shower- taking a morning shower which those people who are the evening people don't understand and vice versa.
Nora
That is true - morning shower people and evening shower people will never meet..... that is another essay for sure......
No if you combine a morning shower person and a evening shower person that is the best. That way you never have to fight for it or wait
J
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