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Part 1, Chapter 11
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Perfume, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Growing Up and Becoming Human
Power and Control
Creative Genius vs. Convention and Assimilation
Upward Mobility and Social Movement
Scent, Sight, and the Grotesque
Summary
Analysis
Baldini sits at his desk with a flacon (small bottle) of Amor and Psyche, and sets about trying to identify its components. He thinks it's disgustingly good as he sprinkles drops on a handkerchief and passes it under his nose. Angry at his delight at the perfume, he thinks of Pélissier as a wolf in sheep's clothing and vows to copy the perfume perfectly. Baldini collects paper and ink and begins to dissect the perfume.
The reader here is asked again to compare Baldini to Grenouille. We know already that this task would be insanely easy for Grenouille, but we see that Baldini has to work for it. This will provide Grenouille with another way in which he can feel superior to the rest of humanity.
Themes
