When you look at a pencil, touch a book, you probably don't get an emotional response. But there is nothing quite like an odor to drive your emotions. Our sense of smell is tied directly and intimately to the part of our brain most involved with memory and emotion. As we studied the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, Brenda tried to give us an emotional response of disgust by lighting some sulfur. Because once you smell something, it's pretty well locked into your memory and your emotions.
Many people arriving in a foreign country often experience a phenomenon known as culture shock.
A large part of this is due to the new odors they experience and from the lack of familiar odors. The visitor isn't even aware that a missing smell is what is making him feel uncomfortable. Our reactions to odor largely depend on our experience with it and what our brain remembers. The smell of a varnished hall may bring the memory of high school back to many people. To one it may be a pleasant odor because of a memory of a puppy love with a boy whose locker was nearby.