Honors Projects

Abstract

This paper analyzes the use of gendered perfume marketing in the West. Drawing upon the work of Joe Schwartz, Sarah Evrett, and others, I examine the history of this phenomenon and the politics keeping the perfume market segregated by gender. How long has perfume existed? Has it always been so strict on who wears what fragrance? My results found that perfume has only been gendered since the Victorian era, dispelling the myth that gendered fragrance is the only way to market perfume. However, I also found that when gender neutral fragrances have been introduced, they have not had much staying power. The implications of these results speak to the limited mechanics of enacting change within a society, called the Overton Window Theory. This theory states that society can only handle so much change at one time without rejecting it. Because society is incapable of changing too quickly, the gendering of perfume will likely linger with us for many years to come. However, I conclude that marketing tactics are only that: marketing tactics. In our new age of free gender expression and loosening gender roles, judgement surrounding wearing a perfume of the opposite gender carries less weight, making it more socially acceptable to defy marketing tactics and wear what you want to wear.

Major

Art – BFA in Digital Arts

First Advisor

Dena Eber

First Advisor Department

School of Art

Second Advisor

Dr. Jeffrey Brown

Second Advisor Department

Popular Culture

Third Advisor

Shawna Babula

Third Advisor Department

Honors Program

Publication Date

Spring 4-22-2026

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