Esprit Simply You for Her & Him (2012): The Mating Ritual of Love Vs. Courtly Love {New Fragrance} {Perfume Images & Ads}
Esprit have launched a new duo of perfumes called Simply You for Her and Him. The crisp, pared-down lines of the flacons, the neutral colors, as well as the love message carried by the project seem to be principally about tapping into a constituency of consumers attracted by the real-simple lifestyle, that is until you watch the TV commercial featuring model Christy Turlington, which seems to be more about ethology than human courtship...
"A love story. Simple, natural and authentic. Uniting men and women together in a sincere and genuine love. A relaxed, tender ESPRIT feeling. Faith in one’s self and in each other. An outlook based on confidence that makes you feel good and look great. Cool, calm, collected … and in love.
Simply You, the new duo fragrance by Esprit."
The illustration of this idea appears in the video below.
We're afraid, the ad just wants to comfort people who are inane at courtship. It is, in our view, an over-simplification, and a lowest-common-denominator rendering of love as a cultured form of interaction between erotic partners.
Try reading some Occitan courtly love poetry and feel the difference. We think we just got our idea for a cycle of 2013 Valentine's Day posts.
It is also not good for the cause of olfaction, making it look brainless and about primitive signals.
We think you can play this register provided there is humor. Although we laughed at the ad, it obviously is not supposed to be funny but rather efficacious.
Plainly, we are faced with a mating ritual which apes would approve of.
In an age where Internet is lowering standards of human decency, this is one more nail in the coffin of those who value humanism, and perfume as a subtle art.
The fragrance compositions themselves sound less caricatural.
"Simply You for women:
Her Simply you opens with all the tangy-fresh luminosity of tangerine and bergamot, while neroli
adds a soft, airy touch leading into a dazzling floral heart. The redolence of heliotrope, bright orange
flower and powdery orris root are as light as his whisper in your ear. A final caress of woody-musky
notes project silky, ultra-feminine elegance and seductive mystery.
Simply You for men:
His Simply You proclaims natural magnetism with an opening of sparkling bergamot and Italian
lemon spiced with black pepper, encapsulating happy vitality and a manly heart. Next comes a wave
of nutmeg, clary sage and geranium Africa wrapped in spicy vibrations conveying the ESPRIT spirit.
The noble richness of patchouli and cedarwood sustain the authentic essence of the fragrance carried
on a warm, sensual, contemporary note of benzoin."
Via Esprit
