Cambridge teacher earns PhD with thesis on ‘politics of smell,’ leaves internet divided

A recent post on X about a completed PhD dissertation has caused a stir online, not because of the achievement itself but due to the unusual topic of the research. A Cambridge teacher’s PhD on "the politics of smell" sparked viral debate online. An unconventional topic Dr Louks revealed that her thesis, titled "Olfactory Ethics: The Politics of Smell in Modern and Contemporary Prose," focused on exploring the politics of scent within literature. According to Dr Louks, her research studied how the language of smell and its imaginative representation in literature help structure social dynamics, including gender, race, class, and even species power structures. Smell influences human perception in subtle ways we don't often consider," one wrote, while another said, "It's a creative and bold topic for a PhD.