Nose

The nose is associated with intuition. One can "sniff out" things and "have a nose" for something. If something doesn’t seem right, but you can’t pinpoint why, it "smells fishy;" following one's nose means to follow one's instincts, and so on. For animals, a supposedly well-developed intuition goes hand in hand with a documented well-developed sense of smell, as seen in dogs.

To sniff out what is valuable, to find the trail like dogs, to catch the scent of what one is seeking, and so on, also involves the ability to orient oneself, to find the right path.

The Distinction of the Smell

Through the sense of the nose, humans have always determined whether something is "good" or "bad," valuable or worthless, and so forth. To a much greater extent than we realize or notice, smell determines the choice of partner. God breathed life into Adam through his nostrils (Genesis 2:7), because "they reject what is bad and receive what is good," according to a Jewish legend (Ginzberg, vol. 1, p. 26). Our appreciation for pleasant scents is also echoed in religious contexts, with fragrant offerings and incense.

Physical Attribute

The nose is literally what protrudes from our faces, symbolizing our physical identity, and has thus become a symbol for the entire personality. This has given rise to a certain vanity about the nose, on the one hand, and perhaps led to hasty assumptions about this feature on the other. This is suggested, for instance, by the nose's popularity in idioms around the world. To take an example besides those mentioned above and below: having "a strong nose" ("skinn på näsan" in Swedish) means being particularly steadfast in character.

In men, the nose, with its potentially somewhat phallic shape, has been associated with virility and related attributes. A man with a long nose was once believed to have a long penis; in 12th-century England, the nose was reportedly cut off as punishment for adultery; and when Napoleon sought a particularly potent leader, he looked for a man with "a substantial nose." On the other hand, rhinoplasty is one of the most common cosmetic surgeries for women today—but rarely to make the nose longer or more prominent.

As a physical attribute, the nose has been the subject of jokes, mockery, and criticism. Someone interfering in matters that don’t concern them is "sticking their nose where it doesn’t belong." If someone is "led by the nose," they have been deceived (which, admittedly, suggests a lack of intuition). The haughty person "has his nose in the air." When Pinocchio lied, his nose grew, and so on.

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