RHSMstoner
Bluelighter
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2001
- Messages
- 39
The assignment for this essay was to adress an issue from Huxley's Brave New world and how it relates to america... or something like that. My topic, interestingly enough is chemical escapism (teehee). Anyway, here's what i have so far:
In Adlous Huxley’s Brave New World, citizens of the new world turn to mind-altering chemicals to maintain the stability of their lives. If a person becomes overwhelmed with negative emotions, he or she takes a few Somas in order to return to a normal state of pleasure. The chemical intake of the new world’s citizens serves both recreational and practical purposes, keeping the people happy as well as efficient and productive. A great percentage of American citizens participate in forms of chemical escapism similar to what is described in the novel.
The drug that best embodies the dependence on chemical “entertainment” in America is alcohol. Alcohol is essentially the only drug whose abuse is both tolerated and oftentimes encouraged in the modern world. Beer commercials promise entertainment and happiness in conjunction with the use of their product, and the sweat stained slob wearing a hole in his couch watches them wondering why his life is different from the one he sees on TV, but takes another sip anyway.
America’s drug laws categorize drugs into schedules, ranging from Schedule V to Schedule I, Schedule I being the most illegal. Schedule II drugs fit the following parameters: the drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse; abuse of the drug or other substance may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence; the drug or other substance has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States or a currently accepted medical use with severe restrictions. The only reason alcohol does not fit these parameters is that it is not used medicinally. Schedule I is reserved primarily for hallucinogenic drugs, so there is no place for alcohol there either. The American system of drug laws seems to conveniently overlook alcohol. I present this argument not to advocate the prohibition of alcohol, but to point out the fact that America may want to keep its citizens drinking for a reason. Alcohol is definitely not a mind-expanding drug. Under its influence, people do a lot of yelling, laughing, and fornicating. They wake up with a headache and foggy memories of the preceding night, thinking about how excited they are for next weekend, but know that they need to be good productive members of society for another five or six days until their next liquid vacation.
I understand that my argument makes several generalizations, but the point I am trying to make is that the general public sees little or no problem with the use of a drug that can be extremely dangerous. Someone may be terrified of certain illicit drugs because the media tells them to be, but have no problem buying a bottle of Absolut after seeing a cute ad in the latest issue of Sports Illustrated. Alcohol is offered to students and members of the work force as a tasty reward for a week of hard work.
In Adlous Huxley’s Brave New World, citizens of the new world turn to mind-altering chemicals to maintain the stability of their lives. If a person becomes overwhelmed with negative emotions, he or she takes a few Somas in order to return to a normal state of pleasure. The chemical intake of the new world’s citizens serves both recreational and practical purposes, keeping the people happy as well as efficient and productive. A great percentage of American citizens participate in forms of chemical escapism similar to what is described in the novel.
The drug that best embodies the dependence on chemical “entertainment” in America is alcohol. Alcohol is essentially the only drug whose abuse is both tolerated and oftentimes encouraged in the modern world. Beer commercials promise entertainment and happiness in conjunction with the use of their product, and the sweat stained slob wearing a hole in his couch watches them wondering why his life is different from the one he sees on TV, but takes another sip anyway.
America’s drug laws categorize drugs into schedules, ranging from Schedule V to Schedule I, Schedule I being the most illegal. Schedule II drugs fit the following parameters: the drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse; abuse of the drug or other substance may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence; the drug or other substance has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States or a currently accepted medical use with severe restrictions. The only reason alcohol does not fit these parameters is that it is not used medicinally. Schedule I is reserved primarily for hallucinogenic drugs, so there is no place for alcohol there either. The American system of drug laws seems to conveniently overlook alcohol. I present this argument not to advocate the prohibition of alcohol, but to point out the fact that America may want to keep its citizens drinking for a reason. Alcohol is definitely not a mind-expanding drug. Under its influence, people do a lot of yelling, laughing, and fornicating. They wake up with a headache and foggy memories of the preceding night, thinking about how excited they are for next weekend, but know that they need to be good productive members of society for another five or six days until their next liquid vacation.
I understand that my argument makes several generalizations, but the point I am trying to make is that the general public sees little or no problem with the use of a drug that can be extremely dangerous. Someone may be terrified of certain illicit drugs because the media tells them to be, but have no problem buying a bottle of Absolut after seeing a cute ad in the latest issue of Sports Illustrated. Alcohol is offered to students and members of the work force as a tasty reward for a week of hard work.
