David T. Courtwright is Professor of History at the University of North Florida and author of Violent Land: Single Men and Social Disorder from the Frontier to the Inner City and Dark Paradise: A History of Opiate Addiction in America.
"Forces of Habit" offers an ambitious interpretation of a
challenging topic: the evolution of drug use and drug policy
through time and across continents. Happily, it does this with no
axe to grind. Most books in this genre that transcend the purely
descriptive adopt a sensationalistic muckraking tone untroubled by
coherence, let alone analysis...In refreshing contrast, David
Courtwright has produced a serious book about a serious topic, and
it is a fun read to boot. His explanation of how we got to where we
are with drugs succeeds in large measure by focusing on the
commonalities across different substances. The central insight of
this book is that when viewed from a broad perspective, most
psychoactive substances have similar histories.--Jonathan P.
Caulkins"Issues in Science and Technology" (08/01/2001)
[Courtwright's] clearly written, thoughtful book...is unique in its
broad scope...There is a lot to keep straight in this readable
account. Though not a comprehensive history of drugs, it is good at
identifying the trends and patterns from about the sixteenth
century that have brought about Courtwright's 'psychoactive
revolution.' This is the book to go to when planning an assault on
"Jeopardy!"--Barbara Liss"Houston Chronicle" (04/01/2001)
[This book] couldn't be more timely arriving amid challenges to
national drug policy...[It] is refreshingly evenhanded, potentially
enlightening both to legalization proponents and those who consider
tough anti-drug laws a moral imperative. Compact, quick-paced and
witty..."Forces of Habit" is athorough chronicle of a vast,
complicated problem. Readers who think they know the solution to
the drug dilemma are likely to come away with a better
understanding of what a mess it really is.--Katy Read"Minneapolis
Star Tribune" (05/15/2001)
[With] entertaining details...[Courtwright's] lively writing spices
up a serious take on a grave subject. While Courtwright sees licit
substances like tea and illegal heavy-hitters like cocaine as two
ends of the same spectrum, he's by no means trying to minimize the
dangers of drugs. Rather, he wants to lay out the history
clearly--perhaps partly hoping that if policy setters understand
how drug use spread so widely and deeply, they'll be better
equipped to fight it.--Polly Shulman"Newsday" (03/18/2001)
A compact yet exhaustive look at the history of drug use and
production. Its pace is swift, and its evenhanded approach offers
much to enlighten those on all sides of the drug debate...[This
book] couldn't be more timely, arriving amid challenges to the
national drug policy...[It's] refreshingly evenhanded, potentially
enlightening both to legalization proponents and those who consider
tough anti-drug laws a moral imperative...[Courtwright's] sources
range from anthropologists to tobacco industry executives. Compact,
quick-paced and witty, the book is sprinkled with small startling
details, such as the fact that East African lions have learned to
prey upon drunks staggering home from roadside bars. "Forces of
Habit" is a thorough chronicle of a vast, complicated
problem.--Katy Read "Minneapolis Star Tribune "
Alcohol joins caffeine and tobacco to round out what Courtwright
calls the "big three" of currently legal psychoactive drugs. As he
sees it, modern civilization is practically unthinkable without
this trio. But why have they fared so well while equally
intoxicating substances--like, say, marijuana--are banned and
stigmatized, and others--like kava, khat and betel--are popular
only in distinct geographic areas? And why is tobacco currently
falling in popularity, while alcohol and caffeine are holding their
grip on us? These questions are only partly answered in
Courtwright's otherwise excellent book, but that's not really his
fault. Drugs are as deceptive and multifaceted as the human beings
whose metabolisms they mess with; a history of drugs may be
possible, but an analysis of their role in culture is bound to be
incomplete and provisional. There are simply too many ways to tell
the story...Courtwright's historical investigation is solid and
fascinating.--Maria Russo "Salon.com "
Courtwright tackles every one of the so-called psychoactive drugs.
Some might find his scope surprising. Drugs are divided roughly
into two kinds, 'hard' and 'soft'. Heroin and cocaine are hard,
cannabis and ecstasy soft. Most people recognize that alcohol and
tobacco are also drugs, but don't think about them much. Still less
do they consider the everyday drugs they indulge in. Courtwright
does and includes them: tea, chocolate, coffee and coca. All over
the world, people discovered natural substances that affected
consciousness. Then came international trade in some drugs. It had
immense social effects, good and bad. Courtwright writes engagingly
and with humor, not discouraged by the daunting field he has to
cover.--Roy Herbert"New Scientist" (09/01/2001)
This book offers a fascinating, entertaining, and perceptive
account of how politics, profit, and pleasure have shaped
contemporary attitudes about psychoactive substances...In "Forces
of Habit" [Courtwright] reviews, with calm reason and humor,
histories of the use and abuse of a complete spectrum of
psychoactive substances including alcohol, tobacco, caffeine,
opiates, cannabis, cocaine, and hallucinogens...Courtwright
presents a fresh and discerning discussion of contemporary issues
and problems surrounding both illicit and legalized drugs.--Jack H.
Mendelson"Science" (06/01/2001)
While we are very used to thinking of illegal drugs as destructive,
historian David Courtwright vividly demonstrates...that most of
these psychoactive substances have exacted and still exact a heavy
toll...Courtwright, a historian who has written earlier admired
books examining illegal drugs and the nature of violence in
America, describes the rise of the global drug trade, discusses why
some drugs are more popular than others, and then considers the
intersection of drugs and political and economic power...What then
caused the commercial and political leaders of the western world,
who were profiting so wonderfully from the psychoactive revolution
to reconsider their avid promotion of these products? In a phrase:
the industrial revolution. As Courtwright so succinctly puts it, "A
drunken field hand was one thing, a drunken railroad brakeman quite
another."--Jill Jonnes"Baltimore Sun" (04/22/2001)
Why is tobacco legal and marijuana illegal? What is the difference
between nations using alcohol to lure natives into questionable
transactions, and drug dealers selling their products in dark
corners (or broad daylight)? David Courtwright's illuminating
history of drugs in the modern world will shock and surprise
readers who still believe that only criminals use--and
want--drugs.--Lee Milazzo "Dallas Morning News "
A penetrating study of what the author deems one of the most
significant events in world history: the 'psychoactive
revolution'...Courtwright traces the origins of [psychoactive]
substances, showing how political and economic forces have combined
to 'transform the everyday consciousness of billions of people and,
eventually, the environment itself.' His tale is endlessly
fascinating, with oddments enough to enliven a thousand
dissertations and cocktail parties...He has succeeded admirably in
a book likely to become a standard.
In this engaging study, [Courtwright] shows how body-and
mind-altering plants and their byproducts, as well as synthetic
compounds, have also radically changed agriculture, commerce,
religion, law and government as 'drug cultivation and
manufacturing' have become big business. His argument is founded on
an intriguing and encyclopedic array of information...In his
discussions of the attempts and failures to do away with these
substances...Courtwright's exhaustive details cohere in a complex
portrait of how psychoactive substances are not only part of human
experience but, in many ways, fundamental to our view of
civilization.
ÝCourtwright's¨ clearly written, thoughtful book...is unique in its
broad scope...There is a lot to keep straight in this readable
account. Though not a comprehensive history of drugs, it is good at
identifying the trends and patterns from about the sixteenth
century that have brought about Courtwright's 'psychoactive
revolution.' This is the book to go to when planning an assault on
"Jeopardy!" -- Barbara Liss "Houston Chronicle" (04/01/2001)
ÝThis book¨ couldn't be more timely arriving amid challenges to
national drug policy...ÝIt¨ is refreshingly evenhanded, potentially
enlightening both to legalization proponents and those who consider
tough anti-drug laws a moral imperative. Compact, quick-paced and
witty..."Forces of Habit" is a thorough chronicle of a vast,
complicated problem. Readers who think they know the solution to
the drug dilemma are likely to come away with a better
understanding of what a mess it really is. -- Katy Read
"Minneapolis Star Tribune" (05/15/2001)
ÝWith¨ entertaining details...ÝCourtwright's¨ lively writing spices
up a serious take on a grave subject. While Courtwright sees licit
substances like tea and illegal heavy-hitters like cocaine as two
ends of the same spectrum, he's by no means trying to minimize the
dangers of drugs. Rather, he wants to lay out the history
clearly--perhaps partly hoping that if policy setters understand
how drug use spread so widely and deeply, they'll be better
equipped to fight it. -- Polly Shulman "Newsday" (03/18/2001)
A global history of the acquisition of progressively more potent
means of altering ordinary waking consciousness, this book is the
first to provide the big picture of the discovery, interchange, and
exploitation of the planet's psychoactive resources, from tea and
kola to opiates and amphetamines.
In this engaging study, ÝCourtwright¨ shows how body-and
mind-altering plants and their byproducts, as well as synthetic
compounds, have also radically changed agriculture, commerce,
religion, law and government as 'drug cultivation and
manufacturing' have become big business. His argument is founded on
an intriguing and encyclopedic array of information...In his
discussions of the attempts and failures to do away with these
substances...Courtwright's exhaustive details cohere in a complex
portrait of how psychoactive substances are not only part of human
experience but, in many ways, fundamental to our view of
civilization.
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