Addicted for Five Hundred Years: Addictive Substances and the Formation of the Modern World

Author: David Courtwright (USA)
Translator: Xue Xian
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: This book provides a historical examination and exploration of drugs such as coffee, tobacco, tea, opium, and cocaine from the perspectives of sociology and biology. It details the entire process of how these substances were discovered, utilized, and profited from, making it a work of cultural history on drugs. Addicted: A History of Drugs in the Western World is a rich and engaging history of drugs, where the author starts with the "minor topic" of "addictive drugs" to write a grand-scale world history, offering eye-opening insights. Reading this book will give readers a fresh perspective on the course of human history and its driving forces. The book analyzes stimulants that include legal substances like tobacco, alcohol, tea, and coffee, as well as non-mainstream, 20th-century illegal drugs like opium, cocaine, and marijuana.
First, the author explores the origins of these stimulants and how they spread and converged through European maritime trade and colonialism. Next, the author discusses how these substances were marketed and spread around the world. Whether it's the process of drugs moving from medical use to abuse or the rise of American cigarette tycoons, the book vividly portrays these developments. Finally, the author examines the relationship between drugs and power, including how national drug policies are shaped by various forces such as public consumption desires, tax revenue, social costs, and public health considerations, as well as how imperial powers and multinational corporations manipulate the stimulant market, and the struggles between prohibitionists and substance users.
The book argues that the profound influence of stimulants stems from both human biological evolution and historical forces like trade, politics, and culture, with a significant role played by chance. While these substances certainly have physiological effects, their prevalence is also deeply tied to social and cultural factors. For example, capitalism's emphasis on maximizing profits and the culture of instant gratification through continuous consumption have driven the production and sale of drugs while also motivating their use. Alcohol, tobacco, and opium have also become effective tools for ruling classes—such as high-ranking officers and colonial plantation owners—to control and exploit lower groups like indigenous peoples, slaves, and laborers.
Beyond economic and cultural discussions, the author also cites research from ecological history, highlighting the significant environmental damage caused by the widespread use of these substances. The cultivation of coffee and tobacco has led to deforestation, soil degradation, and pollution from the extensive use of chemical fertilizers and herbicides. The illegal production of cocaine in Central and South America has not only contributed to serious crime but has also severely damaged valuable tropical rainforests and threatened the survival of many rare species. These ecological impacts are important aspects that have often been overlooked in past discussions of drugs.
The author's writing is lively and humorous, combining rigorous analysis and commentary with solid statistical data (some of which is quite striking, such as the fact that in the early 20th century, China's smoking population was comparable to Russia's vodka consumption). There are also many vivid details and anecdotes, including the extraordinary methods of smugglers and the comments of writers and politicians, making the book highly engaging and never dull. This historical writing skill serves as an exemplary model for future scholars.
The book covers a vast range and span of time, and if one were to look for gaps, it might seem like "seeing the trees but missing the forest." Here, two points are noted: First, the book's discussion of the creative role of stimulants in modern culture, such as their significant influence on literature, painting, music (like 1960s rock music), is too weak. Second, the book's arguments remain centered on Europe, although it does discuss opium in this "non-Western" region and the cannabis culture in India, the role of drugs in non-Western societies, such as the chewing of coca leaves in indigenous cultures in Central and South America, is still insufficiently explored. This also makes us think about Taiwan's betel nut culture—when will there be a similar historical analysis?
The translation is fluent and has its strengths, but there are still some points worth debating. For example, translating "ganjacomplex" as "" may not be entirely appropriate, as the term refers not only to psychological effects but also to clothing, daily necessities, diet, and medicinal uses, covering multiple layers of ritual, medical, and material culture. The psychological connotation of "" is too narrow. Additionally, the rich notes, bibliography, preface, and useful index in the original book have all been omitted in the Chinese translation.
This book provides a historical examination and exploration of drugs such as coffee, tobacco, tea, opium, and cocaine from the perspectives of sociology and biology. It details the entire process of how these substances were discovered, utilized, and profited from, making it a work of cultural history on drugs. The book examines the historical development of stimulants from a sociological and biological perspective, detailing how they were discovered, traded, and profited from, tracing the path of popular stimulants into global trade and revealing the conflicts and compromises between the autonomy of stimulant use and national economic systems and social norms. It is one of the most comprehensive works on the cultural history of stimulants to date.
The author's intention in writing this book is to remind us that the development of psychotropic drugs and the revolution of stimulants could lead humanity to an extreme realm of hallucinatory dreams or, conversely, to an inverse utopia. The book delves deeply into the subject with balanced insights and elegant writing, making it a must-read masterpiece that spans both world history and the history of drugs. It provides a broad exploration, rational judgment, and a playful yet serious humor for a topic that is often either underinformed or overhyped.