Introduction
The widespread use of drugs across the US is predetermined by a variety of historical and psychological patterns. At first, with the illegal substances appearance, our ancestors were not able to determine how they actually interacted with the human body and all the possible implications of such consumption. At the beginning of the 19th century, scientists started to examine drugs more meticulously and consequently discovered that some of them could serve not only to a recreational but also an instrumental purpose (Levinthal, 2016). Today, when drugs’ structure is almost fully examined, and their recreational use is prohibited by law, the number of people suffering from drug addiction is still steadily rising. The question that arises from such data is why people are still consciously poisoning themselves with drugs when they are well aware of the implications of such an addiction.
Main body
To answer the aforementioned question, it is necessary to analyze today’s mass culture. The issue of drug addiction is raised in the vast majority of new TV shows and films addressing younger generations. Such movies as “Trainspotting,” which is already considered to be classic, along with the latest releases such as the “Euphoria” mini-series are mostly focused on the topic of illegal substances consumption. Although these works consider both states of being drug-addled and having a withdrawal, the overall image of drug consuming is still romanticized. Another possible sphere of influence is the examples of prolific creators who could not imagine creating their oeuvre without the drug use. The most outstanding examples of such creators are Ernest Hemingway, Stephen King, and Vincent van Gogh. At the present time, as a result, there are a lot of creative minds who believe in the improvement of their artistic achievements through the use of various illegal substances.
Conclusion
Thus, even though the question of drug use spreading is still open for discussions, mass culture has inevitably become one of the major investors in the shockingly high number of people affected by drugs.
Reference
Levinthal, C. F. (2016). Drugs, behavior and modern society. London, England: Pearson Education.