Howard Becker's "Becoming a Marijuana User" illustrates the idea that smoking marijuana is a social construction and the feeling of addiction is a controversial issue. Whether it's smoking marijuana, cigarettes, or shopping or taking some kind of drugs, there is an issue of whether our brains are creating the addiction because we like the social concept of doing that action or if we are really addicted.
One personal example would be taking drugs, for example, allergy medication. Before, when I was in high school, I had problems with allergy and getting puffy eyes and mouth. I went to the doctor's to get tested and they prescribed me allergy medicine to cease the puffiness. However, they said that the puffiness occurring would eventually subside with time and to this day, I am still taking medication. Now when I stop taking medication, the feeling of becoming puffy again would appear, yet is that due to the fact that I know I'm not taking my medication and bring that feeling upon myself or is it because I really need the medication? This example signifies how addiction can be viewed from two positions, the idea that it really is addiction and the idea of the brain making one addicted.
Another example of addiction is my father smoking cigarettes before. Since he was a teenager, he smoked cigarettes, partly because of the culture. Therefore, this is an example of smoking cigarettes being a social construction just as how marijuana was in Becker's article. It was supposedly an addiction for him, however, when my little brother complained to him about the odor of his cigars, he quit smoking without any hesitation. That must mean that smoking is really just a way to link with other people and the culture of society if quitting smoking is really that easy to do. So therefore, the addiction to marijuana must also be just a way to link with others socially.
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