Dimensions
148 x 224 x 32mm
Why did cannabis become illegal in the 20th century? How effective will changes to licensing laws be in changing our drinking habits? And what does opium and LSD use have in common?
'Matters of Substance' presents a radical and lucid approach to the much-debated question of drug control. Arguing for a consideration of all drugs - from valium to crack cocaine - as more than its chemical structure, Griffith Edwards expands the idea that the effect of a drug is just as dependent on the social setting, historical legacy and the psychology of the individual as it is on any inherent quality of the drug.
Exploring attitudes and control of drugs across the world - from the social use of khat in the Yemen to curbs on smoking in the bars of New York - Matters of Substance places our various use's and abuses of drugs in the web of ideas we hold about personal freedom, the right to pleasure, the responsibilities of government and the impact of globalization.
