The Forbidden Game
Brian Inglis
Introduction
WE TAKE DRUGS FOR TWO MAIN REASONS; EITHER TO RESTORE ourselves
to the condition we regard as normal—to cure infections, and
to take away pain; or to release us from normality—to enable
us to feel more lively, or more relaxed; to alter our mood, or
our perceptions. It is with this second category (of drug use,
not of drugs; the drugs themselves may be the same) that I am
concerned. For some reason, there is no generally accepted colloquial
description. 'Narcotic' is quite familiar, but it has acquired
a pejorative tinge, and in any case it should properly be used
only about a drug used to induce drowsiness or stupor. For a while
'dope' did service, but by the time Tom Lehrer was singing about
the old dope peddler spreading joy wherever he went, it had begun
to slip out of favour, and is now more commonly used to describe
what is taken by athletes to improve their form, or given to racehorses
to upset the odds. I have stuck simply to the term 'drugs'.
I have used words like 'addiction' in their colloquial rather
than their more specialised clinical sense; and I have tried to
avoid the jargon of the pharmacologists, except when quoting it.
Their term for the mood-altering drugs, 'psychotropic', has established
itself; but they have yet to agree on how best to describe a drug
used to alter perception. The term most often employed, 'hallucinogen',
is both ugly and misleading, as the experiences are not necessarily
hallucinatory; but the commonest alternative, 'psychotomimetic',
is even uglier and more misleading, as the experiences do not
often resemble psychosis. 'Phantastica', which Louis Lewin tried
to popularise, has not caught on; nor, mercifully, have 'psychotogenic'
or 'psycholitic'; and Humphrey Osmond's 'psychedelic' has shifted
its meaning, in popular usage. I have preferred 'vision-inducing'.
There is another category of drugs which I had intended to include;
aphrodisiacs. I found, though, that virtually all the drugs known
to man, not to mention all sorts of foodstuffs and drinks which
are not ordinarily regarded as drugs, have had the reputation
at one time or another of stimulating sexual appetite, or improving
sexual performance. As the same drugs, at other times, have often
had the reputation of diminishing desire, and spoiling performance,
it is doubtful whether the category of aphrodisiac can be accepted,
except subjectively.
I have also dealt only in passing with the economic consequences
of drug use. For centuries, a vast acreage has been given over
to growing the plants which provide the raw material of drugs.
Huge sums have been spent on processing, distributing and retailing
the finished products, and on providing the accessories, from
public houses to hubble-bubbles. States have extracted immense
revenues from drug duties and used them to pay for everything
from social services to guided missiles. Obviously the influence
of drugs on the world's economy has been incalculable; but to
deal adequately with this aspect of the subject would require
another, and a very different, book.
The reasons for some other omissions will be found in the section
on sources. But there is also one inclusion, which I find sometimes
causes surprise. Alcohol is clearly a drug; the drug, of our civilisation
and many before. But it has also long been consumed, often primarily,
as a beverage. I have dealt with attitudes to drink, and legislation
designed to control drinking, only when they have been inspired
by fears of its effects when used as a drug.