Cultural Ritual Analysis

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Many people use drugs just for the effects, others however, will take a drug to try and increase performance, apart of a cultural ritual, or because of those around them using. Many college students will start taking Adderall or Ritalin to try and increase performance or to stay awake long enough to finish all of their work. Many Native American tribes used drugs like alcohol and tobacco as apart of rituals. You then have people who are apart of a great ecosystem of drug user, dealer, and seller who may get wrapped into drugs because they are apart of that group. College is a time where people have the most amount of pressure for academic and social success. Matthew D. Varga in the article Adderall Abuse on College Campuses discusses the many causes and effects of abusing the prescription drug Adderall and Ritalin. Varga points out four main reasons college age students will start abusing Adderall (Varga, p. 198). Number one being the pressure to succeed (Varga, p. 198). This can come from family members, yourself, pressure from scholarship programs and from your peers. The second factor being socio-cultural expectations, which could either come from academic expectations or social expectations (Varga, p. 199). Collegiate life style and how accessible prescription drugs such as Adderall and Ritalin are the third and fourth factor contributing to abuse (Varga, p. 199). Many people at Universities see Adderall has a none-harmful drug. However, according to Varga Adderall abusers are about 20 times more likely to start on harder drugs such as heroin or cocaine (Varga, p. 205). This is very troubling because many students find it relatively easy to get their hands on Adderall. Many family doctors will prescribe it at a young age and the student may start to sell or abuse their own stash. While others find it easy to get prescribed through the Universities health centers (Varga, p. 203). Edward Preble and John J. Casey in the article Taking Care of Business The Heroin Addict’s Life on the Street, talk about heroin users and how many who are on the street start using as an escape from their life (Preble, Casey, p. 211). Once they become street users they are very dependent on their dealer and the economic distribution on the streets (Preble, Casey, p. 211). There is a lot more behind the dealing and using of street heroin than you would like. The authors point out seven roles that people must have in the street distribution of heroin. The first role the authors mention is the lieutenant, who is the dealer who oversees his group of dealers who go out onto the streets to find the users (Preble, Casey, p. 217). Before they can sell a stash however, they need someone to test it to see if it is a good batch. This person is known as the tester (Preble, Casey, p. 217). The drop-man is the person to drop of the drugs to the dealers (Preble, Casey, p. 217). The salesman is someone who does not use the drugs but strictly sells it for money. This role is important …show more content…
Alcohol was often used to ferment corn, which was later used sparingly in tribe rituals (French, p. 227). People in Peru and Bolivia have been chewing on the leafs of a plant which cocaine can be extracted from for years prior to European use (French, p. 229). Many of the people of Peru and Bolivia felt the plant gave them strength and can satisfy hunger (French, p. 229). While Native American’s were using drugs such as alcohol and tobacco it was not has prevalent as some would make you believe. The use of alcohol was hardly used outside of rituals and even during rituals it was used sparingly because it was held at such a high regard (French, p. 229). Tobacco was often used in fires or smoked through a pipe during rituals and like the alcohol was held at a high regard and used sparingly (French, p. 230). Native American’s did not chew tobacco until white European settlers came and showed them how (French, p. 230). Which would later stem into the combining of tobacco and other substances to make a more ecstasy like substance (French, p.

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