Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
 
Artificial Paradises (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics)
 
See larger image
 

Artificial Paradises (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics) (Paperback)

by Mike Jay (Editor)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.


7 used from £5.06

Customers Viewing This Page May Be Interested in These Sponsored Links

  (What is this?)
   Original Penguin Sale opens new browser window
www.NoFlysOnUs.Com/Penguin  -  upto 70% Off All original Penguin One week Only, Uk Next Day Delivery 
   Century Classic opens new browser window
Become.co.uk/Pens  -  Start writing with new pens. Find good deals here. 
   Penguin Classic opens new browser window
Ask.com  -  Search for Penguin Classic Find Penguin classic 
  
 

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Emperors of Dreams : Drugs in the Nineteenth Century

Emperors of Dreams : Drugs in the Nineteenth Century

by Mike Jay
5.0 out of 5 stars (2)  £7.49
Requiem For A Dream [DVD] [2001]

Requiem For A Dream [DVD] [2001]

DVD ~ Ellen Burstyn
4.4 out of 5 stars (122)  £4.48
Explore similar items

Product details

  • Paperback: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; 1st ed. edition (13 Sep 1999)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 014118115X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0141181158
  • Product Dimensions: 21.5 x 13.7 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 731,239 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

Times change--who would have thought that we'd ever see a non-judgemental mainstream anthology of writings about mind-altering drugs? Editor Mike Jay delivers scores of well-selected hits of wild wisdom from Homer and his cronies to William Burroughs in Artificial Paradises. His mild-mannered but insightful introductions and links between pieces prime the reader for a series of expansive trips through other people's minds as they grapple with various medical, moral, artistic and spiritual puzzlers posed by drugs. Hopped-up coke fiend Sigmund Freud rants about his favourite little helper while painter Henri Michaux complains that mescaline is a poor muse. The pieces are usually amusing and sometimes penetrating. Jay wisely avoids most of the propaganda we've been over-subjected to in recent decades, instead focusing on the experience and assessment of drugs and their cultural value. Sections include "Researches Chemical and Philosophical: Drugs and Science" and "The Algebra of Need: Drugs and Addiction", with selections from such disparate writers as Jean Cocteau and Thomas Szasz. Most of the pieces are very short--one or two pages--but highly concentrated, giving an immediate sense of the author's intent and attitudes, often inspiring a trip to the library for another dose. When it's time to turn on, tune in and drop out, prepare yourself with the guidance of Artificial Paradises. --Rob Lightner


Product Description

Revealing the diverse roles mind-altering drugs have played throughout history, this collection brings together a multiplicity of voices which explore the presence of drugs in science and religion, pleasure and madness, individualism and social control.

Tag this product

 (What's this?)
Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.
Your tags: Add your first tag
 

 

Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly readable anthology of drugs in literature, 19 Dec 1999
By A Customer
Excellent assemblage of passages and thoughts from writers, scientists and religionists about drugs through the ages - and mercifully, polemicists (whether pro or anti) are excluded. Do get it ... you'll find yourself dipping into Baudelaire and Conan Doyle as never before ... of course, drugs hee means the smoking, sniffing, injecting type - rather than nicotine or alcohol - and the perspective is understandably mainly Western, though there are many excerpts from Native Americans and others who used drugs as a route to the infinite ... Not faddish but extremely erudite in a casual, balanced way.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Rich, varied and exhilarating survey of drug literature, 10 Mar 2000
By A Customer
A well researched and organised anthology - you start to dip and end up reading it from cover to cover. Clinical science, literature, anthropology and poetry are wittily and intriguingly juxtaposed. For more on the ancient history of drugs and religion, check out Mike Jay's mindblowing 'Blue Tide: The Search for Soma'.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly readable anthology or drugs in literature, 19 Dec 1999
By A Customer
Excellent assemblage of passages and thoughts from writers, scientists and religionists about drugs through the ages - and mercifully, polemicists (whether pro or anti) are excluded. Do get it ... you'll find yourself dipping into Baudelaire and Conan Doyle as never before ...
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
Only search this product's reviews



Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Look for similar items by category


Look for similar items by subject


Feedback


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.