ENGLISH

The Social Value of Drug Addicts: Uses of the Useless

By Merrill Singer , J Bryan Page

Book information

Publisher
Routledge
Year
2013
ISBN
1611321174, 9781611321173
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
2 MB (1634350 bytes)
Edition
1
Pages
248\249
Time added
2017-07-11 13:58:14
Public Health;Epidemiology;Administration & MediciUsed & Rental Textbooks;Specialty BoutiqueUsed & Rental Textbooks;Specialty Boutique;AnthropUsed & Rental Textbooks;Specialty Boutique;Sociolo

Description

Drug users are typically portrayed as worthless slackers, burdens on society, and just plain useless―culturally, morally, and economically. By contrast, this book argues that the social construction of some people as useless is in fact extremely useful to other people. Leading medical anthropologists Merrill Singer and J. Bryan Page analyze media representations, drug policy, and underlying social structures to show what industries and social sectors benefit from the criminalization, demonization, and even popular glamorization of addicts. Synthesizing a broad range of key literature and advancing innovative arguments about the social construction of drug users and their role in contemporary society, this book is an important contribution to public health, medical anthropology, popular culture, and related fields.

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