Howard Becker had an intriguing argument in his study “Becoming a Marijuana User.” He stated “The presence of a given kind of behavior is the result of sequence of social experiences during which the person acquires a conception of the meaning of behavior, and perceptions and judgments of objects and situations.” This brought up in an interesting idea that the drug is not is what is addictive; it is the social construct of it. A person is addicted to the idea behind it such as hanging out with friends and bonding over the experience in that particular sub-culture more than they could ever actually be addicted to the marijuana. It is the behavior that is addictive to these people and the social connection they gain by doing it. This can relate to a lot of people with “addictive” habits, not the thing itself but behavior behind it and what one can get out of the experience.
Expanding on this argument is the idea of Harry Potter. The movies and novels of the Harry Potter series have made an enormous amount of money for everybody involved because of the huge fan base they have. I know myself personally, I feel like I am “addicted” to Harry Potter when it comes to reading the books and seeing the movies. I always went to the midnight premieres and when the books came out I would read the newest one as fast as I could. It social construction behind it with the idea that my friends are also reading the books and going to see the movies with me so we can all bond over the “magical” experience of Harry Potter. I do enjoy reading the books and seeing the movies but part of the fun is that my friends are also doing it. It is addicting to talk about the subject because there is much complexity to it. Therefore I feel as though I am part of a Harry Potter sub-culture in society because of this common interest with other people.
My experience with Harry Potter helps me to understand Howard Becker’s argument about being a marijuana smoker. It is the social construct behind the idea of it.
I think one of the reasons I like Harry Potter so much is because my dad, sister, and I always went to see the Harry Potter movies when they came out. That was our tradition that we had as I was growing up. I can relate to the ideas you mentioned here. It is a wonderful story line, but the thing that makes me love it the most is getting excited to go see them with my family and sharing that experience of seeing the movies for the first time together. It was good family bonding time.
ReplyDeleteI wrote my blog post about the same concept (just specifically Harry Potter addiction). I don't understand the social rewards of Harry Potter because I never really got into the books or movies, whereas some of my friends are total Potter fiends. It's all about your position! Can I enjoy the "high" of going to one Harry Potter movie if we haven't read all the books and seen all the movies? Not nearly as much as the true die-hard Potter fan. They have more to discuss with other HP fans and I simply don't. Once again, addictions are all about position!
ReplyDeleteThe Harry Potter culture was and is my ultimate love affair. I cannot get enough of the storyline, character development and the idea of magic. I cannot believe that something so unrealistic has taken hold of so many people of different age. I do however agree that whether or not your friends like Harry Potter has an enormous effect on how you enjoy Harry Potter as well how you can express your passion for it.
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