ABSTRACT
Thomas De Quincey Confessions of an English Opium-Eater is often cited as a key factor behind the reversal in opium's reputation over the course of the nineteenth century from a popular household remedy to a potentially dangerous substance in need of medical supervision and governmental control. While opium's addictive dangers were immediately registered in Britain, intemperance was more quickly recognized. Especially notable is Lamb's distinction between two temperaments or constitutional types which are affected altogether differently by alcohol. As in his writings on murderers and opium-eaters, De Quincey is inclined to suspend moral judgment on persons who drink to excess. The subject of addiction is raised at the end of 'Coleridge and Opium Eating', but only with respect to opium. The digressiveness and tonal disparity of the essay's midsection are typical of De Quincey peculiar brand of romantic irony.
