In the Arms of Morpheus: The Tragic History of Morphine, Laudanum and Patent Medicines
by Barbara Hodgson
- Used
- very good
- Paperback
- Condition
- Very Good
- ISBN 10
- 1552975401
- ISBN 13
- 9781552975404
- Seller
-
Missoula, Montana, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
The follow-up to the widely praised Opium, In The Arms of Morpheus is the shocking story of how a simple but bewitching substance, touted as a miracle drug, enslaved unwitting generations of 19th century writers, artists and ordinary citizens. Extracted from opium, the sap of the poppy, this popular drug was welcomed into the homes of rich and poor alike, in the guise of medicinal uses in the form of laudanum and opium elixirs, and as pure, undisguised morphine.
Laudanum contained opium, saffron, cinnamon and alcohol. In the spirit of 19th century progress, other opium concoctions were created and a whole industry in quackery erupted. In both Britain and North America, opium was mixed with everything imaginable: mercury, hashish, cayenne pepper, ether, chloroform, belladonna and whisky, sherry, wine and brandy.
In the Arms of Morpheus examines how the drinking of laudanum for medical reasons developed and how it became an everyday safeguard against pain, poverty, and boredom. Opium eating was catapulted into fame by the confessions of Thomas De Quincy and insinuated itself into the lives and works of writers such as Louisa May Alcott, Lord Byron, Shelley, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, John Keats, the Brontes, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and many others.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- The Vespiary Book Restoration & Bindery (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- SQ1104424
- Title
- In the Arms of Morpheus
- Author
- Barbara Hodgson
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10
- 1552975401
- ISBN 13
- 9781552975404
- Publisher
- Firefly Books
- Place of Publication
- Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
- Date Published
- 2001-10
- Keywords
- morphine, history, drugs
- Bookseller catalogs
- General Non-Fiction;
Terms of Sale
The Vespiary Book Restoration & Bindery
About the Seller
The Vespiary Book Restoration & Bindery
About The Vespiary Book Restoration & Bindery
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Poor
- A book with significant wear and faults. A poor condition book is still a reading copy with the full text still readable. Any...