In search of lost time: recall, projection and the phenomenology of addiction

Reith, G. (1999) In search of lost time: recall, projection and the phenomenology of addiction. Time and Society, 8(1), pp. 99-117. (doi: 10.1177/0961463X99008001005)

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Publisher's URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0961463X99008001005

Abstract

This article presents data from research carried out among a sample of ex-opiate addicts. It argues that notions of temporality are important and hitherto unexamined features of the experience of addiction. For the individuals in this sample the state of addiction itself was described as a period of `lost time' characterized by an inability to envisage the future. In it, individuals described amnesiac episodes in which they fell into a kind of `narcotic slumber' which often lasted for the duration of their addiction career. The recovery from addiction was expressed as a regaining of a sense of temporality; a re-animation of the future and an `awakening' from the previous state.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Reith, Professor Gerda
Authors: Reith, G.
Subjects:H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform
College/School:College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Sociology Anthropology and Applied Social Sciences
Journal Name:Time and Society
ISSN:0961-463X
ISSN (Online):1461-7463

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