Everyone in America wants to live the American Dream. They want to make a lot of money and be happy. Life is not easy though, and it is difficult to successfully live out the American Dream. Some people are fortunate enough to be born into families who are financially well off and everything in life comes to them very easily. However, for those who aren't as lucky, drugs and dealing drugs has become a way for them to make money and try to attain some sort of happiness through a high. Though dealing drugs is illegal in the United States and the term, illegal, is normally associated with being an immoral act, characters such as Frank Lucas from American Gangster show us that illegal acts many times have a moral basis behind them. Also, even though using illegal drugs is against the law, many people use these substances, because it is the only way for them to feel happiness in their lives. Many drug abusers and dealers do not have any immoral intentions in any way but actually quite the opposite. However, when looking at the movies, Requiem for a Dream and The Basketball Diaries, it is evident that the abuse of drugs such as heroine can lead to the destruction of a person's life.
[...] Requiem for a Dream, directed by Darren Aronofsky and adapted from Hubert Selby Jr.'s novel, is a movie about four people who pursue the American Dream or some form of American ideals through the use of drugs (Mitchell). The theme in the film is very similar to the novel: real drug we're all hooked on is the American Dream, with its promises of big cash paydays and fame and eventually happiness, which can all no doubt be found around that same corner where prosperity is said to lurk” (Mitchell). [...]
[...] Both movies portray the negative side effects and consequences of drug addiction. Requiem for a Dream attempts to portray the negative consequences of drug abuse and addiction through a much more grim perspective where all the characters in the movie end up in terrible situations where the damage is irreversible; whereas, the main character, Jim Carroll, in The Basketball Diaries is fortunate enough to turn his life back around. I find many parallels in my own life and the experiences of my friends to these two movies. [...]
[...] However, dealing marijuana is not only illegal, but it also supports the negative drug habits of other people. As shown in the movies, Requiem for a Dream and The Basketball Diaries, drug abuse and addiction will lead to the eventual deterioration of a person's life. All of the characters in both movies that abuse drugs end up with terrible consequences at the end of the movies. Another issue that is very important is the role of family and the family's influence on the child's decision to use or deal drugs. [...]
[...] It almost seems as if my friends have used drug dealing and drug abuse as a way to rebel against their parents, because they feel as if their parents have betrayed their trust and love by breaking up the family and getting divorced. My friends have never told me why they use drugs. The only answer that they give me is that they do drugs, because they enjoy the high and the buzz. I've always been too afraid to confront my friends about whether their drug abuse has any connection to their personal problems involving their family, because I feel that I would be crossing the boundary of their personal lives. [...]
[...] So, he resorted to dealing marijuana and found that it was easy to make large amounts of money with little time and effort (Eric Nabors). At first, he felt guilty every time he sold marijuana to someone, because he felt like it was immoral to sell illegal drugs and to contribute to other peoples' drug habits (Eric Nabors). Eric, himself, was a heavy user of marijuana, but he felt that since it was his own life that he had the right to make decisions for himself (Eric Nabors). [...]
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