Instant Access To 100,000+ Essays!

Smoking opium in China was a major problem that touched all levels of society and had tremendous impact on the Chinese economy. Discussed first will be when smoking of opium began in China, and early instances of it occurring. Following the beginning is when smoking was noticed as a problem, and who at that point and time was smoking and probable reasons that lead them to do so. Of course recognizing the problem lead to discussions on prohibition; this will be looked at next. Finally the economic ramifications of opium smoking will be looked at. First the sheer size of the opium market and then the lasting impact opium has had on the Chinese economy. Opium first began as an offshoot of tobacco smoking. After tobacco had been introduced to China it eventually became a cash crop. Portuguese had originally hoped to ship Brazilian tobacco to China but it quickly became a national habit and was grown in fields outside major cities walls. Very early evidence of opium smoking goes back as far as 1617, but first real significant appearances don’t occur until 1723-1724, when the smoking of opium mixed with plants or tobacco is described. Charles de Constant discusses what he calls widespread smoking or opium and tobacco in Cant