Do you think drugs helped to make artists like Edgar Allan Poe the artists they were?

Question

What about Vincent Van Gogh or anything others you can think of?
Could they have benefited from modern medicine or would that have altered their work, maybe made it not as good?

I think the various drugs they were on really affected their work and probably helped them to produce what they did. What do you think?

Answer 1

Opiates, and liquor were Poe's drugs of choice. Given that, opium being a powerful narcotic, provided Poe, with vivid dreams, that probably inspired his writings, as it did for Shakespeare. Drugs have long been artists, writers, and musicians muse, when creating their works. I agree with you that their altered states of mind, created brilliant masterpieces. I adore Pink Floyd, and their ultra groovy tunes, and you can't tell me someone wasn't on some good stuff when it was composed. I am not one to judge, but enjoy their altered states when I listen, finding my own altered state of mind. Regards

Answer 2

Hmm, I suppose anything is possible, and there's really no way to test that, but I would probalby both agree and disagree to an extent.

If the driving force behind their creative powers stemmed from a kind of mental illness, than the drugs weren't really responsible. Contrary to popular belief, drugs cannot 'cause' a mental illness in someone; they may make it more likely that a naturally preexisting imbalance will manifest itself, and thus make it appear like they caused the illness, but a perfectly mentally healthy person won't develope a mental illness just by doing drugs. In other words, people like Poe and Van Gogh likely already had some form of the illness they suffered from before using drugs. In fact, that is very possibly the reason they turned to drugs in the first place, in a way to sort of self-medicate. Mental illnesses and neurotransmitter imbalances are a very common cause for addiction in this same way.

Havind said all that, after turning to drugs their symptoms were probably exacerbated in the long run, instead of reduced by the drugs they used. This could have contributed to their symptoms, and thus may have played a role in their creativity, but I would be reluctant to say that they would not have been brilliant artists without drugs.

Answer 3

Drugs would almost certainly have altered their work but its impossible to say if it would have been for the better or worse. Modern drugs would probably have had a different effect but again what change it would have made would be pure conjecture.

Answer 4

Look at all the rock stars that were on drugs it may have helped them create the music they did but it also killed many.

Answer 5

I don't think it was drugs. I think it was the fact that they had depression and got through it that helped them express what they were going and went through.

Answer 6

Probably. look at Salvador dali's work.

Answer 7

It is what destroyed them.