Olivia+Costantino

Smoking is an addiction. It comes with a social identity. It has its own category. There are areas designated for it and areas where it is forbidden. It has evolved immensely over the years from being looked down upon, to widely popular, and now again more recently, decreasing in popularity. In essence, it has developed its own culture over time. It became popular during World War I when soldiers smoked them in the trenches to deal with the issues of war: Richard Klein stated “Cigarettes free the soldier by momentarily masking the cruelty of his condition; their effect is less that of producing a narcotic sensation than of permitting an intellectual stance detached from reality…” (Parker-Pope pg13) The original idea was that cigarettes were made for the battlefield. That was their purpose, and that is what they had to be used for. They were claimed to be an escape from the harsh realities the soldiers were enduring. As a result, a transition took place: “…World War I is said to have turned thousands of nonsmoking young men into regular cigarette smokers.”(Parker-Pope 14). It was a turning point in society that opened a new chapter and a new way of seeing smoking. Even the organizations opposed to smoking “like the Red Cross and the YMCA even helped supply cigarettes to soldiers on the battlefield.” This belief of smoking increased military performance was extremely dominant it became socially acceptable. It was dominant to the point that it was a defining part of being a soldier. Furthermore, “General Lasalle…is reputed to have said: “A hussard must smoke; a cavalryman who does not smoke is a bad soldier.” (Parker-Pope 13) This belief is an example of the pre-requisite in belonging to a group. In order to be a good soldier, one has to smoke. Having this ideology lead to a slippery slope of belief that soldiers who don’t smoke, will not perform as they should, be considered bad, and consequently be cut from the army. This can be applied to today’s society for instance. Being a smoker is like being part of a group and if you want to belong to that group you have to smoke. Because it is so easy for one to become part of that group, those searching for somewhere to belong, sometimes turn to smoking out of desperation to belong. Once you stop the habit, you could still be part of the group and stand outside with the smokers while they are having cigarettes. However usually when one no longer smokes, to prevent smoking again, they avoid the situation. As a result, the person who quit smoking no longer belongs to that social group and is isolated once again. Therefore cigarettes become the ticket into the little social group as it was considered to be a soldier. Belonging is not the only appeal that smoking has. One popular theory about smoking is that it helps you lose weight. In society, with respect to body image, thin has always been the image people, especially women, want to achieve. Because of the idea that some have about smoking and it aiding in achieving this image, the media: “…[pushed] the message of smoking as an appetite suppressant...” (Parker-Pope 82). As women were bombarded with ads encompassing this idea, they became an increasing part of the cigarette market and the market continued to grow. Although there were ads present in encouraging smoking, there were some opposed who made their voices heard: “…fueled by the first report on tobacco from the U.S. Surgeon General in 1964, finally began to take a toll on smoking rates in the 1960s and 1970s. But the growing prohibition against smoking wasn’t enough to counter the cigarette’s image as both a glamorous accoutrement and a rebellious torch.” (Parker-Pope 14) Even though people were warned about health risks and the report did catch some people’s attention, the media was endorsing it so much, and people’s addictions were so strong, that it was difficult for the market to die completely. A clever way that media endorsed smoking was the use of famous people. One being from the White House: “The most glamorous woman of our day, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, was often pictured with cigarette in hand…” (Parker-Pope 18) Media portrayed it as good to sell product using famous people to endorse it. Not necessarily a particular brand name, however the idea of smoking and the things that were tied to it. Using the First Lady as an image, the idea that smoking is tied with a sense of sophistication and class was enforced. Therefore people began believing that smoking would make them sophisticated and classy thus increasing the rate of smokers, regardless of the health costs. This is because the media at that time did not focus on the health risks as much as it did the ‘cool factor’ of smoking. With the mass amount of advertisements smoking was becoming socially acceptable: “There is a commercially approved way of being daring, and it’s called smoking cigarettes.” (Parker-Pope 18) This enforced the idea that it is socially acceptable to smoke, also gives you an edge, some daring and mysterious era about a person. Because that is seen as appealing to people, people smoke in way to complicate themselves. People smoke to fulfill this image of having something unknown about them. This in turn appeals people to them because people, wanting to have an answer to everything, will be attracted to mysterious things if for no other reason then curiosity. Before cigarettes people chewed tobacco, however because of how much of a hassle it was, it was not very popular and appealing to people. Then when cigarettes were introduced: “…both soldiers and civilians found smoking cigarettes to be more convenient, cheaper, and more sanitary than chewing tobacco.” (Sivulka 166) These factors attracted people to the habit of smoking cigarettes. As a result, chewing tobacco died out and smoking cigarettes was the new trend. As big as the appeal of smoking was, people have become increasingly knowledgeable on the subject. Taking into consideration how unhealthy smoking is and the numerous risks involved with it, advertisements endorsing it nowadays is rare if ever showed. Now, any advertisements involving smoking are anti-smoking with warnings of health risks and tools one can use to quit. There are even a few campaigns to increase awareness of smoking. One such campaign takes place at the University of Toronto at Mississauga (UTM). “In response to numerous complaints about persons smoking near the entrances/exits to UTM buildings, the UTM Joint Health and Safety Committee launched a new campaign on Monday, April 3rd, 2006. The campaign consists of volunteers handing out pamphlets and advising persons to move away from designated non-smoking entrances to campus buildings.” (Paris 2006) It is entitled “Move Your Butt @ UTM”, and once a year, for three days, mark the entrances with chalk and flags with an appropriate distance from the entrance where smokers can light up. They also provide pamphlets informing students on the health risks of smoking and how to go about quitting. This campaign is a good start however could be improved greatly. Because volunteers are running it, it cannot be expected that the entrances would be monitored daily. However, bi-weekly or monthly might be more effective in getting the smokers to permanently move from the non-smoking areas to ones that are. The only way this would take place is if more people were to complain about this problem more often. Note, however, that no amount of campaigns or information sessions or pamphlets can be effective in turning people away from smoking if no one is willing to inquire about it. Ultimately, it is the smoker’s decision whether to quit or not, and, as previously stated, because of the strong addiction and the social ties that come along with it, it is more difficult then it is made out to be. All in all, are beginning to take action on the subject, although it may not turn people completely away from smoking, it is making them more aware of the risks involved and others that are effected by it.  Works Cited Parker-Pope, Tara. __Cigarettes: Anatomy of an Industry from Seed to Smoke.__ New York City, New York: The New Press, 2001. Sivulka, Juliann. __Soap, Sex, and Cigarettes.__ Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company., 1998. Paris, Len. //Move Your Butt Please//. From UTM’s The Medium. April 2006. Available: 