Why the Rhodes environment is conducive to substance abuse…
Everyone knows that Rhodes has a reputation for alcohol abuse; when you hear the word ‘Rhodent’ images of rowdy drunken students parading in purple overalls immediately spring to mind. Not only alcohol, but other substances are used (not necessarily abused), leading to the Botanical Gardens (Bot Gardens) being affectionately called the ‘Pot Gardens’. But is this because all students who go to Rhodes would have been the kinds of people to get involved in substance use and abuse anyway, or is it the actual environment of Rhodes itself that leads students down Lewis Carrol’s metaphoric Rabbit Hole?
Being a first year myself, and experiencing the enormous changes between high-school and university I feel I can shed some light on this matter. Firstly, I will start off by saying that everything ultimately comes down to the individual. Putting a cat into water is not going to make it swim. That being said, I do believe that your environment plays a huge role in shaping your choices, behaviour and actions. Many students come from restricted backgrounds where parents, rules and schools are sternly in control. The freedom one experiences at Rhodes is a vast change. The liberty can be exhilarating and prompt first-years to behave in certain ways ‘just because they can’. It is very tempting to get caught up in the use of substances when your physical body becomes the only limit you have, and we all know how resilient our bodies are at age eighteen, nineteen or twenty; sleepless nights, drunken dazes and hash-induced hazes hardly seem to have a lasting effect.
It also comes down to the question of availability. At Rhodes, it is so easy to acquire large amounts of alcohol. You only have to be at Peppergrove on a Friday afternoon to witness the hordes of students walking off with packets of clinking bottles. When I am at home, no matter how much I would like to buy alcohol, it just isn’t as easy. Firstly I live in a ‘dry’ suburb; we do not have any liquor stores and Woolies is not even permitted to sell wine. Secondly, I do not own a car, so to drive to another suburb to buy alcohol is out of the question. But at Rhodes, these ‘problems’ are easily solved. Everyone can get to Peppergrove without a car as it is so close. The bars and clubs are within walking distance too, and there is at least one place open on every day of the week. The question of availability applies to drugs too. If you know who to ask, weed, pills and acid are just a person away. And if you don’t know who to ask, you will invariably find someone who does. There are widespread connections of people who have what you need to transcend the boundaries of your mind. Campus is such a small area that it is not a mission. Chances are the dealers go to your lectures, party at the same places and wear the same clothes as you. Psychologically this makes it less ‘dodgy’ or ‘scary’ to acquire drugs, as it feels safer to buy from someone you ‘know’. This is not always the case in a larger university or town.
Another consideration is safety. At Rhodes, there is an illusion of safety that is hard to burst despite the many muggings and rapes. Where else can you go out, get so drunk that you forget your own name and still make it home alright? With New Street being so close, students can almost crawl home after hitting the infamous ‘Cane Train’. Although the Campus Protection Unit (CPU) does not always come to students’ aid in time, they provide a psychologically comforting presence. And when engaging in more illegal activities, they are equally easy to dodge, you can go to the Bot Gardens if you’re feeling ultra paranoid, or else just keep your distance from the men in blue.
My last and main argument would be the reason for the use of substances. The stresses and pressures of university often find an outlet in what is seen as an easy escape route: the suspension of your mind through the use of uppers, downers, round-abouters. The culture at Rhodes contributes to this as many students have a ‘party-mindset’. A drink comforts after a test goes badly, yet also celebrates achievement. This perception is primarily why I believe Rhodes is conducive to substance abuse.
Therefore, although not a given that every student who comes to Rhodes will be like Alice in a wonderland of drugs, or do serious damage to their livers from binge-drinking (because I do not believe that to be true of everyone) the environment that Rhodes provides is certainly more of a help than a hindrance to substance use.
Being a first year myself, and experiencing the enormous changes between high-school and university I feel I can shed some light on this matter. Firstly, I will start off by saying that everything ultimately comes down to the individual. Putting a cat into water is not going to make it swim. That being said, I do believe that your environment plays a huge role in shaping your choices, behaviour and actions. Many students come from restricted backgrounds where parents, rules and schools are sternly in control. The freedom one experiences at Rhodes is a vast change. The liberty can be exhilarating and prompt first-years to behave in certain ways ‘just because they can’. It is very tempting to get caught up in the use of substances when your physical body becomes the only limit you have, and we all know how resilient our bodies are at age eighteen, nineteen or twenty; sleepless nights, drunken dazes and hash-induced hazes hardly seem to have a lasting effect.
It also comes down to the question of availability. At Rhodes, it is so easy to acquire large amounts of alcohol. You only have to be at Peppergrove on a Friday afternoon to witness the hordes of students walking off with packets of clinking bottles. When I am at home, no matter how much I would like to buy alcohol, it just isn’t as easy. Firstly I live in a ‘dry’ suburb; we do not have any liquor stores and Woolies is not even permitted to sell wine. Secondly, I do not own a car, so to drive to another suburb to buy alcohol is out of the question. But at Rhodes, these ‘problems’ are easily solved. Everyone can get to Peppergrove without a car as it is so close. The bars and clubs are within walking distance too, and there is at least one place open on every day of the week. The question of availability applies to drugs too. If you know who to ask, weed, pills and acid are just a person away. And if you don’t know who to ask, you will invariably find someone who does. There are widespread connections of people who have what you need to transcend the boundaries of your mind. Campus is such a small area that it is not a mission. Chances are the dealers go to your lectures, party at the same places and wear the same clothes as you. Psychologically this makes it less ‘dodgy’ or ‘scary’ to acquire drugs, as it feels safer to buy from someone you ‘know’. This is not always the case in a larger university or town.
Another consideration is safety. At Rhodes, there is an illusion of safety that is hard to burst despite the many muggings and rapes. Where else can you go out, get so drunk that you forget your own name and still make it home alright? With New Street being so close, students can almost crawl home after hitting the infamous ‘Cane Train’. Although the Campus Protection Unit (CPU) does not always come to students’ aid in time, they provide a psychologically comforting presence. And when engaging in more illegal activities, they are equally easy to dodge, you can go to the Bot Gardens if you’re feeling ultra paranoid, or else just keep your distance from the men in blue.
My last and main argument would be the reason for the use of substances. The stresses and pressures of university often find an outlet in what is seen as an easy escape route: the suspension of your mind through the use of uppers, downers, round-abouters. The culture at Rhodes contributes to this as many students have a ‘party-mindset’. A drink comforts after a test goes badly, yet also celebrates achievement. This perception is primarily why I believe Rhodes is conducive to substance abuse.
Therefore, although not a given that every student who comes to Rhodes will be like Alice in a wonderland of drugs, or do serious damage to their livers from binge-drinking (because I do not believe that to be true of everyone) the environment that Rhodes provides is certainly more of a help than a hindrance to substance use.
Congratulations on writing an absolutely fabulous piece. It is definitely one of the better articles written with a good argument based on solid premises.
Yes, Rhodes does have a notorious reputation for its alcohol abuse. It is home to over 6000 students who leave their homes (whether local or international) to acquire a tertiary education. With reference to your argument of Rhodes being an environment which is conducive to substance abuse, I must disagree. I do not think that Rhodes is a place where drugs are particularly in abundance. Of you are looking for drugs you will find them whether you are residing in New York or a ghost town. You say that “everything ultimately comes down to the individual”, which is something I believe in firmly. This is a fault in your argument because if taking drugs were to “come down to the individual” then Rhodes is not what makes people do it. Any University is a stressful place to be, but so is a job place and everything that goes with it for the rest of your days.
Love FaeriJane from www.fourseeingthepast.blogspot.com
First and foremost, this is a well written piece so well done on that.
I have mixed feelings about your argument though. I agree with you when you say it all comes down to the self, that people must take responsibility for their own actions, because by blaming their actions on the Rhodes environment they are just alleviating themselves from the responsibilities that they have for their own actions.
But you make it out like Rhodes is notoriously infamous for having an abundance in drugs, even though it may be abundant in drugs, it is nowhere near as bad as Universities like UCT, Stellenbosch and UKZN.
But I agree with you on the basis that many Rhodes students now have a chance to “spread their wings” as they have escaped from very restricted lives.
And then I disagree with you on your last point. Saying that students drink because they are stressed is such a cop-out. It’s just a bunch of students experiencing University life grabbing any opportunity to go out and get drunk, and to break the monotony of the Rhodes life. This is University, it is what people do at University, they experiment. I think you looking to deeply into that situation.
But overall, I enjoyed reading your article.