Righteous Dopefiend Critical Analysis In Righteous Dopefiend (2008), authors Phillipe Bourgois and Jeff Schonberg examine the world of the Edgewater homeless community, an indigent group that established an encampment beside a freeway near San Francisco, California. While it is evident throughout the book that the main characters have unique lived experiences, it remains clear that they all share one major struggle: substance abuse. The authors provide an in-depth exploration of the everyday lives of the Edgewater homeless community, depicting some of the gruesome realities that are associated with heroin addiction. Throughout the book, the authors highlight the intersectionality of homelessness, substance abuse, poverty, race, class, gender, …show more content…
Despite living in a male-dominated space, Tina enjoyed staying in touch with her femininity, and always kept up her appearance. I thought it was great how she was able to maintain her identity despite experiencing homelessness, and dealing with the everyday challenges of addiction. She seemed to be gripping onto the ideas of tradition and normalcy certain points in the book. This was especially apparent within her relationship with Carter. Tina and Carter functioned in the same way as many couples. Carter would complete jobs during the day, or hustle, in order to obtain their next fix. Tina enjoyed being the homemaker. Her days consisted of maintaining their living space, and cooking dinner for her partner to come home to (Bourgouis & Schonberg, 2008). Tina’s lifestyle seemed conventional and unconventional at the same time. Her character was a reminder that despite the dire circumstances in the encampment, these characters’ lifestyles may not be as deviant as outsiders may think. However, despite her uplifting demeanor, Tina was open about the traumatic experiences that led her to this lifestyle. In the following section, trauma is presented as one of the major causes of …show more content…
A full chapter of the book is dedicated to the main characters’ childhoods, many of which are punctuated with domestic turmoil, familial drug use, sex work, corporal punishment, gang violence, death, and other types of trauma. The authors note that most of the Edgewater homeless community members grew up in households with parents who were violent alcoholics (Bourgouis & Schonberg, 2008). Interestingly, when asked whether they believed that their childhood traumas contributed to their addictions, the characters had mixed responses. Some characters took full responsibilities for their addictions, stating that they did not blame their families, and were old enough to know better (Bourgouis & Schonberg, 2008). Others believed that if they did not experience the violence that consumed much of their childhoods, they would not be in the same predicament. The authors highlight the presence of trauma in most of the characters lives, while also emphasizing the role of characters’ socialization into drug use as result of their environments. The impact of past trauma is evident in the main characters’ demeanors, dysfunctional behaviors, as well as their relationships with their families and children. Thus, it is evident in the story that trauma could certainly be a cause of