At seventeen, he ran away from his current boarding school because his guardians would not let him drop out. Although he appreciated one teacher he had at Eton, he mostly looked down on his teachers because they were not as fluent as he was in ancient Greek – his academic passion. As a young boy, he attended a number of upscale boarding schools.
According to De Quincey, opium use is more widespread than people know, but the public has many misconceptions about the drug.ĭe Quincey’s father died when he was seven. He tried his hardest to resist opium, but could not because it was such an effective pain-killer and he was suffering from numerous physical ailments. He hopes that it will be “instructive” (1), which is why he is willing to go into such explicit details about his personal life. Overall, it is a selective autobiography of its author, with most focus on experiences that help explain his use of, addiction to, and ultimate defeat of opium.ĭe Quincey introduces Confessions of an English Opium-Eater as an extract from a longer autobiography. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover.Confessions of an English Opium Eater is broken into two parts, each of which was published separately and each of which is broken further into sub-sections. Confessions of an English Opium-Eater is considered to be the first published autobiography to explore the lure and effects of addiction.Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library, a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold-foiled edges and ribbon markers. Thrust into a disorientating world of extreme euphoria and vivid nightmares, De Quincey's life story is both unpredictable and deeply personal. Explosive and unforgiving, Confessions of an English Opium-Eater describes in searing detail the pleasure, pain and mind-expanding powers of opium.Thomas De Quincey takes us on a journey from his grammar school childhood to his homeless adolescence in Wales, from befriending prostitutes during his nocturnal wanderings in London to enrolling at Oxford University only to drop out when his drug use overcomes him. A powerful nineteenth-century autobiography tracing Thomas De Quincey's journey of addiction, introduced by biographer, critic and academic Dr Frances Wilson.
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