Portraying Dollie Drug Use?

How would you feel if you saw a photo story of a doll who had some kind of drug addiction? Would you read it, or skip over it and move on, or even be offended?

I would feel interested and intrigued, and would read it.

Would it make a difference if the character in question was addicted to alcohol or if they were addicted to heroin? How about a made-up drug?

No it wouldn't make a difference to me what the drug happens to be.

Is drug use/addiction too "gritty" for the BJD world?

No, I don't think it's too gritty, and personally don't think it's my job to parent other people's children. I wouldn't stop myself from lighting up in the presence of a kid on the street, or from drinking in front of someone's kid, it's the parents job to limit what their children do and do not see -- also, I don't think censoring actually helps anything at all, I believe fully in full disclosure and discussion, kids need to be able to make informed decisions, not zomgdrugsbebad-alwayssezno!11one!.

 

the fact that the doll is "using" wouldn't offend people its the talk of using drugs at all its a taboo and adult topic and that is what offends people

 

Honestly, I wouldn't read it. My uncle died from a drug overdose a few years back, so this is kind of touchy for me. If the story featured a doll that was trying to overcome an addiction I wouldn't mind it so much, maybe I would check it out then. But if it featured a doll with an addiction, and portrayed it like it was a cool thing to do then I would be very offended and angry. Too many people have ruined their lives this way, and I hate when I read stories or see tv shows or movies trying to make it seem like a cool thing to do. It's not, and frankly, I don't see how it ever could be. Sorry if I seem a little harsh, but that's just how I feel.

 

wow, kitastical basically summed up what i feel.

i don't smoke, i don't do drugs and i don't drink (very often) but that's because i don't feel the need to and i don't get pleasure from those things (i've never tried drugs and i've never smoked before, EVER) but at the same time, i don't care for them much.

i'm not offended by it. i know some people are, but that's because of their personal experience and they're entitled to that.

 

this may sound really...skewed, but I think a drug addiction can really add to a character, and finding out how the character came to be so troubled in the first place always makes the character have more depth and realism in my opinion. I mean, who does have a "picture perfect" life to begin with?

 

I don't have a problem with it. A lot of the dolls have a mature look to them and some of them do look "gritty" or punkish or whatever. I think people can play with their dolls how they like and if one's a druggie then so be it. I would find it amusing to see pictures of dolls doing drugs and would probably be more interested in how they go about creating mini drug paraphenalia lol. I've always had a nothings-off-limits sense of humor though, so I can see how it would bother other people. I guess the intent behind the picture would have something to do with it, as well. Like if they were really making a statement about it as opposed to making fun of people with real drug problems.

 

It wouldn't offend me at all, but I tend to like thinking dolls are innocent. I believe we can avoid having dolls be portrayed as having the same sorts of flaws as humans. If it worked for a story, sure, but I don't think it is a positive or pleasant thing to portray with dolls. *shrugs*

 

I agree with you. Portraying drug use like it's something cool to do would offend me as well.

 

How would you feel if you saw a photo story of a doll who had some kind of drug addiction? Would you read it, or skip over it and move on, or even be offended?

I wouldn't be offended or anything, but my clicking on it would depend on the doll since I usually click on gallery posts and stories featuring dolls I'm interested in. If it was a doll I was interested in/a mold I like, I would probably click on it.

Would it make a difference if the character in question was addicted to alcohol or if they were addicted to heroin? How about a made-up drug?

No, it wouldn't make a difference.

Is drug use/addiction too "gritty" for the BJD world?

I don't think so. People do all kinds of things with their dolls and people's dolls represent a huge variety of characters, so there are bound to be some whose stories/personalities include these things.

Personally, I have a character who is very dear to me who will one day have his doll form. He drinks fairly heavily and uses various drugs. It's part of the character I've created, not sure why he came to me like this, but he did. It's also part of the story I'm writing about him and part of the reason he gets into the trouble he has to deal with and is a problem that he has to try to overcome. I don't think representing a drug or alcohol addiction is necessarily a bad thing. Just because someone's doll is the portrayal of an addict, doesn't mean they are doing it to be "cool." It may not be pretty or pleasant, but it might be something necessary to telling that character's story. ^_^

*huggles her someday Yaten*

 

As long as it was done tastefully and posted on the appropriate board, depending on the content, I would be all right with drug addiction in a post, either as a reference or an actual portrayal of use. What would offend me is a blatantly flippant post meant to make fun of or glorify drug use. If we're friends and it's a private discussion, fine, but that's not appropriate for a public forum. Not everyone is going to get your sense of humor. (General "you" here, btw.)

For myself, I have some characters who smoke, some who drink, one who died of an overdose, and one who's straightedge. It's realistic. I personally hate smokers in real life, but it is a fact of life that some people smoke, so some of my characters smoke. (Though at least they're considerate about it, unlike some people I've known.)

I think as long as it's handled maturely and responsibly, it's perfectly fine to portray drug use with dolls. They're an artform, and art sometimes deals with the unpleasant sides of human life. There's just an appropriate time and place for it, and not everyone is going to agree with you.

 

I would read it and wouldn`t even be offended. It doesn`t matter alcohol or drugs if it`s done properly and interesting.

 

I don't think it's too gritty for the dolly world... but it shouldnt be glamorized, or triggering to a person that's trying to overcome drugs. Portraying a character's thoughts is one thing, but making drugs seem like a wonderful thing all around is another. It has to be done tastefully.

 

Although I don't approve of any kind of drug abuse--I'd probably read it. Fictional situtations are fine with me...although I would feel terrible for the dollie and want to help him/her with their problem.

I've had a few friends along the line that have had drug issues--but I think we all do at some point in time--and luckily, I've never been drawn to them myself. I think I'd be able to relate to the dollies that surround the poor little druggie...I'd probably get all emotional and like I said--I'd probably go and seek help for them >>;;

 

I'd be more interested in the emotional conflict that could come up rather than actually seeing the doll shooting up or something. I tend to collect friends who come from off the beaten path, sort of, and a lot of them have problems of their own- if I sympathise for a doll with even worse problems, ones that I gave it, I'd feel terrible about it.

 

For me, the subject content is not as important as the visual appeal when it comes to photostories.
If the photos were interesting to look at, I would probably read the story.

 

How would you feel if you saw a photo story of a doll who had some kind of drug addiction? Would you read it, or skip over it and move on, or even be offended?
honestly, it depends on how the drug usage is portrayed in the story in question. If said usage was put into a positive light i would defiantly be offended and not read it, especially if there were more scenes of the doll shooting up than actual development in the story. i've known WAY to many people who had there lives ruined because they or somone in there family got into drugs... Its not exactly a topic i enjoy. But if it was placed in as a way to show a charters past and how they overcome it, it wouldn't make me mad, and depending on how well it was written, i would probably read it.

Would it make a difference if the character in question was addicted to alcohol or if they were addicted to heroin? How about a made-up drug?
It wouldn't sway my decision ether way. Any substance that is abused can cause severe problems. Remember what happened to Jennifer Strange? She died in a water drinking contest. So as long as the story wasn't used to advertise for a real substance it wouldn't effect my reading the story or not.

Is drug use/addiction too "gritty" for the BJD world
the world of BJDs is a large and extremely contrasting world. As long as the drug addiction doesn't cross the line of poor taste, it could find a place in the world of our dolls.

 

That's a shisha pipe so would only contain tobacco - it's an arabic (as well as other peoples') custom. I know I pizza place that will give you a shisha on the table if you want! They even made a little outdoor alcove for it when the indoor smoking ban came in in the UK.

One of my dolls is a drug addict, but I don't think I'll ever show him taking drugs. I may well go into the consequences. I've intended Cornelius to have a life long drug addiction in the same vein as Willam Burroughs. There aren't tons of photos around of Burroughs shooting up, but the terrible consequences of his lifestyle are apparent through his life history.

 

If I ever were to turn my main vampire couple into dolls, they'd have to have at least some drug stuff in their backstory, if not actually shown. It's kind of how they got together, or at least loosely part of why they're both vampires. Still, it's not going to be glamourous, except in that general end-of-the-century decay sort of way.

 

In some German Doll communities it's "in" showing your Dolls while they're using drugs or even commit suicide. That's kind of annoying me, because it's mostly not a...hm, how to say...mostly these pictures are just supposed to be cool.

The characters aren't really drug addicts or depressive, but for many people it's cool showing characters (it's the same with fanart-artists) while they cut their arms, sniff some coke and so on.
And that's just annoying me.

Yeah, I know, people can do what they want to do with their dolls, but in my eyes it's just the wrong way to handle the topic "Drug abuse".

 

Seeing as how the majoirity of my family has been addicted to drugs sometime in their life, it's very easy to see that these BJDs don't fit into that catagory. Because frankly the dolls are beautiful and people who do drugs are not. LOL. So for me it would just be very hard to believe.

As for skipping over it? I probably wouldn't be reading it in the first place, I only like one-shot photostories. And mostly comedies. But if drugs did pertain to a one-shot comedy, then yes I'd read it. : D