Magic Addiction…

[faux pax]

So the show is setting magic up to be like a drug, something that is addictive and consuming. What i would like to know is what kind of drug is it supposed to be like? is it like one of the hardcore street drug–something that shouldn’t be used at all. Or is it more like Rx’s (say painkillers)? Fine to use as long as it’s in the right situation and in the right amount?

What do you guys think?

[the woodsman]

The magic addiction that they have been showing has been interesting. It seems more like a compulsive behavior pattern than an actual drug. It’s something that makes many things in life easier to obtain, so much so that giving up magic means having to work harder for the things that one wants. Regina, in her sessions with, Dr. Hopper says that magic is the way she has always gotten everything. It was her use of the word “always” in that scene that struck a chord for me. She has been using magic for so long and has used it to get and achieve everything she’s wanted that she has/had difficulty remembering her life without magic. For everything that magic has gotten her, there is one thing she had when she had no magic that she has been unable to obtain since … love.

Also, magic also doesn’t seem to have withdrawal symptoms like a chemically addictive substance might. It’s more of a psychological addiction that must be overcome.

[faux pax]

Honestly, one of the reasions i’m most interested in this tipic is because i’m still trying to decide if i want Regina to teach Henry magic eventually.

I mean the kid has already got the beginnings of one of the most diverse skill sets on TV: charming’s teaching him how to be a prince/knight, MM will probably throw some archery in there, Emma and Neal got the con/thief thing covered and so why not throw in a little Magic?

But I don’t want that for him if it will wind up getting him addicted. I was thinking something of a just-because-I-know-how-doesn’t-mean-I-will kind of thing.

[frumpybutsupersmart]

We haven’t seen any magicians that aren’t “evil” on the show yet, have we? Except the fairies, but that’s because they’re intrinsically magical and they have fairy dust. So that sort of implies that whenever a “normal” person tries to use magic, it corrupts them, and they get addicted to it. I think it could probably be ok in small amounts, but it seems really difficult to keep that perspective when you actually use it.

[Phee]

Good point, frumpybutsupersmart. Don’t think we’ve seen an example of someone casting spells just to help others instead of themselves.

It’s often said, (in our world, not talking about the show here), that magic shouldn’t be used for personal gain, lest karma will come back to bite you. Maybe that’s what’s going on with the likes of Rumple, Regina and Cora? I just googled magic for your own gain, and almost literally LOLd when I got to the second paragraph here:
http://voices.yahoo.com/magic-ethics-spells-personal-gain-wrong-3003942.html

Magic is energy, like electricity. We use electricity for our personal gain all the time- we keep our fridges running to keep our food sanitary, we use it to create light so that we can see better when we work at night, we charge our cell phones so we can call 911 in case of emergency. We even use it for more frivolous yet enjoyable pursuits, such as watching television, listening to music, or surfing the internet. If someone told you that using electricity for personal gain was unethical, you’d probably scoff at them. So why is using another type of energy- magic- any more selfish or immoral?

Of course, we could use magic for personal gain in an unethical manner. We could try to manipulate someone else’s free will with magic, to make them fall in love with us. We could use magic to try and get revenge on our enemies because we are angry at them- just for the satisfaction. We could use magic to help us pull off a successful crime. But this would be the same thing as using electricity to shock someone. It is wrong, simply, to try and hurt other people for selfish and petty reasons, but that doesn’t make casting any spells for yourself wrong.

Sound like anyone we know? 😆

I think it’d be fine for Henry to learn some magic, because he’s got a good heart and would only use it for doing good. Unlike his mother, whose motivation to learn magic was desperation, hate and a desire for revenge. Going back to the options you suggested in the first post, Faux Pax, I guess I’d liken magic to a painkiller, as opposed to a hard drug. Anyone can use painkillers if needed, and the majority of people who use them do so for the right reasons and don’t abuse them and get addicted. Other people go hard core on painkillers and pretty quickly discover they can’t live without them. It’s not the painkiller that’s the problem, it’s the person using it. I think the same can be said for magic.

I loved how they wrote Regina like an addict, even right down to the “It’s been two days since I used.” Puts it in a context that’s very real and that we can relate to.

[beautyistruth]

I’m trying to figure out what exactly “all magic comes with a price” means. For instance, take the case of Gold giving Henry the amulet without charge. Does that mean he’s shouldering the “price” for Henry?

[Phee]

I think in that case, it’s Regina who will pay the price, not Henry. Henry controlling the dream will ultimately somehow lead to Emma and Snow coming back to town. Rumple wants that, Regina doesn’t. As always, he wins, and someone else suffers. Regina was already paying the price for having tried to use the apple on Emma, because her son was suffering as a result. That meant she had to call Rumple for a solution, and said solution will lead to her nemesis arriving back in town. It’s a vicious cycle for poor Regina, the prices just keep on piling up.

[frumpybutsupersmart]

@Phee wrote:

I think it’d be fine for Henry to learn some magic, because he’s got a good heart and would only use it for doing good. Unlike his mother, whose motivation to learn magic was desperation, hate and a desire for revenge.

That’s a good point – Henry seems a lot more incorruptible that Regina. He’s a child with a very strong moral side, and he doesn’t have the bitterness and pain that Regina had when she started magic. I can’t actually see him getting addicted to magic or the power it would give him.

[PriceofMagic]

@frumpybutsupersmart wrote:

@Phee wrote:

I think it’d be fine for Henry to learn some magic, because he’s got a good heart and would only use it for doing good. Unlike his mother, whose motivation to learn magic was desperation, hate and a desire for revenge.

That’s a good point – Henry seems a lot more incorruptible that Regina. He’s a child with a very strong moral side, and he doesn’t have the bitterness and pain that Regina had when she started magic. I can’t actually see him getting addicted to magic or the power it would give him.

Children can be petty though. Even Henry with his strong moral side may fall prey to that. Children know the difference between right and wrong so Henry isn’t going to go out and turn people into snails like Rumple did but, for example, say another child was really mean to Henry at school, Henry could use his magic to make that child’s trousers fall down or make the drinking fountain spray so that it looks like the child has wet themselves. One small slip in using magic for the wrong reasons could send Henry down the slippery slope.

Rumple is the biggest magic addict of them all. Rumple has displayed some addict like behaviour such as getting others involved in the addiction (Cora and Regina), putting the addiction above loved ones (choosing power over Bae), and trying to hide the addiction from those around them (Rumple tried to hide his magic usage from Belle and even then he tried to tell her it was nothing to worry about). Admitting there is a problem is the first step to recovery for many addicts. Rumple has admitted why he needs magic and how he relies on it. Is he justifying his addiction at this point? He may be thinking “I’m using magic to help me find Bae” but what happens when he finds Bae? Can he give up magic for those he loves? Belle isn’t going to stop Rumple from trying to find his son so will Rumple end up drawing her into his magic addiction? Will they develop a co-dependency on each other?

Perhaps Archie should set up a magic anonymous support group.

All magic comes with a price!

Keeper of Felix

[Phee]

@PriceofMagic wrote:

Children can be petty though. Even Henry with his strong moral side may fall prey to that. Children know the difference between right and wrong so Henry isn’t going to go out and turn people into snails like Rumple did but, for example, say another child was really mean to Henry at school, Henry could use his magic to make that child’s trousers fall down or make the drinking fountain spray so that it looks like the child has wet themselves. One small slip in using magic for the wrong reasons could send Henry down the slippery slope.

That’s a fair point, I guess there’s always a risk that he could start using magic to misbehave. Perhaps his disdain for Regina and having seen how magic corrupted her would keep him scared straight though? I used to have a bother in law who did every drug to excess and fried his brain and ended up schizophrenic. Seeing what drugs had done to his brother meant my ex was never even slightly tempted to try drugs. Henry may have a similar mindset and not ever want to use magic at all, but if he did, he may use it very cautiously, having seen what it can do to a person.

Of course, Regina saw what magic had done to her mother, didn’t like it, but still ended up getting corrupted even though she started out sweet as pie, so I suppose there would always be that risk that Henry could be corrupted as well if some tragedy befell him like what happened with Regina.

[Author]

Posts