What are antidepressants? Are they doing anything? Or is it the idea that taking a pill makes you feel better and eliminates all stress? So many questions and risks come with taking antidepressants. If there were no risks or dangers in taking an antidepressant, wouldn't antidepressants be prevalent all over the world? In Aldous Huxley's 1932 fictional novel Brave New World, such a thing exists. This medicine is called soma. The chemistry and ingredients of Soma are unknown because this drug is completely fictional. Supposedly "perfect" soma, soma is a type of medicine, with no immediate side effects, that allows people to not feel pain or have to face the struggles and horrors of the same alone. The only negative aspect of the soma is that the lifespan is significantly reduced. If such an antidepressant existed in today's society, would everyone have to take it? I believe that today's society is somewhat similar to Huxley's Brave New World. Additionally, technologies have been, in my opinion, beneficial in our society, even though they are detrimental in the novel. Antidepressants are at an all-time high these days. Studies show that “1 in 10 Americans take an antidepressant” (Hendrick). This might be a quick fix, but the stress keeps piling up. “The use of antidepressants has exploded in the United States in recent decades with the development of Prozac and other similar drugs” (Stein). Is this use a bad or a good thing? This number of Americans using an antidepressant means that people will be less stressed and “jittery.” However, this also means that Americans could be in a “zombie phase.” During this “zombie stage”, we feel nothing. This is the job of an antidepressant. An antidepressant is not your problem... middle of paper ... Old society and today's society have proven to be entirely different worlds. Works Cited Molly JacksonMrs. HoaglandAcademic English IIIMay 1, 2014Works CitedDavis, Rowenna. “Use of antidepressants rises as recession fuels wave of worry.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, June 12, 2010. Web. April 28, 2014. Hendrick, Bill. “Antidepressant use on the rise in the United States” WebMD. WebMD and Web. April 28, 2014.Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World. New York: Harper & Bros., 1946. Stein, Rob. “More than 1 in 10 Americans ages 12 and older take antidepressants, survey finds.” Washington Post. The Washington Post, October 18, 2011. Web. April 28, 2014. “Taking Antidepressants: The Truth About Side Effects.” » WebMD. WebMD, September 29, 0000. Web. April 28, 2014. Wagner, Karren D. “Antidepressants: Risk and Benefit in Depression.” Psychiatric time. Np, August 1, 2012. Web.