What is Antabuse?

Antabuse, the medication that Cass is made to take in "The Starlight in Idaho," symbolizes the divide between Cass and reality. In the first place, Antabuse separates Cass from the substance fueled reality he has come to know over the last several years of his life by giving him an aversion to alcohol. While this is meant to help heal patients suffering from alcoholism, in Cass’s case it only seems to pull him farther away from reality. With very little to grasp onto other than his letters, he feels the side effects of the medication dominating his psyche, making him feel tired and fatigued. He experiences visual and auditory hallucinations. It is not until the doctors take him off the Antabuse that he is able to feel grounded in a stable reality.