Items related to States of Intoxication: The Place of Alcohol in Civilisation...

States of Intoxication: The Place of Alcohol in Civilisation (The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization) - Softcover

Book 1 of 4: The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization

O'Brien, John

 
9780367821135: States of Intoxication: The Place of Alcohol in Civilisation (The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0367821133 ISBN 13: 9780367821135
Publisher: Routledge, 2019

Synopsis

This book provides an illuminating perspective on alcohol use, drawing on approaches from both anthropological research and historical sociology to examine our ambivalent attitudes to alcohol in the modern West. From anthropological research on non-Western, non-modern cultures, the author demonstrates that the use of alcohol or other psychoactive substances is a universal across human societies, and indeed, has tended to be seen as unproblematic, or even a sacred aspect of culture, often used in a highly ritualised context. From historical sociology, it is shown that alcohol has also been central to the process of state formation, not only as a crucial source of revenue, but also through having an important role in the formation of political communities, which frequently are a source of existential fear for ruling groups. Tracing this contradictory position occupied by alcohol over the course of history and civilisation, States of Intoxication sheds light on the manner in which it has produced the very peculiar modern perspective on alcohol.

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About the Author

John O’Brien is a Lecturer in Sociology at Waterford Institute of Technology.

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Publisher
Routledge
Publication date
2019
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0367821133
ISBN 13 
9780367821135
Binding
Paperback
Edition number
1
Number of pages
204