SOC4243W

What does our relationship with drink have to tell us about contemporary society and our own lives? The history of alcoholic drink is entwined with the history of human society itself. We use drinking as a window through which we can better understand roles, relationships, social boundaries, and cultural change. We bring sociological perspectives to bear on alcohol advertising, campus drinking, and more. There are reasons why alcoholic beverages have played a role in almost all human societies. Social barriers can be lowered, new friendships made, and old relationships reestablished when people get together over a drink. Cultural and political battles about alcohol can also be a way to see social divisions, power struggles, and hierarchies. And of course, drinking can be a route to all sorts of bad behavior and social problems too. We look at all of this, first in historical and cross-cultural perspective and then focusing on our own contemporary society.

Pre-req: Soc 1001 recommended, Soc majors must register A-F

Periodic Fall