Drunk
Douban
How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization
Edward Slingerland III
overblik
A deep dive into the evolutionary science behind why humans love to get drunk, and how alcohol and other intoxicants catalyzed and shaped civilization.
Alcohol is tightly woven into the fabric of our lives. We use it to bond with friends and coworkers, and it’s a fixture at weddings, funerals, religious ceremonies, and just about every other social event imaginable. And this is true in spite of the fact that it’s really bad for us. Considering alcohol’s downsides — hangovers, reckless behavior, addiction, accidents, death — our continued enthusiasm for it is surprising.
Prevailing scientific theories hold that our taste for intoxication is an evolutionary accident. But a closer look reveals that these accounts can’t be right. In Drunk, Edward Slingerland offers an alternative evolutionary history of our relationship with alcohol, arguing that its individual and social benefits have outweighed its costs, that civilization as we know it could never have developed without alcohol, and that intoxication continues to play a crucial role in the modern world.
Packed with fascinating case studies, engaging science, and practical takeaways for individuals and communities, Drunk is a captivating and long overdue investigation into humanity's oldest indulgence.
contents
Introduction 1
1.Why Do We Get Drunk? 17
Brain Hijack: Porn and Sexually-Starved Fruit Flies 25
Evolutionary Hangovers: Drunken Monkeys, Liquid Kimchee, and Dirty Water 28
More Than Twinkies and Porn: Beyond Hangover and Hijack Theories 33
A Genuine Evolutionary Puzzle: An Enemy in the Mouth That Steals Away the Brain 36
A Genetic Mystery: We Are Apes Built to Get High 44
A Cultural Mystery: Prohibition’s Strange Failure to Take Over the World 52
Pickles for the Ancestors? 62
2.Leaving the Door Open for Dionysus 68
The Human Ecological Niche: Creative, Cultural, Communal 73
The Creative Animal 79
The Cultural Animal 87
The Communal Animal 96
Regaining the Child’s Mind 104
The Drunken Mind 107
Leaving the Door Open for Dionysus 114
3.Intoxication, Ecstasy, and the Origins of Civilization 122
A Visit from the Muse: Intoxication and Creativity 126
Chemical Puppies: Turning Wolves into Labradors 132
The Chemical Handshake: In Vino Veritas 141
Puking and Bonding 153
Liquid Ecstasy and the Hive Mind 162
Political Power and Social Solidarity 173
Cultural Group Selection 180
4.Intoxication in the Modern World 185
Whisky Rooms, Hotel Bars, and the Ballmer Peak 188
Truth is the Color Blue: Modern Shamans and Microdosing 199
Why Skype Didn’t Eliminate Business Travel 205
Office Parties: Pros and Not Just Cons 212
Long Live the Local 216
Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beer Holder: Sex, Friendship, and Intimacy 222
Collective Effervescence: Tequila Shots and Burning Man 231
Ecstasy: Vacation from the Self 236
It’s Only Rock-n-Roll: Defending the Hedonistic Body 246
It Is Time to Be Drunk 252
5.The Dark Side of Dionysus 261
The Problem and Puzzle of Alcoholism 264
The Problem with Liquor: An Evolutionary Mismatch 270
Isolation: The Danger of Drinking Alone 277
Distillation and Isolation: The Twin Banes of Modernity 284
Drunk Driving, Bar Fights, and Venereal Disease 287
Beer Goggles and Violence Against Women 291
Outsiders and Teetotalers Not Welcome: Reinforcing the Old Boys’ Clubs 295
Solace or Wedge? Reinforcing Bad Relationships 303
Drunk on Heaven: Getting Beyond Alcohol? 306
Taming Dionysus 313
Living with Dionysus 324
Conclusion 328
Acknowledgments 349
References 350
Notes 351
Index
