A Quote from The Alcoholic Republic
Americans drank on all occasions. Every social event demanded a
drink. When southerners served barbecue, they roasted hogs and provided
‘plenty of whisky.’ Guests at urban dances and balls were often intoxicated: so
were spectators at frontier horse races. Liquor also entered into money-making
and business affairs. When a bargain was negotiated or a contract was signed, it
was sealed with a drink; auctioneers passed a whiskey bottle to those who made
bids. After the harvest, farmers held agricultural fairs that ended with dinners
laced with dozens of toasts. Whiskey accompanied traditional communal
activities such as house-raising, huskings, land clearings, and reaping. It was
even served when women gathered to sew, quilt, or pick the seeds out of
cotton…
…Alcohol was pervasive in American society; it crossed regional,
sexual, racial, and class lines. American drank at home and aboard, alone and together, at work and at
play, in fun and in earnest. They drank from the crack of dawn to the crack of dawn. At nights taverns
were filled with boisterous, mirth-making tipplers. American drank before meals, with meals, and
after meals. They drank while working in the fields and while traveling across half a continent. They
drank in their youth, and, if they lived long enough, in their old age…Early nineteenth-century
America may not have been ‘a nation of drunkards,’ but Americans were certainly enjoying a
spectacular binge.
Rorabaugh, W. J. “The Alcoholic Republic, An American Tradition”, pp. 19-21.
A Quote from The Alcoholic Republic
At the beginning of the eighteenth century, tradition taught, and American, like
Englishmen and Europeans, universally believed, that rum, gin, and brandy
were nutritious and healthful. Distilled spirits were viewed as foods that
supplemented limited and monotonous diets, as medications, that could cure
colds, fevers, snakebites, frosted toes, and broken legs, and as relaxants that
would relieve depression, reduce tension, and enable hardworking laborers to
enjoy a moment of happy, frivolous camaraderie. Such favorable views led to
a widespread use of strong drink. Before 1750 nearly all Americans of all
social classes drank alcoholic beverages in quantity, sometimes to the point of
intoxication.
Rorabaugh, W. J. “The Alcoholic Republic, An American Tradition”, p. 25.
It Says
It Means*
Brainstorm the most important words, phrases
and passages
Explain the meaning or importance of each word,
phrase or passage you selected, and the quote as
a whole
Americans drank on all occasions
often intoxicated
Liquor also entered into money-making
. American drank at home and aboard, alone and
together, at work and at play, in fun and in earnest
Americans were always drinking
Were basically always drunk
Everyone wanted it
Americans were always drinking and didn’t care
who they were with
rum, gin, and brandy were nutritious and
healthful.
Summary (POV)
* or “It’s Important Because…”