Alcohol: A Monster in Society
by Timothy Niesen
The Alcohol Monster
We have latent monsters hidden throughout our modern society that go unseen
by the majority of the public. Alcohol is one of these monsters. Generally
accepted by most, it is regarded an essential part of our culture. However,
Alcohol is associated with almost everything we know to be monstrous: it is
large in size, brings about the double, deals with margins and brings harm
to humans. It is such a good example of a monster in our society that from
time to time it is even represented in a monstrous light. For all of these
reasons, Alcohol can and should be seen as a monster in our culture.
We frequently find that a defining characteristic of monsters
and the monstrous is that they are large in stature. This lends an overpowering
feeling to the monster and frightens most humans. We can see this use of size
to create the monstrous in Homer’s Odyssey when the travelers come to
the land of the Cyclops: “He spoke, and it hit us like a punch in the
gut-/ His booming voice and the sheer size of the monster-” (Homer 249-250).
We again see this use of size in the movie Aliens where the mother alien is
twice as large as the human characters. Like those classic examples of monsters,
alcohol too is large in size, which helps to contribute to the idea of alcohol
being a monster in our culture. It is obvious that one twelve ounce beer can
or even half a gallon of liquor aren’t large in size, yet, alcohol is
still huge. It is one of the United States’ largest industries. In 1999,
Americans spent 116.2 billion dollars on alcoholic products (jointogether).
That is almost half the amount of money spent on automobiles in 2002 (Alliance).
But alcohol isn’t just economically large. According to a study conducted
by Columbia University, approximately 86 percent of college students in America
drink alcohol (ask Alice). And even with this large size and frequent use,
the monster is still growing. It has recently been determined that the average
age that a child in the United States consumes their first drink has been
reduced to 12 years (jointogether).
Like size, there are many other characteristics that define
the monstrous. One of these is the “doppelganger”, also known
as the “double” (Freud 210). The double creates a sense of monstrosity
and disgust through the uncanny. The uncanny is the fear of something that
was familiar and has become unknown and unfamiliar (Freud 195). The double
is the idea that the “self” has become uncanny, or unknown. Freud
describes it as “substituting the extraneous self for his own. In other
words, there is a doubling, dividing and interchanging of the self.”
(210). This use of the double can be seen to create the monstrous in Dracula.
Jonathan Harker watched the Count climb down the outside wall of the castle
earlier in the story, which he recounts with disgust. However, the double
comes into play pages later when he exclaims “I drew back and watched
carefully, and saw the whole man emerge. It was a new shock to me to find
that he had on the suit of clothes which I had worn whilst traveling here,”
(Stoker 47). We see use of the double here when Harker sees that the Count
is now wearing his suit when he climbs down the wall. This “new shock”
he experienced is the disgust brought about by the double.
Alcohol gains some of its monstrous qualities from the double
as well. This characteristic can be associated with alcohol through intoxication.
While intoxicated or drunk, the human body and mind function much differently
than under normal circumstances. The body begins to feel warm, unbalanced
and uncoordinated (Your Body). Someone who is intoxicated may feel tired and
have memory loss as well. Also associated with being drunk is the exaggeration
of normal behavior. This means someone that is normally quiet and reserved
may become loud and obnoxious. A drunken individual may talk faster as well
and have violent mood swings. These changes in normal behavior can all be
seen as characteristics of the double. The intoxicated person is obviously
still the same individual they were before they started to drink, but they
now act as though they were someone else. This is a perfect example of the
doppelganger and a definitive way that alcohol is a monster.
Like the double, margins and marginal substances are another
way with which we define the monstrous. Margins represent the space between
two opposites, for example the body and the non-body, or the outside. The
substances that travel into the marginal space between the two opposites create
the monstrous and a feeling of repulsion and danger (Douglas 121). Examples
of these marginal substances would be blood, urine and vomit. Poe uses blood
frequently in his stories to create this feeling of fear and disgust. In “The
Masque of the Red Death”, the opening paragraph describes how the land
is being ravaged by a disease that is carried in the blood. “Blood was
its Avatar and its seal – the redness and the horror of blood”
(Poe 254). Poe uses the blood here, and throughout this story, to instill
fear upon the reader. This is an example of how marginal substances can create
a feeling of horror and disgust.
Margins and marginal substances are one of the main places that
alcohol derives its monstrosity from. Primarily, alcohol resides within the
margins. It is one of the few substances that is considered a drug and a food.
In our society, most drugs are seen as harmful and despicable whereas food
is obviously viewed in a beneficial light. Alcohol fits into both of these
categories and that is a marginal characteristic. Alcohol also lives between
the margins of legal and illegal. It is one of the only ingestible substances
that is illegal at some point and legal at another. In the United States,
it is illegal to purchase or consume alcohol under the age of 21. After 21,
however, it is legal to consume and buy alcoholic products. Alcohol, therefore,
lives between the margin of legal and illegal.
Not only does alcohol live in the margins, but it deals with
marginal substances as well, specifically urine, vomit and blood. When an
individual has become intoxicated, they have the urge to urinate frequently
and urine is a marginal substance. This frequent urge comes from alcohol’s
“attack” on the human endocrine system. When an individual begins
to drink alcohol, ethanol, the chemical component to alcohol that changes
bodily functions, blocks the production of Antidiuretic hormone (also known
as ADH) in the pituitary gland (Mello 180). The purpose of ADH is to pull
water out of the nephrons in the kidneys so the body does not become dehydrated.
When ADH is not present, the nephrons fill up with more water than usual and
there is an increase in urination frequency (Mello 180). This is why we see
the marginal substance, urine, often associated with alcohol. Alcohol also
bothers the lining of the stomach. When large quantities of alcohol are dumped
on the stomach lining, it reacts violently causing vomiting. This is also
one of the last efforts by the body to rid itself of the monster of alcohol
before detrimental effects kick in. The last marginal substance that alcohol
“attacks” is the blood stream. Alcohol intake is measured in “Blood
Alcohol Content” because the digestive system puts ethanol directly
into the bloodstream after it is digested (Jones 186). From here, the alcohol
uses blood as its transportation and wreaks havoc all over the body. These
interactions that alcohol has with margins help to create the feeling of disgust
and abhorrence commonly associated with monsters and monstrous. This is another
reason why alcohol can be considered a monster in its own right.
One of the characteristics most often found with monsters is
their desire to inflict harm on humans. This is obviously one of the main
reasons that people find monsters frightening. This threat of physical harm
can be seen throughout literature in order to create the monstrous. We see
it in Shelley’s Frankenstein after The Monster has just murdered an
innocent boy. He says “I grasped his throat to silence him, and in a
moment he lay dead at my feet. I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled
with exultation and hellish triumph” (Shelley 127). We can also see
this threat of harm associated with monsters in movies. In Aliens, the aliens
hunt the group of human marines, brutally killing most of them.
As a monster, alcohol is no different. It hunts human lives
and human flesh, bringing harm, pain and death to thousands every year. Alcohol
stalks many of the organs of body, causing malfunction or failure. The liver
is one of these organs. The liver cleans the blood which comes straight from
the digestive organs. Because of this, any alcohol that is ingested is the
most potent when it comes in contact with the liver. Excessive drinking ravages
the liver, causing it to malfunction and become scarred and useless (Adverse).
After years of drinking, alcohol induced Hepatitis or Cirrhosis may set in.
Both of these diseases can cause liver failure. The pancreas is another essential
organ that alcohol stalks. During normal function, the pancreas releases alkaline
digestive juices into the small intestine to aid in digestion (Adverse). Alcohol
stimulates this pancreatic activity to a much higher degree than food. An
attack of Pancreatitis can occur, which is when the pancreas becomes overactive
and causes a chemical burn on the inside of the intestine (Adverse). If drinking
persists, the pancreas can become marbleized and useless, usually leading
to Pancreatic Cancer and death. These are just two of the adverse effects
alcohol brings about in the human body. Just a few others are: dementia, problems
with metabolic activity, alcohol poisoning, excessive water loss and vitamin
depletion (Adverse).
Alcohol doesn’t just stalk the human body; it kills as
well. If enough alcohol is ingested in a small amount of time, alcohol poisoning
can lead to death. This is because alcohol is a depressant, meaning it slows
down bodily activity and function. If alcohol poisoning is severe enough,
heart and breathing rates will drop to a fatal point and the body will shut
down. This monster kills in indirect ways as well. In 1992, one third of all
suicides and one half of all homicides involved alcohol (Drugs 9). In 2002,
more than 1400 college students were killed from alcohol related activity
(just the facts). Alcohol inflicts pain, maims and kills many of the people
it comes into contact with. This is a perfect example of why it is a monster.
Some people may not agree that alcohol is a monster. Many see it as a way to leave their regular self behind or to cut loose and have a good time. With a low Blood Alcohol Content this is true, alcohol can cause a feeling of euphoria (Your Body). Even Benjamin Franklin, one of the most brilliant minds of all time, believes in the good of alcohol: “Beer is proof that god loves us and wants us to be happy.” However, no matter how good alcohol can seem, there is no denying that it is a monster. In fact, it is even depicted as a monster from time to time in our own culture. A brewery in New York City called The Brooklyn Brewery has even gone so far as to name one of their beers “Monster Barleywine” (Monster Ale). It is called this because of its high alcohol content (10% by volume) which allows alcohol to attack a person much more quickly. Alcohol is most certainly a monster in our culture. Though some may see it as a blessing and a way to let loose, its monstrous characteristics, as mentioned above, cannot be overlooked.
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