In this chapter, the speakers discuss their personal and cultural relationships with alcohol, exploring its impact on their lives and society as a whole. They delve into the history of alcohol, its role in the development of civilization, and its function as a social and stress-relieving tool. The chapter challenges notions of alcohol as a societal hijack and highlights its unique advantages as a social drug.
Do we have alcohol to thank for civilization? The answer, according to Edward Slingerland’s new book, “Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization,” is a resounding yes. Edward, who’s a professor at the University of British Columbia and self-proclaimed “philosophical hedonist,” says that far from being an evolutionary fluke, our taste for alcohol is an evolutionary advantage — one that we’ve relied on for millennia to help us lead more social, creative, and pleasurable lives.
(This episode first aired in July 2021.)