Intoxication and Society : Problematic Pleasures of Drugs and Alcohol

Intoxicants, substances that alter a person's mental and physiological state, are a continuing obsession. In their effect on the mind and body, intoxicants go to the heart of what it means to be human. In the tensions between 'free' and uninhibited consumption on the one hand, and the pressures of social regulation and personal responsibility on the other, they also illuminate the daily paradoxes, and sheer complexity, of living in modern Western societies. Yet this complexity, and the rich history that underpins it, is often lost in the current debates over public policy. Intoxication and Society sets out to supplement the contemporary discourse surrounding intoxication with a more nuanced appreciation of the history and nature of what is very much a multidimensional problem. It does so by employing an interdisciplinary framework that includes contributions from leading academics in law, sociology, anthropology, history, literature, neuroscience and social psychology. The result is a subtle historical and contemporary rereading of the social construction of intoxication that will provide a secure basis for analysis as society continues to respond to the problematic pleasures of intoxication. Front Matter....Pages i-xii Starting the Conversation....Pages 1-30 Front Matter....Pages 31-31 Medical Expertise and the Understandings of Intoxication in Britain, 1660 to 1830....Pages 33-51 The Expertise of Non-Experts: Knowledges of Intoxication in Criminal Law....Pages 52-68 Intoxicants: The Formation of Health Expertise in the Twentieth Century....Pages 69-83 Front Matter....Pages 85-85 ‘The Relations of Inebriety to Insurance’: Geographies of Medicine, Insurance and Alcohol in Britain, 1840–1911....Pages 87-109 Alehouse Licensing and State Formation in Early Modern England....Pages 110-132 Front Matter....Pages 133-133 Renaissance Drinking Cultures and Popular Print....Pages 135-152 On the Cultural Domestication of Intoxicants....Pages 153-171 Nudge Policy, Embodiment and Intoxication Problems....Pages 172-190 Front Matter....Pages 191-191 Beastly Metamorphoses: Losing Control in Early Modern Literary Culture....Pages 193-209 Intoxicants and Compulsive Behaviour: A Neuroscientific Perspective....Pages 210-231 Praxis, Interaction and the Loss of Self-Control....Pages 232-244 Front Matter....Pages 245-245 Addiction and Responsibility....Pages 247-266 The Current Law of Intoxication: Rules and Problems....Pages 267-282 The Addicted Self: A Neuroscientific Perspective....Pages 283-299 Back Matter....Pages 301-305 Starting The Conversation / Jonathan Herring ... [et Al.] -- Medical Expertise And The Understandings Of Intoxication In Britain, 1660 To 1830 / David Clemis -- The Expertise Of Non-experts : Knowledges Of Intoxication In Criminal Law / Arlie Loughnan -- Intoxicants : The Formation Of Health Expertise In The Twentieth Century / Virginia Berridge -- 'the Relations Of Inebriety To Insurance' : Geographies Of Medicine, Insurance And Alcohol In Britain, 1841-1911 / James Kneale And Shaun French -- Alehouse Licensing And State Formation In Early Modern England / James Brown -- Renaissance Drinking Cultures And Popular Print / Phil Withington -- On The Cultural Domestication Of Intoxicants / Craig Reinarman -- Nudge Policy, Embodiment And Intoxication Problems / Angus Bancroft -- Beastly Metamorphoses : Losing Control In Early Modern Literary Culture / Cathy Shrank -- Intoxicants And Compulsive Behaviour : A Neuroscientific Perspective / Karen D. Ersche -- Praxis, Interaction And The Loss Of Self-control / Darin Weinberg -- Addiction And Responsibility / Alan Bogg And Jonathan Herring -- The Current Law Of Intoxication : Rules And Problems / Rebecca Williams -- The Addicted Self : A Neuroscientific Perspective / Ciaran Regan. Edited By Jonathan Herring ... [et Al.]. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Alcohol and illicit drugs play a prominent role in our society. This important collection presents a subtle historical and contemporary rereading of the social construction of intoxication, using cutting edge sociological, scientific, legal and ethical analysis. Alcohol and illicit drugs play a prominent role in our society. This important collection looks back on their history and uses cutting edge sociological, scientific, legal and ethical analysis to seek to respond to the problematic pleasures they create