Last night, I attended the Rose Cafe Talk with Michael Fontaine where he talked about the origins of binge drinking. What I really liked about this talk was that it was not a lecture on why we shouldn’t binge drink or why binge drinking is bad for you, but to create an artistic depiction of the effects of binge drinking. In other words, the talk embellished drinking in moderation rather than criticizing binge drinking.
It’s interesting to see that a lot of areas of our culture such as binge drinking and bro culture can be dated way back, even though these aspects are culture are more prominent in some countries than others. I think that sometimes reflecting about where certain culture/norms come from and why they exist can allow you to reconsider why we continue to participate in such norms.
I agree that this talk made me think about decisions surrounding drinking and how they are shaped by the culture we are accustomed to – even down to the vessel we drink wine from. Why a stemmed class and not a cup or a bowl? And why are drinking games accepted and even celebrated? It is beneficial for us to see ourselves as a product of a culture, and realize that those of different times or places do not share our views.