The Social Pillar

Closely studying the relationship of the student body to the local liquor store has pointed me toward possible conclusions in the alcohol consumption phenomenon of college. While science and medicine have attempted to prove that some people are genetically predisposed to alcoholism, I believe that the societal state of social relations is another key factor in the identification of alcohol dependency. In this societal state, dependency is often less severe than alcoholism and less obvious in its consumption practices, yet still ingrained in the everyday as routine and necessary. The necessity of alcohol consumption is not always based on chemical addiction, but is instead deeply rooted in social addiction. Social addiction is based on the growing need for social interaction despite the declining presence of physical interpersonal communication in the post-modern world.

Playing the role of social lubricant for centuries, alcohol has become a standard medium to repair broken social traditions and absent formalities in communication, allowing the socially awkward to bridge the communicative gap of fear and social anxiety. This is apparent in the many roles that alcohol plays as a measure of communication and a subject of communication. As visible through my previous observations, there is more to alcohol than just its psychoactive properties that trigger social confidence and interpersonal opportunities. There is the ritualistic presence of alcohol as a good that accompanies social occasions, such as parties and private dates. Alcohol attracts people to gather around it and is often used to justify a bold leap of attraction from one human to another. In many cases, the act of purchasing liquor on a regular basis becomes the act of meeting a liquor store owner and employees, who become regular faces to the routine consumer. Finally, there is the subject of connoisseurship where individuals come together to express their opinions, share their experiences, and relate on the topic of taste, forming a community around alcohol as a romanticized product. In all of these examples, alcohol acts as a magnet to attract interpersonal socialization. Physical human interaction has become an overlooked necessity in the post-modern age where communication is increasingly virtual and technology is increasingly alienating, making alcohol a classical pillar for students to grab onto and socialize around as a traditional means of interaction. As these traditional forms of socialization continue to dissolve, alcohol becomes more important in its social role and dependency grows to ensure the continuation of interpersonal communication, especially within the college environment.