Intoxicated Identities

Alcohol's Power in Mexican History and Culture

By: Tim Mitchell

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Hardcover | 4 May 2004 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Hardcover
226 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
22.86 x 15.24 x 1.42

Hardcover

$532.75

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In Intoxicated Identities, Tim Mitchell provides a novel and well-grounded framework for understanding subjective drinking experiences from the Aztecs to the present day in areas as diverse as Chiapas, Chihuahua, Oaxaca, Mexico City, Texas and California. Power drinking plays a crucial role in Mexican religion, politics, fine arts and ritual spousal abuse. Mexico ranks number one in deaths from cirrhosis, and Mexican Americans are twice as likely to be arrested for drunken driving as blacks or whites. With methods and concepts derived from an extraordinary range of disciplines, Mitchell explains how Mexican culture reinforces heavy drinking. He analyzes supply (nationalistic marketing strategies) but emphasizes demand (psychocultural motivations unique to Mexico). He chronicles the joys and sorrows of a borrachera, or drinking binge, and explores this altered state of consciousness on its own terms, not from any temperance or anti-alcohol perspective.

Industry Reviews

"Intoxicated Identities is a fascinating work that will change the way you think and feel about drunks and drunkenness and hence about the world itself. In an age scared of drugs and addictions, Mitchell pursues bold ideas with nuanced arguments and writing that is witty, racy and unusually sparkling. This is an intoxicating book.
." -- Michael Taussig, Professor of Anthropology, Columbia University
"Both dazzling and scholarly, profound and witty, Mitchell's meticulously researched book on Mexican drinking habits is destined for classic status in alcohol-and-cultures studies. Set against vast panoramas of time and space from Aztec to Zapotec, Mitchell's work shows that sobriety and drunkenness are not stark alternatives, but interwoven threads within the rich tapestry of Mexican identity. Intoxicated Identities ignites the imagination with the brilliance and power of sustained lighting: !magnifico!
." -- David D. Gilmore, Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University
"As in his writings on Spanish culture Mitchell has set Mexican 'binge drinking' into a broad historical and social context and revealed its ancient roots as well as later psychic and economic functions. I highly recommend this book to people interested in Mexican history, anthropology, psychology, music and literature: it is a scholarly tour-de-force.
." -- Philip K. Bock, author of Rethinking Psychological Anthropology

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