Women and Alcohol: Contemporary and Historical Perspectives

Alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems among women have long been a focus of concern and often the targets for prejudice and distortion. This book brings together a wide range of contemporary and historical evidence on the consumption of alcohol and its associated adverse consequences and benefits amongst women. Broad in its perspective, it does not concentrate solely upon the ill effects associated with heavy or inappropriate drinking by women. Neither does it lose sight of the historical, moral and social context in which drinking occurs. The book records the widespread and persisting ambivalence or hostility in many cultures towards the relation of women with alcohol by reference to religious and social pressures, gender roles and stereotypes and the view of alcohol as a facilitator of unrestrained and 'wanton' behaviour. The ambiguity accorded is contrasted with the normative nature of female drinking in many contexts and the dominant role of women as producers and retailers of alcohol in many developing societies.