A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage is not the typical history read that one might expect. To some who find reading history books quite tedious and overwhelming, this book is for you. Standage divides his book into 6 main sections via beverages: Beer, Wine, Spirits, Coffee, Tea and Coca-Cola. These drinks, which all started as a form of medicine, not only have great affects on today’s social culture but have also affected the historical spread of technology, religion, exploration, trade, slavery, and noteworthy worldwide events that changed society. As Standage describes it, Beer was a representation of both liquid wealth and health during the early civilizations in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Working people were often paid in beer. Water, which was made people sick due to the contents in it, was replaced with beer as a healthier option. Standage argues that beer was the start of social civilization in that it was …show more content…
This could be very disappointing to most history lovers who are anticipating new knowledge and analysis, which lacks in his writing. What was disappointing is that Standage fails to include drinks from various parts around the world. If this was his intention, he should have titled the book, “A History of Western Civilization in 6 Glasses.” Standage also fails to describe the full evolution of each drink and its own personal history. When talking about beer, for example, it was discouraging that he doesn’t mention Germany like one would hope or expect to learn more about. Overall, A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage is a relatively small but interesting historical read. It brings light to the importance and influence that these drinks had on so many aspects of civilization. They helped spread religion, trade, technology, exploration, and numerous significant events that help define our world as we know it
However, the consumption of alcohol did not come without
According to the Michael Kolkind in the essay History 489 at Berkeley the conflict over people’s park took place. According to the author it was a small space took by the local activist from the university of Berkley which failed to improve it after “demolish some houses”(5). According to the author they created a space that would bring more people to join their causes. The author describes this action the “beginning of the end of the student movement”. For the extremist activists it was a military battle against the citizen that they were supposed to defend.
In John Standage’s book, A History of the World in Six Glasses, the history of the world is told through the history of six beverages; beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and Coca Cola. The effect that each has had on the world is profound and immeasurable, however, of the six beverages, I have found that coffee has played the largest and most significant role in world history. One way that coffee affected world history is that establishments that served coffee created a social venue for members of the community to bond over various topics. Standage wrote that coffeehouses were hotspots for “gossip, rumor, political debate, and satirical discussion.”, similar to what they are in the present day. These topics led to Kha’ir Beg, ruler of Egypt, as well as his superiors worrying about coffeehouses being a popular meeting place for those wishing to overthrow the government.
This book reveals to us how beer and wine were used for cultural, social, political, and even medical purposes. Finally, Standage shows us how civilizations grew by the spreading of beer and wine, and how the spreading of these drinks spread culture around the world. To Standage beer and wine is a technology that played huge role in the developing and advancing civilization. In the introduction, Standage states that throughout history various drinks have/had such high significance
Throughout human history, many different things affected culture and history as a whole. From laws, to inventions, to technological advancements. One thing most people do not consider to be part of this list is drinks. In the book “A History of the World in 6 Glasses” by Tom Standage, six different drinks that heavily affected world history are discussed and analyzed. Beer and wine had an extensive effect on the world, but coffee is, without question, the most influential of the three.
The early modern world period was from the 15th century to the 18th century. The majority of the population lived in rural cities. Life expectancy was not very long, and the lifespan was twenty-five years old. Diseases, famine, lack of medication, and improper sanitation contributed to the low life expectancy. Diet of the wealthy class consisted of bread, meat, and wine however the lower class’s diet consisted of fruits and vegetable.
Most of Americans had no experience with Alcohol. In contrast, Europeans were very heavy consumers of alcohol. By the 13th century, they master the technique of distillation. Since horses were common at Europe, horses were transported
Look at the world and think about what has changed over the past centuries and see if we can determine why it has now become what it is today. Our history has plenty of technologies and other products that have risen in the past five or six centuries, but now have changed a bit that might not be good. Almost everyone has some type of habit in their lives that they deal with and some are worst than others, but a habit can lead many down the wrong path if the habit is used extensively. The book that I read was Forces of Habit and it deals with the history of alcohol to drugs that we know of today.
Ronald Takaki is a social historian and is a professor at the University of California, Berkley. He is a professor of ethic studies. In addition to being a professor, he is also a fellow of the Society of American Historians. In his book, Double Victory: A Multicultural of America in World War II, Takaki focuses on the minorities during World War II. Most histories of the Second World War, focus on the politics, battles, or generals and leaders, whereas this book is about the experience of the different minorities in America.
This drink was one of the starting points where a fare was offered to a god since it was believed to be a gift from the gods. If it was not have thought so, then religious ceremonies would be different because there would be no offerings nor sacrifices. For instance, the religious practice that the Greeks, Aztecs, Romans, and Egyptians did, would have greatly affected their civilizations since it was part of their daily lives. Journal #2.
Most women were seen as too responsible to drink. One woman’s temperance leader posited in her book that “men think logically, women biologically”; therefore women would not oppose Prohibition because of a
As a result, people were disgusted on what was put into their food and the unsanitary conditions. When people read that, “There was no place for the men to wash their hands before they ate their dinner, and so they made a practice of washing them in the water that was to be ladled into the sausage” (Sinclair 114), the readers cared more
Also, religiously, the consumption of alcohol went against God’s will. A known fact was that Christianity helped introduce Prohibition in the USA. They even¬ set up an ‘Anti-Saloon League’ arguing that drinking alcohol was damaging American society and should ban
Victory gin is one of the few vices which the party endorses. However, the decision to drink gin is not an act of rebellion as other vices often are in this society. Rather, it is another form of control by the party. Winston describes that after the initial pain from ingesting the victory gin, “the world began to look more cheerful” (8). Here, the victory gin is a form of emotion suppression.
Ancient Egypt was the most advance civilization of antiquity. They had fairly advance Medicine, Architecture, Religion, and were also wise in philosophy. Greek culture learned a lot from Egypt, and they constantly referred to them and sought to find their ancestors in Egypt. The Nile was a fundamental element for the flourishing of the civilization of ancient Egypt, most of the population of cities were in the Nile valley and the Delta. The Nile was vital to Egyptian culture from the stone age.