Scott Russell Sanders 'Under The Influence'

The book begins with the tale of how Dr. Hilfiker came to help alcoholics when he meets John Turnell. Hilfiker first met Turnell on the streets where he was suffering from the effects of his alcoholism. The problem is that Turnell was afraid of what would happen if he drops his one source of comfort and respite (alcohol) and Hilfiker, his physician, was afraid of what would happen if he does not. Hilfiker and his wife chose to uproot themselves and their family and move to Washington, DC, to begin work in the Community of Hope Health Services clinic for the poor and homeless. In the memoir, Hilfiker relates his experience as a physician and with DC's urban homeless and poor, many of whom were alcoholics (Hilfiker, 1994, 1-23).

Drinking, A Love Story, Written by Caroline Knapp: Is an insider’s story about fighting the battle of alcoholism and addiction, victoriously winning sobriety. Caroline Knapp fought her addiction for 20 years before becoming sober. “The Drink” as she called it, was her true love. The most beloved form being a good crisp dry white wine, but any form would do. She fell in love with alcohol at a young age and loved everything about it. The smell, the sound of a cork being pulled from a bottle, the cold liquid anesthesia running down the back of her throat after a long day at the office, the routine of drinking, but most of all she loved the way alcohol made her feel.

In the first chapter, we read about Bill’s story. Bill’s story describes his journey as an alcoholic and the struggles he faced in both his personal and professional life. Bill’s story genuinely gives a true insight into the struggles and challenges of addiction. His story is written in a way in which you are able to feel his isolation, loneliness, hopelessness, and loss. I personally found Bill’s story impactful and insightful. Through Bill’s words, I was able to gain an inside perspective into his thoughts and feelings about his ordeal and how he shifted from having no hope to having an entirely new world of hope revealed to him through what was essentially the start of Alcoholics Anonymous. The second chapter of our text seemed to me to be a call to anyone who was experiencing a

After reading "Under the Influence " by Scott Russell Sanders I was able to write about certain criteria's in task three which was to identify the exact purpose/intent/objective of the essay. Also, I was able to identify what the essay should have accomplished in the reader after it has been read. Other things that I was able to identify, and state were the main idea (thesis, claim, premise) of the essay. The final thing that I was able to identify, and state were ideas related to the thesis idea, either stated, explicitly or suggested, that would help develop and support the thesis and the purpose of the essay.

Carver’s “A Serious Talk” is another short story that perfectly demonstrates the damaging affects of alcohol addiction on both the addict and those who surround them. In the story, a woman named Vera is visited by her ex-husband Burt, who arrives to give

“Alcohol addiction stunts the spiritual, emotional and mental growth of a person”~Anonymous. Sherman Alexie’s novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, is a book based off the author’s teenage life. The novel is about a poor 14 year old named Junior who faced numerous challenges in his life. Junior has experienced bullying, he was called a traitor for following his dreams, got in a huge fight with his best friend and lost three very important people in his life because of alcohol. Fortunately in the end, Junior got through the pain and lived on but he learned many lessons. One of the lessons Junior learned was that the fall into addiction, in this situation alcohol, leads to a great deal of misery for the individual and those

When Victor was a child his parents would drink a lot and would neglect him because they dealt with their pain by drinking. They drank because they were drinking away the problems caused by the generational trauma they and the generation before them had to endure. For example, during the New Year's party, everyone got drunk, even Victor's parents, left Victor by himself. Victor’s father and mother drank more

According to a 2017 study done by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, “More than 10 percent of U.S. children live with a parent with alcohol problems.” The author Jeannette Walls uses the book, The Glass Castle, to talk about her childhood struggles of growing up with an alcoholic father. The reason this book was appealing was because I grew up with an alcoholic father as well and I found it interesting to read about someone who had gone through similar situations. In the first 90 pages the author tells us about her chaotic family life. Her father, who is weary of civilization and authority, packs up the family camp often to roam around the desert. Due to their frequent moving her father is not able to keep a stable job,

In today’s society, alcohol has become one of the main necessities for people to create relaxation, confidence, and the ability to be social. In the short story “A Bartender Tells What Man Did to Booze, and Booze to Man”, an anonymous bartender gives an up close and personal account of his observations about the effects alcohol has on men. He emphasizes the change in their character after a few drinks. Koren Zailckas from Smashed shares a memoir of her life describing her relationship with alcohol abuse and the problems that it caused for her. Although certain types of alcohol are used to support good health, it is the excessive consumption and misuse that leaves people dependent resulting in significant social, physical, and mental

Gruber, K.J., & Taylor M.F. (2006). A family perspective for substance abuse: Implications from the literature. Journal of Social

Alcoholism is defined as an addiction to the indulgence of alcoholic liquor and the compelling behaviour which results from alcohol dependency. In the novel “Medicine Walk” by Richard Wagamese and the essay “Mother’s Milk” by Christie Blatchford, the reasoning behind and dire repercussions of alcohol abuse are evident through the characters Eldon Starlight and Christie’s mother. However, Eldon’s reason for alcoholism is much more traumatic and its effect on both himself and those around him is of greater severity as opposed to Christie’s mother. As a teenager Christie’s mother suffers from social nervousness and uses alcohol as a means of reducing her anxiety, whereas Eldon begins drinking after he was forced to leave his home as his mother chose her abusive husband over him. After Christie was born her mother began drinking at a higher degree while Eldon’s alcoholism heightens after he must kill his only friend to ensure his own survival. Occasionally Christie’s mother would quit alcohol for around a month’s time and her health would improve, contrastingly Eldon’s attempt to abstain from alcohol lasts only a couple of days and results in the deterioration of his health. Despite her alcoholism Christie’s mother lives past the age of 80 and even outlives her husband by 15 years, on the other hand due to his alcohol abuse Eldon suffers from liver failure which results in his early death. Her mother’s

Rex Walls, the father of the family had the abuse of alcohol is the major resource of the family’s suffering. It seems that alcoholism is an individual behavior, however, many family and social issues caused by it make it rather to be a social problem. Such as domestic violence, suicide, murder, drinking driving, sex assault, unemployment, child neglect, poverty and many other mental health problems are all the result of alcoholism. In the book, Rex Walls is a typical victim of alcoholism. He cannot take a

Scott Russell Sanders wrote “Under the Influence,” a memoir depicting his alcoholic father whose many drunk dysfunctional states affected his life. Whose haunting demons from his death leaves Sanders with a guilt that, “...burns like acid in my veins,” (252) in certain moods. Like Sanders, I was left feeling anxious and guilty after the knowledge of Daniel’s, my older brother, diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes in 2011. At the age of 13, he was admitted into the hospital hooked up to various machines and their wires poking at him in different places on his body. As a younger sister, the anxiety I had about his health made me more concerned, leaving him to feel like a burden.

Luckily, Thomas and Victor were okay; however, Arnold’s problem with alcohol does not stop with this horrible mistake. For years he continued to drink and abuse his wife and son, Victor. When Arnold’s wife could not take it anymore, Arnold left the family and moved far away, missing most of his son’s life. My family has also had this problem. I have never been a victim of child abuse, but my father’s abuse of alcohol has impacted me in many ways. When I was about seven, I was told that my dad was leaving because of his alcoholism. I did not understand at the time the significance of my parents getting a divorce, but having lived ten years without my father, I feel I can relate to Victor in many ways. My dad has missed so many important events in my life, such as making the cheerleading squad, my first prom, and even the day I got my license. After seeing this movie I realized that even if my dad could recover from alcoholism, it could never make up for all the years we lost together. Lives are ruined by this terrible addiction everyday; not only the alcoholic’s life, but also the lives of those who love them.

Chapter nine expands on the spousal role and incorporates the entire family system. As with any disease, the alcoholic will be a key issue in how the family operates, thinks, and feels. The chapter discusses these issues and brings up points of possible emotions that I found would be helpful for the family to be conscious of in their alcoholic relative and in themselves. Chapter ten is a piece written by a business man who initially fired alcoholics and later began to understand their plight as his own. The instances of death and suicide after the businessman fired the individuals led the businessman to drink himself but, later on, begin to help those with alcoholism deal with their issues and work to keep their jobs. Another important piece to this chapter is that the employer can have options once the alcoholic maintains the job. The Big Book even discusses how the employer could use the alcoholic as a liaison to help others in his workforce.