Blueplate Gospel

by Leslie H. Farber, M.D.

Books in Review: September Remember, by Eliot drunk in no blue-nose spirit; good fellowship Taintor. New York: Prentice Hall, lnc. 322 pages, abounds (“You can get that sense of abandon $2.75. without liquor”). AA members feel a natural solidarity: the way they would “get up and talk at Of all the methods devised bY state, meetings, really let their hair down, made -other clergy or medical profession for curing contacts seem thin and superficial. Other people alcoholism–prohibition, imprisonment, will shadowy.” And while AA insists that it has no power, electric shock, etc.–none has ever been ambition to impose sobriety on the nation, its so popular or so highly publicized as Alcoholics members feel a natural willingness to share their Anonymous. And so far as the limited aim is benefits with any applicant. They are “on call,” concerned of helping people deprive themselves so to speak, day and night, answering requests of alcohol, there seems no doubt that the for aid or enlightenment from strangers or popularity is deserved. backsliding fellows. Each member is at once Where other methods tend to say, “Now both patient and physician: only from a fellow you are cured; go back to your life,’ this alcoholic can they receive that acceptance, voluntary association of 15,000 members is without condescension, which society has unique in offering not a “cure” so much as a withheld. As physician, setting an example to “life.” Not drinking becomes in itself an others, they have an incentive toward sobriety, absorbing occupation, providing fellowship, but it seems to me they gain something more prestige and-in spite of an absurd body of crude valuable as well: the privilege of adult medico-religious dogma-a very real communal responsibility without its full rigors. They feel free faith. Obviously no one can give up a symptom to become a child-a patient–again, whenever without finding at least a partial satisfaction for necessary. But in practice, of course, this dual its cause, which in this case is intricately related role must cause some paralyzing inter-alcoholic to the social structure. lt is no indictment of the confusions-depending on who is treating whom method itself, therefore, to criticize the kind of at the moment. Prestige is gained primarily life celebrated by AA, or to suggest that what through one’s success in not drinking; second, really goes on bears no relation to the blueplate through one’s talent for mutual aid. Occasionally values offered as explanation and inducement. an unregenerate member is subjected to social These are not people driven to self-denial ostracism. (“But probably every field has it because of any deep awareness of interpersonal lunatic fringe.”) failure or spiritual emptiness in their lives; One assumption is that only an alcoholic usually they have found that alcohol was can understand an alcoholic. Within obvious threatening such real possessions as job, family limits this is true, but the quality of or the deference paid them by the less addicted. understanding is rather doubtful. Tag-lines of It is hardly surprising if the compensatory social popular psychiatry, which serve as passwords in life which they achieve together must be glorified the organization, also serve to prevent any firstby women’s magazine phrases and lodge- hand insight, while non-psychiatric undermeeting principles. standing seems on an equally debased level. The advantage of the present 300-page There is perhaps a fortunate discrepancy, pamphlet (disguised as a pulp-style novel) over however, between the “religious” flavor of the the shorter booklets distributed by AA, lies in its pamphlets and the actual beliefs and practices detailed revelations of group activity. While the deducibie from the novelistic dialogue. The formal weekly meetings are devoted to “Greater Power” so earnestly invoked in print is inspirational talks by ex-alcoholics, coffee is the kind of genteel deity, heavily infused with

Buchmanism and popular science, to which a some degree, driven the alcoholic to drink, are smart advertising man might subscribe in a here recreated in microcosm but with enough mawkish moment. This has little to do with the empiric differences, apparently, to act as an prevailing faith, a strong group loyalty, which effective substitute for drinking. Even with its activates AA members and undoubtedly preposterous ragbag of theory, AA has supplies another missing factor in their lives. A something of communicable value to offer the good sociologist might learn a great deal about social sciences, but so far no psychiatrist has our present society by watching the operation of been enough of a sociologist, and no sociologist this paradox: the social values that have, to enough of a psychiatrist, to discover what it is.

Source: The New Republic, May 21,1945

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