Behavior: The Rules of Drunkenness

First drink, man drinks wine; second drink, wine drinks wine; third drink, wine drinks man.

—Japanese proverb

In one form or another, much the same formulation of besotted behavior has been cast up by all of the world's elbow-bending cultures—which is to say the overwhelming majority of the world's cultures. Man in his cups is presumed to be irresponsible, out of control; by anaesthetizing the higher centers of the brain, alcohol unshackles the primordial beast. In Drunken Comportment, published by Aldine Press, two U.C.L.A. social scientists challenge this venerable theory. Intoxication, say Craig...