Depicting alcohol use among Lakotas as both complex and culturally-specific, Beatrice Medicine\u27s book is an important addition to Native American and Great Plains studies. Medicine emphasizes that to comprehend its social, psychological, and economic dimensions fully, one must understand Lakota customs and two hundred years of history

Milbrodt, Teresa

English

DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska

University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences Great Plains Studies, Center for 2008 Review of Drinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux. By Beatrice Medicine. Teresa Milbrodt Bowling Green State University - Main Campus Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsresearch  Part of the Other International and Area Studies Commons Milbrodt, Teresa, "Review of Drinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux. By Beatrice Medicine." (2008). Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences. 945. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsresearch/945 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Great Plains Studies, Center for at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. 126 © 2008 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Great Plains Research Vol. 18 No.1, 2008 Drinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux. By Beatrice Medicine. Lanham, MD: AltaMira Press, 2007. vi + 155 pp. References, index. $76.00 cloth, $27.95 paper. Depicting alcohol use among Lakotas as both com-plex and culturally-specific, Beatrice Medicine's book is an important addition to Native American and Great Plains studies. Medicine emphasizes that to comprehend its social, psychological, and economic dimensions fully, one must understand Lakota customs and two hundred years of history. Alcohol was introduced among the Plains people in the early 1800s and traded for buffalo robes and jerky. Though alcohol was prohibited on reservations until 1953, smuggling and bootlegging were rampant, and the ban gave rise to a binge-drinking style among Lakotas since individuals had to drink fast or risk being caught. Because Lakotas and white people did not socialize, Medicine argues, there were no other drinking styles to emulate. To support her claims, she presents studies she con-ducted on Standing Rock Reservation and convincingly links cultural attitudes to current patterns of alcohol use. Among Lakotas drinking is a social activity, and, b~cause generosity is a strong cultural value, alcohol is shared. With the onset of the reservation system, Lakota men lost their traditional role as providers and turned to alcohol to relieve feelings of powerlessness and to prove their mas-culinity, deprived as they were of other cultural means. Medicine aptly suggests women are more likely than men to be looked down upon if they drink and to be regarded as neglecting their children. While women are socialized to drink in some families, in others they assume the role of caretakers, helping the alcohol-dependent when ill or in legal trouble. One of Medicine's most noteworthy observations is that there are no social controls on alcoholism or pres-sures to maintain sobriety within Lakota society. Acts committed while drunk are excusable, and the tiyospaye extended family unit does not shun alcoholics, but sup-ports them with food and shelter in accordance with the cultural weight given to generosity. As she notes, the social pressure to keep drinking can be pervasive in one's peer group, since those who refuse alcohol are accused of considering themselves "too good" to drink with others. Medicine states that it is the responsibility of the in-dividual to have the will power to stop drinking, which requires introspection and sacrifice similar to the sun dance or vision quest, an endeavor that is very personal in nature. Some have found help for their drinking in the sun Book Reviews dance ceremony and other rituals such as the sweat lodge andyuwipi, but these efforts are limited in the absence of a social code against drinking. Medicine argues that to combat alcohol abuse, there must be significant changes in the way Lakota people socialize, and individuals must be able to earn money with dignity. This book's primary weakness is its reliance on field data from the 1970s and 80s. Since that time, metham-phetamines have become more prominent on Lakota reservations, but ceremonies such as the sun dance have also increased. Further investigation into the helpfulness of ritual in recovering from or preventing addiction is needed. Teresa Milbrodt, Honors Department, Bowling Green State University. 127 © 2008 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

Review of \u3ci\u3eDrinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux\u3c/i\u3e. By Beatrice Medicine.

UNL | Libraries

University of Nebraska - Lincoln 
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln 
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and 
Social Sciences Great Plains Studies, Center for 
2008 
Review of Drinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux. By 
Beatrice Medicine. 
Teresa Milbrodt 
Bowling Green State University - Main Campus 
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsresearch 
 Part of the Other International and Area Studies Commons 
Milbrodt, Teresa, "Review of Drinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux. By Beatrice Medicine." (2008). 
Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences. 945. 
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsresearch/945 
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Great Plains Studies, Center for at 
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Great Plains Research: A 
Journal of Natural and Social Sciences by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - 
Lincoln. 
126 
© 2008 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 
Great Plains Research Vol. 18 No.1, 2008 
Drinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux. By 
Beatrice Medicine. Lanham, MD: AltaMira Press, 2007. vi 
+ 155 pp. References, index. $76.00 cloth, $27.95 paper. 
Depicting alcohol use among Lakotas as both com-
plex and culturally-specific, Beatrice Medicine's book 
is an important addition to Native American and Great 
Plains studies. Medicine emphasizes that to comprehend 
its social, psychological, and economic dimensions fully, 
one must understand Lakota customs and two hundred 
years of history. 
Alcohol was introduced among the Plains people in 
the early 1800s and traded for buffalo robes and jerky. 
Though alcohol was prohibited on reservations until 
1953, smuggling and bootlegging were rampant, and the 
ban gave rise to a binge-drinking style among Lakotas 
since individuals had to drink fast or risk being caught. 
Because Lakotas and white people did not socialize, 
Medicine argues, there were no other drinking styles to 
emulate. 
To support her claims, she presents studies she con-
ducted on Standing Rock Reservation and convincingly 
links cultural attitudes to current patterns of alcohol use. 
Among Lakotas drinking is a social activity, and, b~cause 
generosity is a strong cultural value, alcohol is shared. 
With the onset of the reservation system, Lakota men lost 
their traditional role as providers and turned to alcohol to 
relieve feelings of powerlessness and to prove their mas-
culinity, deprived as they were of other cultural means. 
Medicine aptly suggests women are more likely than men 
to be looked down upon if they drink and to be regarded 
as neglecting their children. While women are socialized 
to drink in some families, in others they assume the role 
of caretakers, helping the alcohol-dependent when ill or 
in legal trouble. 
One of Medicine's most noteworthy observations is 
that there are no social controls on alcoholism or pres-
sures to maintain sobriety within Lakota society. Acts 
committed while drunk are excusable, and the tiyospaye 
extended family unit does not shun alcoholics, but sup-
ports them with food and shelter in accordance with the 
cultural weight given to generosity. As she notes, the 
social pressure to keep drinking can be pervasive in one's 
peer group, since those who refuse alcohol are accused of 
considering themselves "too good" to drink with others. 
Medicine states that it is the responsibility of the in-
dividual to have the will power to stop drinking, which 
requires introspection and sacrifice similar to the sun 
dance or vision quest, an endeavor that is very personal in 
nature. Some have found help for their drinking in the sun 
Book Reviews 
dance ceremony and other rituals such as the sweat lodge 
andyuwipi, but these efforts are limited in the absence of 
a social code against drinking. Medicine argues that to 
combat alcohol abuse, there must be significant changes 
in the way Lakota people socialize, and individuals must 
be able to earn money with dignity. 
This book's primary weakness is its reliance on field 
data from the 1970s and 80s. Since that time, metham-
phetamines have become more prominent on Lakota 
reservations, but ceremonies such as the sun dance have 
also increased. Further investigation into the helpfulness 
of ritual in recovering from or preventing addiction is 
needed. Teresa Milbrodt, Honors Department, Bowling 
Green State University. 
127 
© 2008 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 


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Review of \u3ci\u3eDrinking and Sobriety among the Lakota Sioux\u3c/i\u3e. By Beatrice Medicine.

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