HIS32350 Alcohol, Drugs & Society

Academic Year 2024/2025

This module explores the social history of alcohol and drugs in Ireland, Britain and North America from the late eighteenth century to present day. From US prohibition to smoking bans; opium dens to heroin addiction; and the gin craze to ecstasy raves, a long, historical perspective is essential for understanding debates about alcohol and drug use today.

The module is broadly chronological, beginning in the 18th Century with the "gin craze" and the evolution of a ‘disease model’ of addiction from the 1770s, and changing approaches to stemming the tide of substance misuse. These include the rise of the temperance movement, prohibition in the 1920s United States and the origins of ‘rehab’. Attention will be paid to how restrictive legislation, recreational norms/subcultures and drug classification have been shaped by discrete sets of social, cultural and political ideas in historical contexts. The course will also examine how attitudes towards drugs and alcohol lend insight into wider cultures and societies at specific historical moments. Throughout, the importance of class, gender and ethnicity will be assessed. The rise of the medical profession and the growing influence of medical knowledge will also form a central theme. The course will engage with a blend of secondary readings and primary source material, including audio-visual clips, testimony from patients in mental hospitals and pamphlets.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this course you should have:
• an understanding of the main issues and debates concerning the social history of alcohol and drugs in Ireland, Britain and the United States since c. 1750
• an awareness of the historical and intellectual context in which these works were written
• developed skills in dealing with primary and secondary sources
• experience of working and learning with others
• developed your skills in written analysis

Indicative Module Content:

- Our Changing Attitudes to Alcohol and Drugs
- Alcohol and Insanity
- Temperance Movements in Ireland
- Pharmaceuticals and the Medical Profession
- Alcohol, Drugs and War
- Prohibition in the US
- Drugs and Psychiatry
- Recreational Drugs: Subcultures & Pop Culture
- Our Changing Attitudes to Tobacco

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

11
Seminar (or Webinar)

22
Specified Learning Activities

95
Autonomous Student Learning

95
Total

223
Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
This is a small-group, seminar-based module. It is taught through a one-hour weekly lecture and a two-hour seminar. The weekly lecture provides an overview of the week’s topic, focusing upon key historical trends, debates and events. The weekly seminar is focused upon individual active / task-based learning by means of class debates, discussion and student presentations. Advanced research, writing and citation skills are developed through a combined individual student presentation on primary sources and written essay, and a semester-long 3-4,000 word research project. Autonomous learning is advanced through student-led debate and discussion of set primary sources and / or student presentations each week. 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
:
-


 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Open Book Exam Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade
Participation in Learning Activities: Participation: Students will be graded on their participation during the seminars (NB: this is not based on attendance, but rather active discussion and participation). n/a Graded No

20
Assignment(Including Essay): Presentation: A combined 10-15 minute in-class seminar presentation and 1,500 word written essay n/a Graded No

40
Assignment(Including Essay): Essay: Research Paper n/a Graded No

40

Carry forward of passed components
No
 
Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 
Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback on the Combined 15-minute Presentation / 1,500 Essay Assignment will be given in writing on Brightspace after submission and grading. Feedback on Participation is given to the class throughout the trimester. Feedback on end-of-semester essays is given individually and to the class on drafts and essays plans before final submission, and in writing on Brightspace after submission and grading.