Drinking

As with any other aspect of society, drinking and a culture's attitude towards drinking varies from culture to culture. As to be expected, Korean drinking culture differs greatly from American drinking culture. One of the biggest differences in attitude is related to the setting in which a person has their first drink. In most cases in America, one's first drink is usually at a party in high school, away from the watchful eyes of guardians and amongst peers. This may lead to unsafe drinking practices and habits to form, but allows for a greater degree of feelings of 'fun' and 'independence.' However, in Korea, it is usually with one's parents that a person has their first drink. I myself had my first hard alcohol -- soju -- with my father. Koreans have various rules and attitudes that need to be observed when drinking with one's elders, and it is by drinking with one's father that Koreans learn these practices.

Another stark difference is the behaviors of people when they get drunk. As with many other cross-cultural conversations I had, the topic of drunk behavior came up with me and my roommate. He was commenting on how 'stupid' white Americans seemed to become when they became drunk -- referring to the fact that masses of drunk white Americans that horded outside Stanton at unholy hours of the night. He himself, being of Latino heritage who hung out primarily with black Americans in high school, also noted the difference in drunken behaviors between black and white Americans. He noted that, which I agree with, parties with predominantly white people tended to become louder and rowdier as the night went on and people became more and more drunk. He didn't quite explain to me how black Americans acted differently when they were drunk -- just that they were. But despite a lack of a solid explanation on just HOW the two demographics differed when drunk, I knew what he was talking about. Koreans, and Asian Americans in general, also behave quite differently from white Americans when drinking. From my experiences, when Asians drink together, it is usually a small, intimate setting, with people you are familiar with. And to drink together is also a means of bonding -- I cannot count how many times I have drank with my friends' friends and have suddenly found myself with numerous new friends.

Where as the white American attitude towards drinking seems to be something that should be done in large groups, where anonymity is key and would provide a safe haven for any stupid behaviors that result from being drunk, Asians believe that, no matter how drunk you are, you should be responsible to some degree of your behaviors, especially when drinking with those older than you. This stark contrast makes it very awkward for me to really enjoy the 'party scene' -- or what little exists of it on campus -- because of such basic, cultural differences in attitudes toward drinking, and peoples' behaviors when drunk.