Under the Influence

Emily Lafferty

Professor Stern

ENG 101-02

2014 September 19

Word Count: 800

Under the Influence

Scott Russell Sanders's "Under the Influence" is about a son's perspective of growing up with a father, who was controlled by alcohol. Sanders was only around the age of ten when his father changed into a drunk. Now, his son is around that age, so he wrote this story sparing the heartache and feeling responsible for other's actions. Being a drunk has many effects on the people around you, and Sanders does a respectable job painting an image of those effects.

Sanders starts out naming a list of cars that his dad used to own over the years. This made me think, "Why would he have owned so many cars? Did he crash them all? Was he drinking and driving?" Sanders already gets the reader thinking from the first page. Also, in the beginning he uses a strong simile comparing his dad to a dragon. He keeps that simile throughout the story, because he uses it later on page 103. This goes to show that Sanders's writing is cohesive and well thought out.

He then talks about when he was little and used to blame himself. "He would not hide the green bottles in his tool box, would not sneak off to the barn with a lump under his coat, would not fall asleep in the daylight, would not roar and fume, would not drink himself to death, if only I were perfect. (101)" Sanders kept thinking to himself "I have failed him. (101)" This is powerful coming from such a young child. Why should a ten year old boy blame himself for his father's irresponsible actions? This is a vast point that alcohol can have a huge effect on family.

Many people do not recognize the dangers of the use of alcohol. Jokes, cartoons, plays, films, and television shows often resemble the drunk as the comic relief. By doing this, individuals may think that drinking alcohol is not a big deal. Sanders discusses certain cases where alcohol may seem like all "great fun." He talks about getting drunk and burping, singing, using a lampshade as a hat, and walking into a stranger's house, thinking it was their own. In cases like these, it may be comical at first, but it won't be when that person becomes infatuated with alcohol and continues to do things without thinking. Like Sanders's father, when drinking, someone can be "pathetic, frightening, and deceitful (102)" rather than funny. Drinking can "transform a brave man into a coward, a buddy into a bully, a gifted athlete and skilled carpenter and shrewd businessman into a bumbler. (102)"

Sanders compared where he lived to an arsenal. "The least bump could set off either parent. (103)" This stood out to me because I could imagine a young boy sitting and waiting for his father to explode, and let his alcohol speak and control him. This image is not a pleasant, but powerful. He then brings up lines from a poem by Theodore Roethke, "My Papa's Waltz." While reading the first half of this story, I actually was thinking about that poem, and thinking of the similarities between the two. Although Sanders's father was not abusive, he still had whiskey on his breath, which brought out the worst in him.

One thing that really stood out to me was on page 105, when Sanders compares his father's transition from sober to drunk as a mutation. He even has examples, like Dr. Jekyll becoming Mr. Hyde, turning into a werewolf, and being taken over by an alien. Being a drunk is something that a person cannot just turn off, it takes hold of them, and is really hard to overcome. Unfortunately, some alcoholics do not realize how bad they get until it is too late. Sanders's father was lucky enough to be able to survive his liver, kidneys, and heart conked out, along with his withdrawal. The doctor told him that "one binge drink would finish him. (107)" His father was then sober for the next fifteen years. He was sober until retirement day, when his fellow coworkers opened a six-pack. All it took was one drink. Sadly, he then was no longer sober, and was an alcoholic yet again, until the day he died.

Being an alcoholic disguises who people really are. There are so many people who have drinking problems, and refuse to get help. Sanders's story is a perfect, yet tragic example of what it is like to be around an alcoholic. Sanders did not stop blaming himself until he was older. He finally realized that his father's drinking habits were not his fault. His father was just possessed by alcohol, and could not be freed from it. Overall, "Under the Influence" should inspire others to not drink, or to realize mistakes that were made and get help.