Questions from Me, an Alcoholic?

http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline/en_theystoppedintime13.pdf

Questions to Answer/ Think about:

What is the claim that the story as a whole is making?

Where are sensory details used?

What comparisons are used in the essay (and if you can say whether something is a metaphor, a simile, or analogy, that's great, but not necessary).

What makes the language and the reader's voice engaging?

How does the introduction grab the reader's attention and set up what follows?

Does the organizational pattern work, leading the reader effectively through different parts of the topic?

The claim the author makes in his story is that he didn't find as much wealth in materialistic things but in his family and work. Through his own narrative the author explains that even as an alcoholic he achieved great success professionally and didn't just maintain a career he actually advanced in his job field. It wasn't until he was sober that he would lose everything. His sobriety almost seemed to make him an outcast in a time when heavy drinking was more acceptable and as the author states- "Evening cocktails were as standard as morning coffee." He goes on to tell how his alcoholic associates fired him and his alcoholic wife left him. He explains that through his sobriety he found wealth not in material things or monetary gains, but found riches in family and in work that was deeper and more significant. When he describes his life as an alcoholic the author says- "I see a coin with two faces." One face is the one he shows to the public as a respectable and sometimes distinguished father, husband, taxpayer, home owner, etc. and the other face which may be closer to his true self he sees as sinister, baffling and inwardly unhappy most of the time.

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