Bacchus And Civic Order

German taverns where there was lots of beer-drinking and brawling have a long history, we learn, in Tlusty's account of the social and cultural functions of tavern life in Augsburg in the 16th-18th centuries. Though the language of a social theorist occasionally intrudes'a deadly duel is emasculated by its definition in terms of "conformance to social norms" and "ritualized forms of violence"?Tlusty's depth of knowledge about the Augsburg taverns makes this a fascinating read on early modern life. The author teaches history at Bucknell U. in Maine. c. Book News Inc.