Kultur 3 - Alcohol and Humor in Germany

The articles were very interesting and they helped find out more things about the German culture. In Germany the legal drinking age is 16 for beer and 18 for liquor. The law is not as strict as in the United States and it is not really surprising for me. As I have lived all my life in Greece, I grew up with the Greek idea that did not restrict you from consuming alcohol at any age, and while the legal age in Greece is 18, the laws are very loose. Its somewhat similar with Germany because of the fact that the legal age for beer is 16 and, lets face it, its not very likely that anyone would consume alcohol before they turn 16, so its pretty much as if there is no restriction at all. To be honest, I believe that this law is more successful than in the United States, since young people have the chance to taste alcohol and understand all its consequences really fast.

My opinion, as I have noticed until now, is that considering alcohol in the United States illegal until someone turns 21, makes people want to try it more and more, and attracts under-aged people only because it is illegal and therefore tempting and cool. I am sure everyone has noticed people who have stated they want to drink at parties just to get drunk although the taste of alcohol does not give them any pleasure. I believe that this is what people in Germany are able to understand. By consuming alcohol from the age of 16, by the time they turn 18 or 19, people understand the consequences of alcohol. On a personal basis, I remember myself tasting beer for the first time when I was in 10th grade and I did not like it. My summer vacations in Greece after I graduated from high school were connected to night life, and it is normal to have shots and drinks with your friends, and it is not always enjoyable since there are always times where you exceed the limits. However, this chance of consuming alcohol made me understand what I like from it, and why do I actually drink and so I reached a point of understanding alcohol is not that special and I know how to protect myself from its dangers. There is a great majority of people of my age who think like this in Greece, and because the law is similar to Germany's, I suppose that German people think alike and that is why the German law seems very rational to me. As I read the articles, I believe that banning alcohol from public places would not make a big difference, because the legal age does not change and people can still drink at bars and pubs, so it would not make a big difference except for forbidding people to have their drink anywhere they enjoy it.

As for the German sense of humor, I have been to Berlin and Munich before, and the German people's behavior is so similar to the articles. They seem moody, serious and pessimistic, but in reality, they use this image to produce their own style of humor. The loud lighthearted humor of the Bavarian people shows that German people may not be as cold and serious as they seem. The wittiness of the Hamburger humor style and the sarcasm of the Berliner humor shows that the Germans take advantage of their cold image and use it in order to be funny. In my opinion, this is what makes their own humor and culture unique compared to other European countries that share many common characteristics.

Tschuss!!