Drunkenness as a social phenomenon: regional historical and sociological aspect

On the basis of archival and narrative sources, an interview with Boris Yeltsin’s classmate examines the most complicated problem of Russian history in the pre-Soviet, Soviet and post-Soviet periods – the excessive consumption of alcohol by the population in the territory of the Western Urals. The reasons of vitality of the given negative phenomenon in the Russian society are analyzed. An assertion is being made about the socio-economic reasons for the existence of this type of deviant behavior in the absence of cultural construction.