The Spectacular Now Chapter 4 Summary

  • Sutter knows he drinks a lot, but he doesn't want us to think he's an alcoholic. He just drinks for fun, you know.
  • Sure, he's taken those Internet quizzes to see if he qualifies as an alcoholic, and yes. Basically, he does.
  • But Internet quizzes are better for telling you which faction you belong to than determining if you have a life-threatening addiction, right?
  • Sutter insists that it's all a matter of attitude. Drinking to forget? Bad.
  • But Sutter drinks to expand himself. He actually thinks he's a better person drunk.
  • He first tasted alcohol with his dad, when he was six.
  • They were at a ball game, and he begged his dad for just a sip of his beer – but then chugged half of it instead.
  • The thing was, his dad acted proud of him for it.
  • Sutter didn't really start drinking till 7th grade, though.
  • He'd steal beer from the grocery store with his pal, Ricky, and they'd drink it and then let a big Doberman chase them for fun.
  • Until the day they found out it was all bark and no bite.