Optimism (The Big Book of AA)

 As I was wandering through the internet the other day, I found out that you can get the whole "Big Book" for Alcoholics Anonymous online for free.

Here's a pdf, but there are other HTML versions and stuff, even an ASL video version, all legal.

I don't know a ton about AA. I know a few guys who have done it and said it worked, and some that said it's a scam. Either way, I appreciate the availability, and I'm working my way through it here and there. I don't expect to do a chapter by chapter or anything.

What I do want to want to do is take a minute to look at the first paragraph:

WE , of Alcoholics Anonymous, are more than one hundred men and women who have recovered from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body. To show other alcoholics PRECISELY HOW WE HAVE RECOVERED is the main purpose of this book. For them, we hope these pages will prove so convincing that no further authentication will be necessary. We think this account of our experiences will help everyone to better understand the alcoholic. Many do not comprehend that the alcoholic is a very sick person. And besides, we are sure that our way of living has its advantages for all.

I don't know about modern AA, but I think it's pretty fair to say that the original group was a legitimate group of sick people trying to support each other, and other people with similar problems.

The tone here reminds me of a lot of the other self-improvement/education adjacent stuff that I've look at from the first half of the twentieth century. Compared to more modern stuff, it's just much more positive. There's no "hustle", there's no "everything is shit, but I'm going to tell you how to get ahead", it's people (seemingly legitimately) trying to help people. I'm not saying no one made a buck off of it, but the idea that you can get better and I want to help you seems genuine. I think there's a greater tone of respect, which I have questions about.

On the one hand, I've read a lot about how Adler and others believed anyone could become educated, improve, etc. On the other, it feels very much like it's upper class written for other upper (or maybe upper middle) class people. Is it just a greater culture of respect generally? Would Adler address some blue collar working stiff who bought a book even though he barely made it through sixth grade that way? Or did he think/know it'd mostly be bought by other educated people, so he addressed them, even if he felt it could be helpful for others? I don't think it's a scam (I'm gonna say it's for everyone, but I know it's just for other posh college boys), but I do wonder who the intended audience is for things like this.