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References to alcohol are ubiquitous in the work of the underrated and under-read late-nineteenth-century author George Gissing. Especially in his early novels, which deal almost exclusively with the working class, pubs and other establishments selling alcohol provide settings for character action and interaction. They are peopled by publicans, barmaids, and potboys and girls carrying jugs of beer to customers' homes; they contain cameo appearances of incorrigible drinkers in various states of inebriation and depict scenes of domestic violence committed under the influence; and even in Gissing's later work, with its focus on middle-class themes and concerns, there are still passing references to ‘pledge cards’ collected on mantelpieces and/or bedside tables, symbolizing characters' repeated failure to live up to their promise never to drink alcohol again.

It is tempting to explore such evidence of Gissing's interest in alcohol and its consumers for its contextual dimension, whether by connecting it to the cultural background at large or to the writer's personal experience. Indeed, alcohol had a topical significance in late Victorian public discourse, notably in the form of moral panics surrounding the issue of drink, and such general concerns would have left their mark on the writing of any contemporary author, especially one as sensitive to the social issues of his day as Gissing.