Notes to John

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussions of substance use, addiction, and depression.

Alcoholics Anonymous, or AA, is a sobriety program started by Bill W. In Notes to John, Joan Didion repeatedly refers to AA because her daughter Quintana is a person with alcoholism. According to Bill W.’s Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism (familiarly known as the “Big Book”), a 12-step program can lead individuals with alcoholism towards a healthier life. At times, Didion is grateful that Quintana is attending AA meetings. She wants Quintana to get help and is hopeful that AA will offer her some guidance. At the same time, she tells Dr. MacKinnon that she is skeptical of the program and its central beliefs. In particular, Didion struggles with AA’s idea that people with alcoholism “have to be sick for the rest of [their lives]” (77). One of the groundbreaking aspects of the “Big Book” was how it represented alcoholism as a disease rather than as a moral failing or personality dysfunction. However, Didion feels frustrated that Quintana is limited by this message; she can’t see herself outside her relationship with alcohol.