Jayson Wieczorek

Period 7
A History of the World in 6 Glasses-Cola
Chapter 11-From Soda to Cola
1. The British industrial approach was to split manufacturing into stages and move items from
one stage to another while parts were made at specific stations and gradually added. The
American industrial approach was to separate manufacturing and assembly. Interchangeable
parts would be manufactured and then assembled at one stage. Some common examples of this
type of manufacturing process was guns, cars, bicycles, and sewing machines. The American
system allowed for more products to be produced at a faster rate. Because more products were
available, mass marketing quickly became an everyday part of life. The American industrial
approach led to consumerism because it made fairly unskilled workers able to produce a
consistent product through the use of machinery.
2. One view of America that Standage presents is the view that America represents economic and
political freedom of choice, consumerism, democracy, and the American dream. The other is that
America stands for ruthless global capitalism, the hegemony of global corporations, the
destruction of local cultures, and a standard, mediocre, worldwide culture.
3. Soda water was first invented in the 1760s by a man named Joseph Priestley. He was
fascinated with the gas that bubbled from vats of fermenting beer. Joseph conducted a series of
experiments and eventually published a book called Impregnating Water with Fixed Air. He had
no plans to commercialize his methods, and another man named Thomas Henry used Josephs
discovery to sell artificially carbonated water for medicinal purposes. European entrepreneurs
began to capitalize on the growing market and began selling sparkling water all across Europe.
Eventually the product came to America where it was even more popular than in Europe. People
began to add syrups made from various fruits to flavor the water. The new flavored product led
to the invention of soda fountains and became an industrialized market. Soda water was enjoyed
by rich and poor alike and because of this, became an= symbol of democracy and unofficial
symbol of America.
4. John Pemberton was an American pharmacist from Atlanta, Georgia. A myth says that he
invented Coca-Cola on accident while trying to create a cure for headaches. In reality, Pemberton
was an experienced manufacturer of patented medicines. His ambitions failed and he turned to
the coca leaf as a new type of medicine. Pemberton copied a coca-infused wine recipe and added
kola extract to the drink. He began marketing his product and found huge success. That is, until
the temperance movement began gaining ground. Pemberton revamped his formula, removing
the wine and adding sugar. He marketed it as a new product and intended for it to be dispensed as
a medicinal soda-water flavoring.
5. The coca leaves would sharpen the mind and suppress appetite. However, it was also
extremely addicting. Coca-Cola received its name after one of Pembertons business associated,
Frank Robinson, suggested that the two Cs would look good for advertisements. It consists of
the two main ingredients, coca leaves, and kola extract.

6. The marketing strategy for Coca-Cola was that it was marketed as soda flavoring, and
medicine. It was non-alcoholic, so as to appeal to the larger population. It was said to contain
invigorating and refreshing properties and would stimulate nerves. In addition, it was labeled as
an intellectual beverage and could cure all nervous affections. It became such a popular drink
because of its mass marketing and rumored properties. Pembertons original formula and legacy
survive the debate over ownership because there were so many entities claiming partial
ownership to the rights that nobody knew who was actually entitled to the product. Upon
Pembertons death, a friend named Asa Candler convinced all partial owners that he should
assume full ownership because he was keeping Johns best interests in mind. Because of Asa,
John Pemberton is known today and his product became as successful as it was.
7. Coca-Cola found increased sales in the late 19th and early 20th centuries because it was
marketed only as a refreshing drink, not as a medicinal remedy. In addition, only the Coca-Cola
syrup was being sold, not bottled versions. By the 1890s, Coca-Cola was being sold in every
state in America and became dubbed the national drink. Sales were further increased when it
became available as a bottled drink. Because of its new packaging, it could be sold in stores,
restaurants, and many other places.
8. Harvey Washington Wiley put Coke on trial because Harvey noted that it contained caffeine, a
drug, and was not being marketed as a medicine. He also was concerned that children were
drinking it while parents didnt know their children were consuming drugs. He said that the
caffeine promoted aggression. The outcome was in Coca-Colas favor. The drink was pure as it
was marketed because caffeine was not an additive and was a part of the original formula. CocaCola did agree to cut the amount of caffeine in the drink in half and to not put children in
advertisements for the drink.
9. The three problems that Coca-Cola faced in the 1930s was the end of Prohibition, the Great
Depression, and the rise of rival company, Pepsi-Cola. When prohibition ended, Coca-Cola sales
were projected to plummet because it was not considered a real beer or mans drink. Sales
did not plummet, however. Coca-Cola became a social drink and was seen as a suitable drink for
all times of the day. Pepsi-Cola had origins in the mid-1800s, but went bankrupt a few times. It
became a serious rival to Coca-Cola when it offered a similar drink for less. Coca-Cola accused
Pepsi of trademark infringement, but it did little good. Pepsi changed its logo to avoid confusion
with Coca-Cola. In addition, cola was now defined as any brown, carbonated, caffeinated soft
drink. Coca-Cola profited during the Great Depression because it was moved into movie
theatres, a place associated with escapism. It became the staple drink of any movie-goers and
represented a happy, carefree world.
10. William Allen White meant that Coca-Cola was the perfect embodiment of what America
represents. America was seen as a honest, hardworking, quirky country that started out from
humble beginnings, much like Coca-Cola.
Chapter 12-Globalization in a Bottle
11. Coca-Cola inspired American soldiers during WWII. It not only offered them a stimulating,
non-alcoholic drink, but also reminded them of home. It was deemed an essential moraleboosting resources necessary for the soldiers. It became exempt from the sugar rationing due to

extensive lobbying and it being deemed an essential product to the war effort. This pushed CocaCola ahead of its competitors because other cola products were not exempt from the rationing
because they were not the national drink. This was a smart business plan, not a patriotic duty. As
seen in the past, the Coca-Cola Company did everything they possibly could to avoid paying
extra money to sell their product. They changed recipes and marketed it as a completely different
product. This example is nothing but another way for it to make a better profit and improve its
public image.
12. Cokes popularity among American troops allowed it to expand globally because Coca-Cola
plants were established in territories conquered by the United States during the war, such as
North Africa. These plants allowed Coke to be introduced overseas through American troops.
13. Coke became linked to Western values because it was marketed as the national symbol of
America and became one of the most important products to soldiers. Communist activist attacked
Coca-Cola because it represented America and all of Americas faulty ideas. It symbolized the
disease of American society.
14. Coca-Cola and Pepsis rivalry only intensified during the Cold War. Coca-Cola focused its
efforts on secret sales in the Soviet Union while Pepsi became the favorite drink of presidential
hopeful Richard Nixon. Coca-Colas plan to expand overseas was a failure. This was due to the
fact that it had anticommunist propaganda associated with it. Pepsi was relatively unknown to
foreign nations and was able to make its way behind the iron curtain. Coca-Cola ended up
winning the war because it was not reliant on communist nations for income. After the collapse
of the Berlin Wall, Pepsi fell with the communist nations, but Coke was once again the nation
drink and welcomed in America. Not only was it popular in America, but also quickly gained
popularity in former Soviet controlled nations.
15. Because of Coca-Colas attachment to Western ideas and refusal to market in Israel, it was
seen by the Jewish population as anti-Semitic. Because of these views, it was boycotted by many
Jewish-associated companies like Mount Sinai Hospital and Nathans famous Hot Dog
Emporium. After the short boycott, Coca-Cola announced that it would license an Israeli bottling
franchise in Tel Aviv. This sparked action from the Arab League for its nations to boycott CocaCola. Pepsi capitalized on this and began to make its way into Arab markets. After the boycott
collapsed, Coca-Cola worked its way back into the Arab markets, but Pepsi was already too
established.
16. The argument for globalization says that removing trade barriers, tariffs and economic
obstacles would allow for both rich and poor countries to prosper. By establishing factories in
poorer countries, companies could cut costs while also creating jobs and stimulating the
economy. The anti-globalization argument says that it allows countries to exploit workers by
providing extremely low pay and low status jobs. It also allows multinational companies to
exploit regulations by shifting jobs overseas. Coca-Cola perfectly defines globalization. CocaCola has reached almost every country in the entire world and has become one of the most
profitable companies in the world. It controls most of the soda market and has created a single
drink culture worldwide.

17. Five global processes involved during the Coca-Cola era are:
1.) Decolonization of Africa, The Middle East and Asia- After WWII, Much of North Africa, the
Middle East, and Asia became independent nations. Some examples of this are Vietnam, India,
and Israel.
2.) Americanization-With America becoming the world superpower, American culture quickly
spread throughout the entire world. Along with Americanization comes cultural uniformity and
loss of native culture.
3.) Global Scale Conflicts-During the 20th century, the world experienced the first truly global
conflicts, WWI and WWII. These not only involved the countries they were located in, but also
colonies that were controlled by the warring nations.
4.) Mass Consumerism-With the invention on interchangeable parts and the assembly line came
mass marketing and a shift toward consumer focused economies that stressed the importance of
material consumption.
5.) Evolution of Technology-Military technology advanced, commercial air flight, the internet
was invented which allowed for instant exchange of communication, medical products and
knowledge of disease extensively grew.
Epilogue
18. According to Standage, the next beverage that will define mankind is water. Developing
nations view this resource as a precious item while the develop world doesnt think twice about
how much they use, or waste. This is especially prevalent in Africa where there isnt much clean
water or natural rainfall.
19. Some critics have argued that water will become the scarcest commodity because it is being
consumed and wasted at an alarming rate. Also, freshwater is not an unlimited resource and
desalination plants are too expensive for developing nations. Water could be catalyst for war
much like oil is. Water is necessary for life and if there is not enough, people will most definitely
fight each other for control of water sources.
20. Everything cycles back to water because it is necessary for almost everything that we do in
daily life. Not only is it necessary to survive, but it also directly or indirectly powers many of the
machines that we use on a day to day basis. I do agree with Standage about the next beverage to
influence to influence mankind. Water is overlooked by many people in the world, but as evident
in California at the moment, droughts can cause havoc and make people realize that water is not
as abundant as people think it is.