Kent State University Essays - An Edible History Of Humanity, Books

Kent State University Essays - An Edible History Of Humanity, Books Kent State University "Agriculture, the Game Changer" by Jada Garrison "An Edible History of Humanity" by Tom Standage Jada Garrison World History Ancient and Medieval Hist-11050-002-201780 Professor Shane Strate 7 November 2017 "An Edible History of Humanity" made it clear that the impact of agriculture on humanity plays a role in many aspects. The author is making the point that the importance of agriculture is a major employer, even of today's society. This text also brings to the table the aspect of the solution to feeding the world who, at times, were starving. The outstanding gains in technology that contributed to the advances in agriculture that made these things possible. Who would have thought corn, wheat, potatoes, and rice would have been the starting blocks of the wide, wide variety that agriculture offers today. The agriculture revolution is arguably the most important turning point in human history, from simple transactions in trade to establishing entire empires who took in these newly found techniques to benefit their rise in society. Agriculture brought about many advantages, as long as some disadvantages. Human society may have never formed into what it is today. At the beginning of time the little civilizations that stuck together were based off of a hunter-gatherer food supply. Members of these communities would spend hours hunting and whatever they brought back to be prepared would be shared with the peoples of the civilization. A hunter-gatherer's structure of society was mostly one-leveled or equal. Everyone in the community worked towards the same thing, providing food. This did not leave for much of a multi-tiered society, everyone had the same social standings for the most part. When the hunter-gatherers would settle into permanent spots they would sometimes settle near a farm. On occasion the hunter-gatherer would pick up on the techniques and then decided to farm as well. "Alternatively, hunter-gatherers on the fringes of farming areas might have decided to follow suit and become farmers themselves, adopting the methods [] of their farming neighbors." (Standage, pg 23). According to Standage this may have been due to "cultural diffusion", this is when the spread of cultural beliefs and social activities occur. Though the hunter-gatherers diet was thought to be healthier and more beneficial because they ate more meats, "rather than relying on a few stable crops." (Standage, pg 30), unlike farmers. The conversion of the hunter-gatherer society to an agriculture society brought many changes. The need for a larger food supply, social order, and organizational skills. In the agricultural civilizations there was a need to keep things in order, the "Big Men" or farmers who gained control over food supply became more powerful. The debt that was owed to them is what made them most powerful, though. The more debt owed to him the more food he would take as payment, when he obtained more food it would "legitimize the leaders position" (Standage, pg 50). Another strategy of gaining the most storage of the communities agricultural surplus could lead to a leadership positon. "Elaborate public-works projects then legitimize the leader's position..." (Standage, pg 42). Standage makes the statement of "Food was wealth, and control or food was power" (Standage, pg 13) this is proven true with how the civilizations created their social rankings. Each civilization had their own set of social classes, but for the most part they contained; the ruler, the appointed, military class, craftsmen, farmers, peasants and slaves. Some classes Many set these classes apart, finical status, training, and the simple fact of what class you were born into. In some societies you could work to make your way up the rankings, but in most what you were born into is what you stayed in. Social classes were being more of an necessity as the population grew and new advancements came about. Rulers had to know how to gain trust or legitimize himself. They could often do this by showing leadership characteristics in big projects being conducted throughout the civilization. A major project that was needed to be organized in their times were the irrigation systems. "One theory contends that a big man or leader can become more powerful by coordinating activities, particularly irrigation. [] control of the irrigation system would confer power on the leader" (tandage, pg 41).