Week+5


 * WEEK 5 NRA**

Week 5: Agriculture: the first of the great transitions

The early development of agriculture was a major technological achievement. It paved the way for massive population growth and density, the establishment of food stores and surplus, the division and specialisation of labour and the rise of hereditary class, privilege and ownership; all hallmarks of civilisation. This topic explores how agriculture arose in different areas and what it meant to human life and futures.

Notes: (Some starting perspectives) Agriculture enabled the first great transition from the hunter gatherer life style to the predominately urbanised world society that we now live in. The origins of agriculture must remain speculative although much has been written on it. Agriculture seems to have developed independently in a number of regions but suprisingly perhaps over a relatively short time frame given that we lived for around 190,000 years as hunter gatherers and then in some regions transitioned to predominantly agriculturists in just over 5000 years. Agricultural developments moved very slowly for some thousands of years. Small groups of formerly hunter gatherers gradually domesticated some animals and learnt to sow and harvest relatively poor crops. But even this meant that food supplies could be a little more assured and regular, small surpluses and storage became possible and considerably denser populations could be supported. Hunter gatherer bands could usually not exceed 100; smaller bands of around say 20 were more likely. Very few natural habitats can support much greater densities and even then most hunter gatherer bands were nomadic, following scarce resources. Agriculture allowed a sedentary life style. It allowed greater fertility although not necessarily longevity. Population thus increased considerably in these generally poor agricultural areas although general health may have suffered. But then a second phase of agriculture began about 5000 years ago with the remarkable and seemingly independent development of intensive irrigation cropping in the fertile crescent, India and China. Another great increase in population density followed as did division of labour, class distinctions, ownership, wealth (accumulation of material possessions) and heirarchical social structures. Great civilisations arose; all on the back of agricultural development. Indeed a vibrant and efficient agriculture that provides substantial surpluses seems to be all that is really necessary to develop a great civilisation. Further, a failure of agriculture was often the cause of the collapse of civilisations.

Resources: 1) Wikipedia article on the Neolithic Revolution: This is an excellent overview of the origins and social impact of agriculture; []   2) History of the World series: There are three sections to read: The Origins Of Civilizations The Agrarian Revolution And The Birth Of Civilization. [] The Agrarian Revolution And The Birth Of Civilization, Part Two []  and Agriculture And The Rise Of Civilization In The Middle East And Africa []

Activities:

Week 5 assignment due for submission Sunday 9th September, 5pm There is no Topic forum for week 5. Instead you should add to your project forum and comment on the posts of others.

Activity 1: Week 5 Assignment. Submit your answer as a single document; remember to start your answer with the actual question or supply a suitable sub-heading. 1) Write about one page (500-1000 words with references where appropriate) on what you think were the most important life style changes that were made possible by: a) early agriculture practiced at a village level and b) more advanced agriculture based on irrigation.

Activity 2: Make an entry in your wiki learning journal for week 5. Make sure your assignments and forum posts are copied into your wiki and are up to date.