Dawn of Civilizations
For better or for worse, agriculture was a driving force behind the growth of civilizations.
Farming probably involved more work than hunting and gathering, but it is thought to have provided 10 to 100 times more calories per acre.5More abundant food supplies could support denser populations, and farming tied people to their land. Small settlements grew into towns, and towns grew into cities.1
Agriculture produced enough food that people became free to pursue interests other than worrying about what they were going to eat that day. Those who didn’t need to be farmers took on roles as soldiers, priests, administrators, artists, and scholars. As early civilizations began to take shape, political and religious leaders rose up to rule them, creating classes of “haves” and “have-nots.” Whereas hunter-gatherer societies generally viewed resources as belonging to everyone, agriculture led to a system of ownership over land, food, and currency that was not (and is still not) equitably distributed among the people.1,13
Some have questioned whether moving away from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle was in humanity’s best interests, pointing to problems of social inequality, malnutrition, and military conflict that followed the adoption of farming.1,5One prominent scientist has even called agriculture the “worst mistake in the history of the human race.”12 That may be, but given the size and density of human populations today, returning to a paleolithic lifestyle is not a practical option. Hunting, gathering, and farming, however, can complement one another in ways that provide people with a more varied and abundant food supply. People still harvestaquatic plants and animalsfrom the sea, for example, and even urban dwellers might find edible berries, greens, and mushrooms in their local park.
