Hunting and Gathering Versus Agriculture

Hunting and Gathering Versus Agriculture

If anyone told you that the human race would have been better off if we continued hunting and gathering, and never picked up agriculture, would you believe them? At first glance, it does seem a bit crazy. They had lower life expectancies, never really got to settle in one place, and most of all did not have a steady food source. Even though the primitive ways of hunting and gathering have their cons, there are also multiple pros to that way of life. Humans would have been better off without the development of agriculture.

In all honesty, agriculture is not as amazing and perfect as we all like to believe. Even though we are provided with a steady source of food, it has hurt the environment, the animals, and even the human race. When humans race began domesticating plants and animals, they created a mutual dependence on each other. These new domesticated animals could not survive in the wild any longer and depended on humans for their food. Crops also lost the ability to grow by themselves in the wild and relied on humans for survival. Likewise, the human race depended upon their newly domesticated animals and plants for food, labor, and much more. A year with a drought or crop failure meant that much of the population would starve, due to it being their only food source.

Agriculture gave humans a steady and somewhat reliable source of food, which then caused a population explosion. More people meant that more space was needed to house them, and more importantly, more fields to grow more food. Deforestation began as forests and grasslands were turned into fields and grazinglands, and as erosion washed away the fertile topsoil needed for crops, humans left, leaving the land scarred and barren. Without enough food to support the ever rising population, famines were a common thing. Especially if crops did not produce as much food as was expected due to a drought or crop failure.The farming life was very hard, and led to deteriorating health for humans. There is evidence of tooth decay, malnutrition, anemia, a shorter physical stature, and diminished life expectancy. Combine this with the diseases that farm animals introduced humans to, such as smallpox, flu, measles, chicken pox, malaria, tuberculosis, and rabies, and full blown epidemics could wipe out larger communities.

When we lived in the simple hunting and gathering societies, social inequalities were virtually non existent. There was no racism, sexism, or social classes. It was only