Reading Response 1

Reading Responses #1

For these responses, I used the books questions to help guide me.    

            After reading through Chapter 2, I came across the question of, do I agree with the statement about the agriculture revolution providing evidence for progress in human affairs. I would have to say yes, I do agree with that statement. Prior to the agriculture revolution early peoples did have a way of life that was getting them by. Hunter gathers were able to provide for their small groups and live for a period of time. However, with this particular way of life, hunter gathers did not to keep moving with the migration of their food and with the flow of the seasons.  The development of being able to grow food in particular areas was the change that started nomadic groups to become stationary. With people now beginning to not have to travel over vast areas for food, these groups could now have more children, which in turn would help develop into small villages. As we read in chapter 3, with the settlements caused by the agriculture revolution we begin to see the beginning of civilization. Which in my opinion, without the agriculture revolution would have never happened. We may still be roaming the vast regions of each continent in search of our next meal.

            Looking back at chapter 1 I couldn’t help but think about the fourth question at the end of the chapter.  How might the attitudes of toward the modern world influence our assessment of the Paleolithic societies? As noted from our first class when it comes to this period in our history, it just isn’t something that is paid much attention. Or it isn’t something that is spent being taught in school. Now I am speaking from my own experience when I write about this, but prior to reading this chapter much of what I knew came from seeing National Geographic movies. Those movies usually talk about their cave drawings and how primitive they were. Considering where we are today, anything less than what we have in way of technology is totally seen as inferior. Since there is no written record of this time, we do not know how advanced these peoples actually were. We can only assume. So yes, where we are in the modern world and are view of things will greatly influence our assessment of they way things were during the Paleolithic time. I think in order to get a true feeling of what it may be like a person would have to leave the comforts of today and put themselves in what we believe to be the Paleolithic mans way of life and live it for ourselves. I think the findings from such an experiment would be quite interesting.