Essay Example on the Importance of Agriculture

Human society thrives off the constant development of civilization. The discovery of agriculture and its practices is what enabled humans to create a functional civilization and later society. The transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture radically shifted the course of human history.

There were many drivers for change around the time agriculture was developed. The constant need for migration due to climate change and overhunting made life strenuous. The rising population density was also a huge problem. Groups became too large to hunt and gather food and there was simply not enough food to go around. This led to a rise in starvation and death rates. 

The discovery of agriculture was a massive wave that influenced other historical movements throughout later history. For one, the dawn of civilizations rose and allowed for humans to live in a way they never had before: permanently. Additionally, the population boom took place due to this sudden surplus of food. More lives were able to be supported and civilizations were able to grow, in turn creating more complex societies. There were no longer just hunter and gatherers, one could be anything they wanted: a cook, a seamstress, or eventually an office worker or business owner. Alternatively, this event also led to some negative events. World hunger became an even greater issue since calories were not, and still are not, distributed evenly amongst everyone. Just because more food was able to be harvested does not mean everyone got what they needed. 

As agriculture continued to advance, large, impactful movements were caused. There were great innovations, like the invention of the plow and later, the tractor. These inventions created massive surpluses of food in places that had them. Stepping back, the bigger picture that agriculture encouraged is how it was able to tie civilizations together through trade. Civilizations that once had no idea each other existed realized that it would benefit all to work together and trade what each other needed. Due to the development of trade, transportation, allies, and even wars emerged. The discovery of agriculture was the first piece in this domino effect of human history that jumpstarted the beginning of civilization and everything that would follow involving humans. 

The existence of agriculture encourages, yet also discourages a sustainable lifestyle. On one hand, humans no longer had to destroy one area and then move onto another as they did during the migration period. This meant that nature could flourish outside of human contact. Adversely, agriculture has also caused some harm. Later in history, humans would develop unsustainable farming processes because of the population boom. Humans needed more food, so they resorted to unsustainable practices (that release harmful pollutants into the atmosphere). Other methods have been developed too that cause habitat loss, immense amounts of wasteful water consumption, and soil erosion.

The discovery of agriculture and its later development completely altered the course of human history; it allowed society to be what it is today and for history to write itself.