A Laboring World
Compare the types of labor used in various systems.
Division of labor
-(noun) Cooperation by dividing work and performing
specific tasks
Specialization-(
noun) Working on only one task or type of activity
Wage labor
-(noun) Working for money
Forced labor
-(noun) Slavery
Slavery-(
noun) the use of force or violence to make people work
Industrial Revolution
-(noun) the shift from muscle power to mechanical or
chemical power to produce and transport goods
Currently
-(adverb) at the present timesub
Motivate
-(verb) to provide a reason for action
Acute
-(adjective) Sharp, severe [SAT word]
Hunting and Gathering
What does a hard day of work look like?
Until a few thousand years ago, it meant walking around, collecting plants
and berries to eat, and maybe hunting a few animals. People lived in small
groups, collected their food and other necessities from the land, and only
worked a few hours a day. They lived easily in the summer and fall.
However, they had hard times in the winter, in bad weather, or if they had
trouble finding animals to hunt.
This period is called the Old Stone Age because the only material used to
make tools was stone. Stone was also chipped to make strong, sturdy
implements.
Have you ever hunted for arrowheads? These are examples of Stone Age
tools!
Agriculture
The Neolithic Era is also called the New Stone Age. Neolithic comes from
two Greek words: neo, meaning new, and lithos, meaning stone. It began
about 9500 BCE and ended around 3500 BCE when human beings
developed the ability to work with metals. During the Neolithic Era, people
still used stone to make implements and made tools out of stone. But unlike
earlier people, Neolithic people polished their tools instead of simple
chipping them with rocks. During the last part of the New Stone Age,
human beings learned to make pots from clay. They also learned to plant
and harvest seeds. Instead of moving around looking for food, they made
food themselves. People began growing plants on purpose: this was the
beginning of horticulture, which is the science of plant cultivation. Other
people began collecting and taming animals, especially sheep, goats, and
cattle. These new abilities - horticulture and animal husbandry (the practice
of breeding and raising livestock) - changed human history. It had become
possible for people to live in large groups and create culture.
