ubsistence or how societieshave addressed the need to subsist -to make a living-, and thrive with production (and social relations of production), consumption and distribution is a complex process...

ubsistenceor how societieshave addressed the need to subsist -to make a living-, and thrive with production (and social relations of production), consumption and distribution is a complex process that take us to the beginning of our species.Please, refer to "Great Human Odyssey". After reading the article on Subsistence pay special attention to main concepts (in bold) such assubsistence systemswhich is a set of practices used by the members of a society to acquire food.

Basic concepts such asfoodways,carrying capacity, modes of subsistence(and the different modes, clearly explained), etc. must give you a foundation to look at and analyze our history as a species going back hundreds of thousands of years as well as contemporary societies by doing a cross-culturally analysis. Then, you will be able to see how recent our mode of subsistence throughout our long history is. I expect you to considerforaging, for instance as a mode of subsistence that has been the longest in our history and that, in fact, there are still foraging societies today that in spite of how badly we, “the civilized” people in “developed” societies have been systematically destroying their ancestral territories and other resources, polluting the water out of which they (and ultimately us because there are systems that connect the parts) derived their livelihood.

For this reason,I requested you to watch the documentaryGreat Human Odyssey.I expect that you to watched it carefully,took notes so you write a rich,thoughtful paragraphon the possible correlationsbetweenthe first 4 chapters of your textbook, especially the chapter on Subsistence. Are there common themes? If so, what are they? Clearly write about them. I created the forum entitled Great Human Odyssey for you to place your work; a rich paragraph will be enough. The extended deadline is October 13 (before 11:59 p.m.). Again, those of you who would like to add or change something, you can still do it.

Also, I assume that you are reading already SidneyMintz’sbook, Tasting Food, Tasting Freedom. Please take good notes.Mintzwrote a lot about subsistence, about history, about a few ethnic groups living in the US and other countries of the Americas. Are there some correlations between this book and the chapter on Subsistence? I hope you will find them and you will be able to explain them.

Questions about Subsistence (make sure you read the entire chapter before answering the questions)

The deadline for your responses is Wednesday 13 before 11:59 p.m.

1. Identify the four modes of subsistence and describe the major activities associated with obtaining food in each system.


2. Think about the process of plants domestication. What can you say about maize? Is there another crop, from the part of your world you or your ancestors came from or that you are interested in that can provide an appealing history like the one of maize?


3. Is there a relationship between the subsistence system used in a society and the amount of private property or wealth differences that develop? Explain.


4. What is the relationship between modes of substance and gender roles in society?


5. Some writers/researchers have decried the invention of agriculture in some human societies, what would you argue to support (or disagree with) their view?


6. Analyze the ways in which the global agricultural system separates producers from consumers and contributes to wealth differences. What would be your comment about the U.S. society and its food system?


7. If you could do something about enacting some positive changes in the food system or political economy (production, consumption, distribution/exchange) what would you do?


8. Is there any correlation between this chapter's topics and "Tasting Food, Tasting Freedom"? If so,what are they?

Also, if you try to address the Discussion Questions at the end of the chapter and reflect on theWORLD SYSTEMconcept as well as theCOMMODITY CHAIN, you may find quite problematic our way of life (here in the US), so far. What is it that we produce and how and for what reason? How do we produce and why? What are the effects of what we consume in the US? (think about the textiles and apparel products that we get so cheap here and see how much (mostly) women from Bangladesh make (the examples are too many, this is just one). Think about one other commodity and reflect on who produce it, where, how, why, always keeping in mind the already learned concepts from the textbook’s chapter.