Class & Gender Roles

It made me intrigued to see how communities from different eras defined the roles of gender and classes. I was surprised that during the agricultural era that men and women were scene as equal. The book stated that men and women had different roles but never saw themselves as each others subordinates. I was impressed that in this time men and women could switch roles (hunting and gathering) and would feel indifference from it. The book stated how women worked as farmers and that this could be seen as a form as equality. When people normally think of the past with gender equality I think that this agricultural era is overlooked. I think it is overlooked because of our stigmas and biases in our current era. I believe that equality was possible because the agricultural communities worked together for their common goal: to put food on the table. But not all villages thought alike during this time. Chiefdoms were different from other agricultural societies because they introduced a basic form of government. Government causes a shift in roles of a given community. 

One upsetting thing to read about was the emergence of inequality. After the agricultural era there was a surplus of food. People were not hunting and gathering like they did in the Paleolithic era. But as urban life began specialization of jobs became common outside agriculture. This was great for the human race because it gave rise to a new way of thinking and sustainable living. This was also the turning point of equality in society. It seems that as the first civilizations grew, wealth, status and power grew as well. Because of the creation of different occupations not everyone was working on the field. Other professions such as a merchant or scholar brought more money to a person. In the agricultural communities people were working together to feed the community. But during the first civilizations, people were making money to benefit themselves. I understand how different occupations can influence a society to become more advance and prosperous for the future. What makes me upset is how the division of classes influenced a society to look down upon one another. The class system was a negative turning point in human society because it brought a division in the human race. This division in class is what influenced slavery into many civilizations. Many slaves were taken as prisoners of war or criminals. The act of owning a slave became normal for society. This level of thinking has brought this superiority complex of cultures that is still influential today. 

As a woman, it's upsetting to read about the changes of equality related to gender. As the first civilizations rose, the roles of men in society flourished. Men had a right to own property and participate in public life. As populations grew, more women became pregnant and were characterized as more nurturing individuals than men. Men were characterized as protectors of a household. This ancient way of thinking still has an influence in our society today. It's frustrating to read that this stigma on women so many years ago still has a major influence on our lives today.