[SOC 808] - Midterm Exam Guide - Comprehensive Notes for the exam (11 pages long!)

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 808
• Professor: Monika Korzun

Document Summary

Began with gathering and hunting (more of the food supply came from gathering both females and males hunted and gathered) Began with no surplus -> to domestication of animals & plants -> to a surplus of food. Surplus: less people required for food production, specialization, stratification (i. e. social hierarchy the division of classes) Some classes were more valuable than others -> warriors were the dominating class because they could protect the group, and were the decision makers: state functions. Population from 4 million to 100 million. Fordism: mass production and consumption; capitalism started to develop: because of the war, many people were hungry so food was mass produced. Mechanization (i. e. tractors, tools, etc. which minimized the amount of people/labour needed), chemical (i. e. fertilizers, pesticides, etc. ) and biological (e. g. breeding crops) manipulations minimized risks in agriculture. Corn: largest crop in the us -> shortly after wwii, corn became subsidized (i. e. gov. granted farmers money to assist in the business)