Final answer:
The shift from a preagricultural to an agricultural society changed the societal role of women, primarily relegating them to domestic tasks as men took over the farming duties. This shift also led to labor specialization and social stratification, with the wealthier individuals leading society.
Step-by-step explanation:
As human society transitioned from preagricultural to agricultural modes of production, the role of women significantly evolved. Originally, in hunter-gatherer societies, both men and women contributed to food acquisition, with many societies relying heavily on the plant foods gathered by women. However, the advent of agriculture around 10,000 to 12,000 years ago began a shift in gender roles.
Agricultural societies commonly saw men working the fields, while women were relegated to the domestic sphere. The need for physical strength to control the plow may have contributed to this shift. Furthermore, women's time became occupied with domestic tasks like food preparation, pottery production, and cloth weaving. As they were less tied to the home, men had more opportunities for societal leadership.
Moreover, the shift to agriculture led to population growth, emergence of larger settlements, labor specialization, and social stratification. Not everyone needed to farm, allowing some individuals to become artisans or traders, thus generating wealth. Over time, agricultural settlements grew, even as hunter-gatherer lifestyles, which tended to be more egalitarian, were increasingly abandoned.
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