Final answer:
The four main modes of subsistence identified by anthropologists are gathering-hunting, pastoralism, plant cultivation, and industrialism/post-industrialism. Each mode provides different solutions for generating materials and organizing societal labor, and they are adaptable to changes such as technology and climate.
Step-by-step explanation:
Anthropologists categorize different ways in which human societies interact with their environments to meet basic needs such as food, clothing, shelter, and health as subsistence strategies. There are four main modes of subsistence that humans have historically utilized:
- Gathering-Hunting
- Pastoralism
- Plant Cultivation
- Industrialism/Post-industrialism
Each of these strategies provides solutions for generating materials from the environment, employing labor and technology to process those materials, and organizing society to divide the workload. People have to adapt their subsistence strategies in response to various factors, including population pressures, changes in technology, and global climate change. These strategies also influence the ways societies circulate goods and uphold different social and cultural values. Modern challenges, such as the pressures of global capitalism, have put many traditional subsistence methods at risk, leading to their decline or alteration.