A peasant is a person who works in rural areas, usually in agricultural or livestock activities whose main objective is the production of various types of food or its derivatives. In general, a peasant can produce these elements either for his subsistence (own consumption) or to commercialize them in the market and obtain some profit from it. Although normally the peasant identifies with the production of vegetables, fruits or vineyards, the peasant can also own different types of livestock.
Throughout history, the peasant has been one of the most important social figures in all civilizations and cultures since rural activities always occupied a central role in human economies. This role became especially relevant in the medieval period, at which time Western European populations turned to the fields and devoted themselves almost exclusively to agricultural and livestock production. The peasant was then one of the lowest categories on the social scale given his role as an underprivileged figure compared to others such as priests, monarchs, knights and lawyers.
Today, it is considered that the peasant of the industrialized nations differs from that of the developing nations, especially on the basis of one element: while in the former, the peasants can own the tools, the means of production and also the land itself. On which they work, in the second case the peasants generally engage in a subsistence economy with little or no possibility of social advancement. This means that they do not own the land that they work and that their living conditions are unstable, insufficient and, in some cases, even inhumane.
Finally, it can be said that peasant work is characterized by its highly dependent on external agents such as the climate or the market. However, for many, the rural environment maintains certain elements of tradition, customs, lifestyles and thinking that contradict the modern world characterized by stress, routine and urban problems.
