Chapter Summary: Chapter Analysis

The main point made in the reading passage is that sharing the ownership of lands, which is called commons, made more benefits for everyone in the colonies of New England. However, the professor argues that commons did not work well in reality.

First, the reading says that farmers cooperated to maintain the lands by sharing the cost and labor equally. On the other hand, the speaker states in the lecture that people did less labor because everyone thought that someone else might have maintained lands. As a result, farmers became neglect and the productivity decreased. This contradicts what the passage indicates.

Second, the passage mentions that commons prevented overgrazing because people were careful not to take more than their share of