Unit 1: Essay

Prompt

Explain the structure of a tragedy of the commons . Make sure you explain why it remains rational to cheat even when one knows that enough people cheating will result in catastrophe. Then explain 2 measures by which the villagers in the overfishing example can escape their tragedy of the commons.

Unit 1: Essay Answer

The “tragedy of commons” was first conceptualized by a British economist named William Forster Lloyd in 1833. In an essay he wrote, he explored how unregulated grazing of land that had people taking more than what they need will lead to the depletion of resources and the tragedy behind it is that taking more than what is necessary is always a rational choice regardless of the circumstances or the consequences they may suffer because of it.