In England during the Middle Ages each village had an area of pasture on which any family in the village was allowed to graze its cows and sheep without charge.Eventually, the grass in the pasture would be depleted and no family's cow or sheep would get enough to eat.The reason the grass was depleted was

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The situation described in the passage suggests the tragedy of the commons. The pasture is nonexcludable (meaning no one can be excluded from using it) and the consumption of the grass is rival (meaning one person's consumption of the grass reduces the amount available for others). As a result, each family has an incentive to graze as many cows and sheep as possible, leading to overuse and depletion of the grass. This is a classic example of the tragedy of the commons, where a common resource (in this case, the pasture) is overused and depleted due to self-interested behavior.

In England During the Middle Ages Each Village Had an Area