The Land We Share: Private Property and the Common Good

"Few ideas have bred more mischief in recent times, for the beauty and health of landscapes and communities, than the belief that privately owned land is first and foremost a market commodity that its owner can use in whatever way earns the most money." So begins a remarkable study of the changing views of private property throughout American history. The dynamic tension is between land health, in the Leopoldian sense, and unfettered freedom. Freyfogle explores the major common law doctrines dealing with private property, as well as evolving statute law. Interwoven throughout the book are reviews of relevant Supreme Court cases. Landowner rights are seen as a "bundle" of rights that are subject to change as societal priorities shift. Although the book is fundamentally about law, it does not at all read like a legal brief. It is a very engaging read. Freyfogle reviews in detail the "tragedy of the commons", contrasting it with his own "tragedy of fragmentation." The two prophets that serve as his muses are Aldo Leopold and Wendell Berry. It is clear that we are going to have to rethink property law issues as we begin to face the limits of our growth. Freyfogle's book will be an important guidebook for us for years to come as we begin to grapple with these issues.

Reading this book has made me probe the fundamental assumptions that I make about what it means to own land. This book presents a fresh and very well-sustained argument that private land ownership entails public responsibilities. It also discusses what those might include. The author weaves together legal and general history, philosophy, economic theory, conservation writings, ecology, and literature into an engaging and telling story about the institution of private property in America.