An Essay on the Principle of Population


In his famous “An Essay on the Principle of Population“(1798), the English economist Thomas Malthus argued that, since geometric growth of population outstrips arithmetic growth of the food supply, we actually need poverty, disease, and starvation to restore the balance. While this theory was popular in the nineteenth century, very few would accept it today.

Point out the major developments in science, economics, and government which, since the time of Malthus, have counteracted his argument.

An Essay on the Principle of Population