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Primary sourceBook1798 (6th ed. 1826)

An Essay on the Principle of Population

Thomas Robert Malthus · 1798 (6th ed. 1826)

Malthus's anonymous 1798 treatise arguing that population grows faster than food supply, leading to poverty and famine unless checked.

This is Malthus's foundational and most famous work, setting out the population theory that made him famous.

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Title page of the 1826 sixth edition of An Essay on the Principle of Population by the Rev. T. R. Malthus, in two volumes, Vol. I, published by John Murray, London. Cream-colored page with black serif text.
Thomas Robert Malthus, An Essay on the Principle of Population, 6th edition, John Murray, London, 1826.

About this source

What it is

This is Thomas Robert Malthus's treatise, first published anonymously in 1798 and revised through six editions, the last in 1826. It argues that population tends to increase geometrically while food production increases only arithmetically, creating a gap that leads to poverty and famine.

Why it matters

The book was written as a response to optimistic thinkers like William Godwin and the Marquis de Condorcet, who believed society could keep improving endlessly. Malthus's ideas fuelled debate about population size in Britain and helped bring about the first national census. Later, both Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace cited the sixth edition as a key influence on their theory of natural selection.

Look closer

  • Why might Malthus have chosen to publish this essay anonymously at first?
  • What kind of evidence does Malthus use to support his claims about population and food supply?
  • How might someone optimistic about human progress, like Godwin, respond to this argument?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Thomas Malthus on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Title page of David Ricardo's 'An Essay on the Influence of a Low Price of Corn on the Profits of Stock', second edition, London, printed for John Murray, 1815. Text is black on white, with a long subtitle referencing Malthus's publications.Book

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