The Popularization of Malthus in Early Nineteenth-Century England

The political economist Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834) first rose to prominence in 1798 with the publication of his Essay on the Principle of Population, in which he blamed rising levels of poverty on the inability of Britain's resources to support its growing population. His remedy, to limit the number of children born to poor families outraged many social reformers, but found a ready audience in other quarters. In this new study James Huzel shows how, by being both popularized and...
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The political economist Thomas Robert Malthus (1766-1834) first rose to prominence in 1798 with the publication of his Essay on the Principle of Population, in which he blamed rising levels of poverty on the inability of Britain's resources to support its growing population. His remedy, to limit the number of children born to poor families outraged many social reformers, but found a ready audience in other quarters. In this new study James Huzel shows how, by being both popularized and demonized, Malthus framed the terms of reference for debate on the problems of pauperism and became the beacon against which all proposals seeking to remedy the problem of poverty had to be measured. Dealing with issues of social, economic and political history this work offers a fresh and insightful investigation into one of the most influential, though misunderstood, thinkers of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. It is essential reading for all those who wish to reach a fuller understanding of how the tremendous social and economic upheavals of the Industrial Revolution shaped the development of modern Britain.