Question

Discuss the different solutions to the world population growth problems proposed by Thomas Robert Malthus in 1798.

• In your own words, what are they?
• What are your personal reactions to both?
• What would you tell Malthus about the current population status of the world today if he were here?

Answer 1

The different solutions to the world population increase as suggested by Malthus are: he offered preventive checks to control the population increase in the world over. First was the moral restraint on the part of people by postponing marriages and taking contraceptive measures to control population growth. He also spoke about the positive checks of population growth like famines and related diseases, natural calamities like flood and drought.

My solutions to the increasing population of the world would be family planning measures which would limit the number of children that one plans to have, create greater awareness among the people on the positives of having a control check on birth rates.

If I tell Malthus now, I would tell him that his theory was not true as even after 200 years since he published his theory, world is much populous and also a better place to live in than it was in 1798. Malthus had said that population growth would be more rapid than the food supply that would be required to cater to such a big population. However, it can be seen that with population increase, the food supply has also increased equally or more in proportion and that too with varying varieties of food items. This has happened due to the technological advancements that have occurred since then. Malthus didn't look into the possibility of technology development when he published his work.