The New Worlds of Thomas Robert Malthus: Rereading the Principle of Population

Description

The New Worlds of Thomas Robert Malthus is a sweeping global and intellectual history that radically recasts our understanding of Malthus's Essay on the Principle of Population, the most famous book on population ever written or ever likely to be. Malthus's Essay is also persistently misunderstood. First published anonymously in 1798, the Essay sys

Alison Bashford is the Vere Harmsworth Professor of Imperial and Naval History at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Jesus College. Her books include Global Population: History, Geopolitics, and Life on Earth. Joyce E. Chaplin is the James Duncan Phillips Professor of Early American History at Harvard University. Her books include The First Scientific American: Benjamin Franklin and the Pursuit of Genius.

"In their important and persuasive new book, Bashford and Chaplin argue that, far from being an uncaring figure with tunnel vision, Malthus, properly understood, anticipates some of the most pressing international circumstances of our time... [A] provocative and profound work."--Mark S. Micale, Times Literary Supplement "Penetrating reappraisal of the philosopher's Essay on the Principle of Population."--Barb Kiser, Nature "A towering publication of prime intellect if ever there was one."--David Marx Book Reviews "Overall, an interesting, articulate work that effectively argues for placing Malthus in the context of world history."--Choice