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VIII Seiten, 2 Bll., 610 Seiten, 1 wei�es Bl. 4� (27,5 x 22,5 cm). Lederband der Zeit mit R�ckenvergoldung sowie gold- und blindgepr. Deckelfileten. Zweite Ausgabe, die von Malthus wegen der erheblichen Ver�nderungen und Erweiterungen als vollst�ndig neues Werk angesehen wurde. - "The central idea of the essay - and the hub of Malthusian theory - was a simple one. The population of a community, Malthus suggested, increases geometrically, while food supplies increase only arithmetically. If the natural increase in population occurs the food supply becomes insufficient and the size of the population is checked by 'misery' - that is the poorest sections of the community suffer disease and famine" (PMM). - "In 1803 Malthus published the much-enlarged second edition of the Essay on Population which incorporated observations made during his travels in the North of Europe in 1799 and in France and Switzerland in 1802, as well as information from many published sources. The essential message. remained unaltered. In the first edition he had classified the checks as misery or vice. But in the second edition he alleviated the melancholy of the first edition by arguing that his preferred check, viz, deferred marriage or 'prudential restraint', was not necessarily a form of misery" (New Palgrave III, 282). - Insbesondere in den R�ndern etw. braunfl., Innendeckel mit gestoch. Exlibris ("Belper"). Einband an den Gelenken und am oberen Kapital restauriert, in den Gelenken etwas br�chig. Aufbewahrt in mod. Schuber. - Kress B.4701. - Vgl. Printing and the Mind of Man 251. Garrison/Morton 1693. Norman Libr. 1431.

The book addresses the relationship between population growth and food supply. Malthus argued that population tends to grow exponentially, while food production increases only arithmetically, meaning that population growth would eventually outpace the ability to produce enough food. He suggested that without checks, such as famine, disease, or war, overpopulation would lead to widespread poverty and suffering. Malthus identified two types of checks on population growth: "positive checks," which raise the death rate (such as famine and disease), and "preventive checks," which reduce the birth rate (such as moral restraint, later marriage, or celibacy). He believed that without preventive measures, human misery was inevitable. Malthus’s work had a lasting influence on economic and demographic theories, and his ideas about population pressure also influenced Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection. Although some of his predictions were mitigated by technological advances in agriculture, his work remains important in discussions of overpopulation and resource sustainability.