Causes of Population Growth

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Causes of population growth Malthus believed that human beings are “impelled” with the powerful urge to reproduce which he called “instinct”. He pointed out that checks to growth are the factors that hinders the process of population growth from reaching its “biological potential “(John R. Weeks). Without checks on population growth, Malthus believed that human beings would multiply in an “incalculable” number, which fills “ millions of worlds in a few thousand years”. (Malthus 1872 [1971]:6) Malthus argued that the food supply simply cannot catch up with the rapid growth of population. He believed that the food production can only increase arithmetically while the population grows geometrically. Therefore, the rapid population growth will inevitably outstrip the food supply. According to Malthus, this will result in the ultimate check to growth which is lack of food (the “means of subsistence”). However, Darwin later pointed out that Malthus’ theory is incorrect. At the same time, Malthus was also aware that people were not directly killed by starvation. This is because in actual situation, people usually die faster due to the intervention of something else before starvation actually strikes and kill them. Malthus represents these “something else” as positive checks, primarily those measure “whether of a moral or physical nature , which tend prematurely to weaken and destroy human frame” (Malthus 1872 [1971]:12). “Causes of mortality” is the term used today.(John R. Weeks) Besides that, preventive checks are also present. These are basically “limitations to birth”(John R. Weeks).Malthus believed that the only suitable way to prevent a birth was to practise moral restraint instead of exercising theoretical means such as contraception, abortion, abstinence and all the possible means of birth control. Malthus accepted the means of moral restraints such as
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