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DARWIN AND MALTHUS SELECTED WRITINGS ONLINE The inclusion of Malthus and Darwin on this list is not to suggest that they be classified as "totalitarian". However, there is a definitive connection. Darwin very specifically endorsed Galton's views on eugenics. Malthus was an important influence on the eugenics movement. After all, if there was a need to "control" the population, it would inevitably raise the question as to which population would be "controlled" and how that goal would be achieved. It is interesting to see the similarity of Malthus's views vis a vis those of Plato, who had a similar strict view of population controlled. In today's world the incentives for mass murder are at a far higher level than during the 1940's in light of the growing questions about the "carrying capacity" of the planet. If (as many environmental experts claim) that figure is 3 billion, then there are 3 billion people here whose very existence could be seen as not only "surplus" but could be seen as a threat to all. There is the concept of "lifeboat ethics". Is it moral to drown part of the population of lifeboat in order to keep the boat afloat, thereby preventing the drowning of all? The World Future Fund does not take a position on these views. However, if major problems emerge in the world's food supply system, such questions will force themselves to be addressed. THOMAS MALTHUS Texts
"An Essay on the Principle of Population" (1798) Links CHARLES DARWIN Texts
The Voyage of the Beagle (1845-46) Links
Charles Darwin and Evolution |