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‘Enlightened Saint Malthus’ or the ‘gloomy Protestant of dismal England’? The reception of Malthus in the French language
Abstract
Malthus’s works were extensively discussed in France during the nineteenth century, raising numerous lively controversies. The present chapter is a first outline history of these receptions. The circumstances and intellectual context in which Malthus’s works circulated in French-speaking countries have first to be highlighted: an assessment of some legacies from the eighteenth century is thus in order before studying the complex history of the various editions of Malthus’s works in the French language. The reception of Malthus’s Principles of Political Economy and Definitions in Political Economy, which led to direct exchanges with Jean-Baptiste Say, is then examined. While these discussions remained confined to specialised literature, the Essay on the Principle of Population, by contrast, provoked huge controversies over pauperism, morals and the social question: their most salient points are then examined. The chapter concludes with the evolution of the discussions towards the end of the period, when Malthus’s name came to be associated with social Darwinism, neo-Malthusianism and some changing views on population, which shifted the emphasis from its quantity to its quality. An appendix gives a few examples of how the controversies over the Essay found an echo in the works written by the most celebrated novelists of the time.
The theme of population is recurrent in economics, particularly in France. The literature in history of economic thought related to these issues is extensive, especially, in the case of French liberal economists, from the period starting with the writings of Malthus up to the middle of the 19th century. Few studies, however, focus on the position of economic liberals in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The purpose of this paper is therefore to extend the analysis and provide an account of the key debates amongst the French liberal economists of this period concerning what they referred to as “the problem of population”. We shall first see that this “problem” consisted in a stagnation of French population levels due to a drop in the birth rate, leading to negative consequences for the economy and elsewhere. This led economists to name causes and solutions to this decline on which the French liberals were divided. For some authors, the causes arose from a change in lifestyles, for others to increasing intervention by the state. Lastly, we will present the contrasting ideas for solutions to allow the birth rate to increase again. For some, the solution was a moral one: what was needed was a change of mindset. For others, the solution was economic, i.e., the human condition could be improved by free trade. For others, the solution lay in legislation: the state should encourage individuals to have more children.
Modernity does not possess a monopoly on mass incarceration, population fears, forced migration, famine, or climatic change. Indeed, contemporary and early modern concerns over these matters have extended interests in Thomas Malthus. Yet, despite extensive research on population issues, little work explicates the genesis of population knowledge production or how the process of intellectual transfer occurred during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. This paper examines the Delessert network's instrumental role in cultivating, curating, and circulating knowledge that popularized Malthusian population theory, including the theory's constitutive elements of political economy, philanthropy, industry, agriculture, and botany. I show how deviant, nonconformist groups suffered forced migration for their political philosophy, particularly during the revolutionary 1790s, resulting in their imprisonment and migration to America. A consequence of these social shifts was the diffusion and dissemination of population theory-as a pursuit of scientific knowledge and exploration-across both sides of the Atlantic. By focusing on the Delesserts and their social network, I find that a byproduct of inter and intra continental migration among European elites was a knowledge exchange that stimulated Malthus's thesis on population and Genevan Augustin Pyramus Candolle's research on botany, ultimately culminating in Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection and human evolution.
Le néomalthusianisme est un courant de pensée qui réunit des pédagogues, des médecins, des anthropologues et des militants féministes et anarchistes. Sa réflexion et son action ont une dimension politique, économique et scientifique. Son projet est une transformation profonde des sociétés humaines par la limitation des naissances afin d'aboutir à une meilleure organisation sociale, capable de répondre à l'aspiration légitime des êtres humains au bonheur. Les moyens pour atteindre cet objectif sont la généralisation de la prophylaxie anticonceptionnelle qui comprend les techniques contraceptives et l'avortement. Le mouvement néomalthusien a été particulièrement actif en France, des années 1890 à la veille de la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Il a également soulevé de nombreuses oppositions et a été activement combattu, notamment après la Première Guerre mondiale. S'intéressant au nombre des naissances, le néomalthusianisme souligne l'incompatibilité entre l'augmentation exponentielle de ce dernier et la possibilité pour les membres composant une collectivité de disposer du nécessaire afin d'atteindre le bonheur.De ce fait, le néomalthusianisme français est inséparable de l'eugénisme, thème central dans l'histoire de ce mouvement, de son émergence à ses derniers développements dans les années 1930. Le présent travail a pour objectif de tracer un portrait synthétique inédit du néomalthusianisme français en privilégiant son rapport aux sciences biomédicales et à la culture scientifique. [...]
Jean-Baptiste Say and the Population Matter
The population matter in Jean-Baptiste Say’s work is not a subject traditionally covered by secondary literature. The limited existing works, which consist of general studies on the question, only refer to some theoretical elements of Say’s theory. No approach actually examines how Say’s theory of population is related to the main elements of his economic theory. Studying this link is fundamental in order to understand the differences between Say’s theory of population and Thomas Robert Malthus’s referential theory on the topic.
L'eugénisme se développe en France bien plus tard qu'en Angleterre, à la fin du XIXe siècle. Il le fait sur un terrain préparé par le néo-malthusianisme, avec lequel il va jusqu'à se confondre. Cette proximité apparaît dans la thématique des deux mouvements: la qualité de la population prime sur sa quantité; il faut substituer à la méthode naturelle, que la mortalité n'assure plus, une sélection rationnelle consciente; la limitation du nombre des naissances permettra de résoudre la question sociale par une amélioration de la condition ouvrière, elle donne aussi aux couples les moyens d'une sexualité épanouie. Cette proximité des thèmes est d'autant plus forte que les mêmes hommes incarnent souvent et expriment les deux courants, à la Ligue de la Régénération humaine, fondée en 1896, puis à la Société française d'eugénique, créée en 1913. /// Eugenics developed in France much later than in England, towards the end of the 19th century. Its roots are anchored in neo-Malthusianism to the point coheve the two movements were nearly identical. This similanty shows us in somme objectives shared by both movements: population quality rather than quantity; a conscious rational selection must be substitud for the natural selection by mortality which is no longer sufficient; limiting the number of births will solve social problems by improving working conditions and providing couples with the means for a better sexual relationship. These similarities are even more pronounced since members of both movements shave the same ideas and often belong to both the League of Human Regeneration founded in 1896, and the French Eugenics Society founded in 1913. /// El eugenismo en Francia se desarrolló mucho más tarde que en Inglaterra, a fines del siglo XIX. Se realizó sobre un terreno preparado por el neo-maltusianismo, con el cual Ilegó incluso a confundirse. Esta proximidad aparece en la temática de dos movimientos: la calidad de la población prima sobre su cantidad; hay que substituir al método natural que la mortalidad no asegura más una selección racional conciente; la limitación del número de nacimientos permitirá resolver el problema social mejorando la condición obrera, ella proporciona también a las parejas, los medios para una plena sexualidad. Esta proximidad de temas es más fuerte cuando en general los mismos hombres pertenecen y expresan las dos corrientes, en la Liga de la regeneración humana, fundada en 1896, y luego en la Sociedad Francesa de Eugenismo, creada en 1913.
On se propose, dans cet article, de retracer l'évolution de la pensée d'un économiste malthusien et libéral, Paul Leroy-Beaulieu (1843-1916), confronté au ralentissement de l'accroissement de la population française; de s'interroger sur la nature et la portée de la critique de Malthus, affirmation d'une loi de population post-malthusienne pour les pays avancés ou remise en cause fondamentale de la vision malthusienne; de montrer le caractère ambigu et illusoire de la tentative de réconciliation d'une vision libérale du système économique et de l'impératif politique de régénération démographique. /// This article charts the intellectual evolution of Paul Leroy-Beaulieu (1843-1916), an economist of Malthusian and liberal views, in response to the slowdown in the growth of the French population. The nature and scope of his critique of Malthus are examined to see whether it should be interpreted as a post-Malthusian law of population for the advanced societies or as a fundamental rejection of Malthusian theory. The analysis reveals the ambiguous and illusory nature of the attempt to reconcile economic liberalism with the political imperative of demographic renewal. /// En este artículo nos proponemos en primer lugar trazar la evolución del pensamiento de un economista maltusiano y liberal, Paul Leroy-Beaulieu (1843-1916), ante la disminución del crecimiento de la población francesa. En segundo lugar, analizamos el contenido y alcance de su crítica a Maltus, para verificar si implica el reconocimiento de una ley de población post-maltusiana para los países avanzados o un cuestionamiento general de la visión maltusiana. Finalmente, mostramos que el intento de reconciliar una visión liberal del sistema económico con el imperativo político de regeneración demográfica es ambiguo e ilusorio.
Jules Guesde et Paul Lafargue s'exprimèrent souvent sur les questions de population, tant à propos d'événements contemporains que pour préciser les grandes lignes de la société communiste future. C'est ainsi qu'ils regrettaient l'analyse de Malthus et attribuaient aux conditions dégradantes de travail la faiblesse de la natalité. Ils furent partisans d'une diminution de la durée du travail pour supprimer "l'armée de réserve du prolétariat". Ils se prononcèrent enfin pour un relâchement de la structure familiale et plaidèrent une sorte de matriarcat. /// Both Jules Guesde and Paul Lafargue frequently wrote on population problems, both in connection with contemporary events and also in order to define the outlines of a future communist society. They disapproved of Malthusian analysis and regarded the low birth rate as a result of the degrading conditions of labour. They advocated a reduction of working time in order to eliminate 'the reserve army of the proletariat'. The outcome of their analysis was advocacy of a weakening of the family structure and of a matriarchal type of society. /// Jules Guesde y Paul Lafargue se refirieron a menudo a los problemas de población, tanto en relación a acontecimientos contemporáneos como para precisar las grandes líneas de la sociedad comunista del futuro. De esta manera ellos deploraron el análisis de Malthus y atribuyeron a las condiciones degradantes del trabajo la debilidad de la natalidad. Fueron partidarios de una disminución de la duración del trabajo para suprimir "el ejército de reserva del proletariado". Se pronunciaron también por un aflojamiento de la estructura familiar y propusieron una especie de matriarcado.