But the primary target of gentry liberalism, as a new form of Malthusianism, was mass culture and mass consumption rather than the poor having numerous children.
Are they really more damaging than Malthusianism, or primitivism, or support for market solutions, or any of the other political confusions that beset the movement?
So too is cost-saving, litigation and payout minimisation, bed clearing, medical research, improper individual concerns about inheritance and even political Malthusianism.
I wouldn't wager that simple old-fashioned Malthusianism provides a complete explanation, but the repetitive, stereotypical nature of these outbursts is truly remarkable.
