About An Essay on the Principle of Population
What it's about
A young clergyman's answer to the dreamers of the French Revolution: people multiply in a geometrical ratio, food only in an arithmetical one, so poverty will always return. Malthus backs it with numbers and a famous example of why five shillings a day cannot buy more meat than the country has.
Who it's for
Anyone interested in inflation, compound growth or Korea's low birth rate, and readers who enjoy seeing a famous prediction tested against what really happened.
- Level
- CEFR B2
- Length
- 3 parts · about 595 words
- Reading time
- about 6 minutes (~2 min per part)
- Author
- Thomas Malthus
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Reading An Essay on the Principle of Population in English: quick answers
- What English level is An Essay on the Principle of Population on SeoJae Story?
- An Essay on the Principle of Population by Thomas Malthus is retold in simplified English at CEFR B2 (upper-intermediate). It is split into 3 short parts, and every sentence has a Korean translation you can show or hide, so a learner at that level can follow the story without a dictionary.
- Is An Essay on the Principle of Population hard to read in English?
- The original is written for native readers, with long sentences and older vocabulary, so most learners find it hard. This retelling keeps the story but uses simpler English at CEFR B2 (upper-intermediate), so if you read English at that level you can follow it, and the Korean translation is there for any line that stops you. If it feels too hard, start with an easier book one level down.
- How long does it take to read An Essay on the Principle of Population in simple English?
- About 6 minutes of reading in total — roughly 2 minutes per part across 3 parts. Listening to the audio narration, reviewing the vocabulary and taking each part's comprehension check adds a little more.
- Is this the full, unabridged text of An Essay on the Principle of Population?
- No. It is an abridged graded retelling written for English learners that follows the story of the original in 3 parts. Every part also lets you read the matching unabridged chapters from the original, split into short readings.
- Is An Essay on the Principle of Population free to read here?
- Yes. All 3 parts are free to read online, with the Korean translation, audio narration, vocabulary flashcards and comprehension questions included.
- Is An Essay on the Principle of Population in the public domain?
- Yes. Thomas Malthus's An Essay on the Principle of Population is in the public domain, and the original text is freely available from Project Gutenberg (eBook #4239). SeoJae Story's simplified retelling and Korean translation are original text written for learners.