The central point of the Malthusian theory is that

Analyzing the question: The question asks about the central point of the Malthusian theory of population, proposed by Thomas Robert Malthus in his Essay on the Principle of Population (1798).

The concept: Malthus argued that:

• Population tends to grow in a geometric progression (1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32...), that is, it multiplies by a constant factor.
• Food supply grows only in an arithmetic progression (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6...), that is, it increases by a constant amount.

Because population grows faster than food production, a time will come when there is not enough food. This leads to what Malthus called "checks" on population:

• Positive checks: famine, disease, war (these raise the death rate)
• Preventive checks: late marriage, moral restraint, abstinence (these lower the birth rate)

Evaluating the options:

• A. Wrong. Malthus never said everyone should become a farmer.
• B. Wrong. He did not argue that government should provide food and housing. He actually opposed poor relief, believing it encouraged larger families.
• C. Wrong. This is the opposite of his claim. He believed a growing population would outstrip food supply.
• D. Correct. This is the exact statement of his theory: population grows geometrically, food grows arithmetically.
• E. Wrong. This is unrelated to the central argument.

**Answer: D.

Exam tip: Remember "G for Greedy population, A for Available food": Geometric goes with Population, and Arithmetic goes with food. Whenever you see "Malthus," think "population outruns food supply."