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{{About|parsimonious people}} |
{{About|parsimonious people}} |
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[[File:Maria Fyodorovna-Miser.jpg|right|thumb|200px|''Miser'' by [[Maria Feodorovna (Dagmar of Denmark)|Princess Dagmar]] in 1890]] |
[[File:Maria Fyodorovna-Miser.jpg|right|thumb|200px|''Miser'' by [[Maria Feodorovna (Dagmar of Denmark)|Princess Dagmar]] in 1890]] |
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A '''miser''', '''cheapskate''', ''' |
A '''miser''', '''cheapskate''', '''<big>c</big><big>u</big>r<big>m</big>udgeon''', '''<big>niggar</big>d''', '''penny pincher''', '''piker''', '''scrooge''', '''Jew''', '''skinflint''' or '''tightwad''' is a person who is reluctant to spend [[money]], sometimes to the point of forgoing even basic comforts and some necessities. Old people were commonly thought to be miserly but this stereotype is less common since support programs such as [[Social Security (United States)|Social Security]] have resulted in less poverty in old age.<ref>{{citation |url=http://gerontologist.oxfordjournals.org/content/31/5/673.abstract |title=Old Age and Historical Examples of the Miser |author=Herbert C. Covey |journal=The Gerontologist |volume=31 |issue=5 |pages=673-678}}</ref> |
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[[Sigmund Freud|Freud]] attributed the development of miserly behaviour to [[toilet training]] in childhood. Some infants would attempt to retain the contents of their bowels and this would result in the development of an [[anal retentive]] personality that would attempt to retain their wealth and possessions in later life.<ref>{{citation |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=2m1UQI4QpVsC&pg=PT232 |title=Foundations of psychology |author=Nicky Hayes |publisher=Cengage Learning |year=2000}}</ref> |
[[Sigmund Freud|Freud]] attributed the development of miserly behaviour to [[toilet training]] in childhood. Some infants would attempt to retain the contents of their bowels and this would result in the development of an [[anal retentive]] personality that would attempt to retain their wealth and possessions in later life.<ref>{{citation |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=2m1UQI4QpVsC&pg=PT232 |title=Foundations of psychology |author=Nicky Hayes |publisher=Cengage Learning |year=2000}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 05:35, 30 June 2010
A miser, cheapskate, curmudgeon, niggard, penny pincher, piker, scrooge, Jew, skinflint or tightwad is a person who is reluctant to spend money, sometimes to the point of forgoing even basic comforts and some necessities. Old people were commonly thought to be miserly but this stereotype is less common since support programs such as Social Security have resulted in less poverty in old age.[1]
Freud attributed the development of miserly behaviour to toilet training in childhood. Some infants would attempt to retain the contents of their bowels and this would result in the development of an anal retentive personality that would attempt to retain their wealth and possessions in later life.[2]
In traditional Chinese Confucianism, those who were concerned with money – landlords and merchants – were thought to be a low order of society, inferior to the peasant farmers who tilled the soil. They were condemned in allegory as misers and officials would punish such behaviour in times of famine.[3]
There are numerous folk sayings about miserly people such as the Cockney, "E's so tight 'is arse squeaks" and the Yorkshire, "He's a snipe-snout; he'll part wi' nowght."[4]
Famous misers in history
- Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish-born industrialist, was notoriously thrifty and was mocked as a miser but after the Homestead dispute he became a great philanthropist.[5]
- The Collyer brothers of New York City, who were also hoarders, and earned notoriety for living in a filthy, booby-trapped home.
- Ephraim Lópes Pereira d'Aguilar, 2nd Baron d'Aguilar; an eccentric Jewish Portuguese nobleman, who lived a life of privation, while amassing a secret fortune.
- Hetty Green of New York City, was considered the world's wealthiest woman in 1916, and was known as The Witch of Wall Street.
- John Elwes (aka "Elwes the Miser"), was a noted British eccentric and miser, and believed to be the inspiration for the character of "Ebenezer Scrooge" in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. [6]
- Joseph Nollekens; Londoner generally considered to be the finest British sculptor of the late 18th century, he was also a notorious miser.
- Michelangelo made a fortune from his painting but denied himself all comforts and slept with his boots on.[7]
Misers in fiction
- Kakuzu - a member of the Akatsuki(an evil organization) ,in the show Naruto, is called called a miser by his partner Hidan for his love of money, only caring for money, and taking side jobs to earn extra money.
- The Baron – the title character in Alexander Pushkin's drama The Miserly Knight.
- Mr. Briggs – guardian of the title character in Cecilia by Frances Burney
- Brundibár - organ grinder who denies children coins to buy milk for their sick mother
- Cotta - in Epistle to Bathurst by Alexander Pope.[8]
- In Dante's Inferno, misers are put in the fourth circle of hell, along with spendthrifts. They roll weights representing their wealth to and fro, constantly colliding and quarreling.[9]
- Ebenezer Balfour – Scottish antagonist in Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson.[8]
- Ebenezer Scrooge – lead character of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens,[8] based on real-life miser John Elwes
- Fagin – antagonist in Charles Dickens novel Oliver Twist
- Felix Grandet – father of Eugenie Grandet, a novel by Balzac[8]
- Frazer - the archetypal mean Scot in Dad's Army
- Fred Mertz – played by William Frawley on I Love Lucy
- George Costanza – one of the main characters in Seinfeld, played by Jason Alexander
- Henry Earlforward – in Arnold Bennet's novel Riceyman Steps.[8]
- Jack Benny – adopted a miserly persona in his shows such as The Jack Benny Program.
- Malbecco - "a cancred crabbed Carle" in Edmund Spencer's The Faerie Queene[8]
- Mean Mr. Mustard – title character of a Beatles' song on the album Abbey Road
- Milburn Drysdale – banker in The Beverly Hillbillies
- Montgomery Burns - in the Simpsons[10]
- Norbert Colon – cartoon character in the adult-orientated comic Viz
- Otto Lidenbrock – professor in the novel Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
- Paulie Gualtieri – aka "Paulie Walnuts", DiMeo capo in The Sopranos
- Phil Leotardo - character in The Sopranos that is described as treating "nickels like manhole covers."
- Plyushkin – landowner from Nikolai Gogol's novel Dead Souls
- Mr. Potter – played by Lionel Barrymore in the film It's a Wonderful Life
- Mr. Prokharchin - title character in the short story by Fyodor Dostoyevsky[11]
- Scrooge McDuck – Walt Disney character
- Séraphin Poudrier – in the novel Un homme et son péché by Claude-Henri Grignon
- Silas Marner – title character of George Eliot's novel.[8]
- Trina McTeague – wife of the brute McTeague in Frank Norris' novel
- Shylock – moneylender in The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare[8]
- The Lady of Stavoren – Dutch legend
- Volpone - title character of the Ben Jonson comedy.[8]
See also
References
- ^ Herbert C. Covey, "Old Age and Historical Examples of the Miser", The Gerontologist, 31 (5): 673–678
- ^ Nicky Hayes (2000), Foundations of psychology, Cengage Learning
- ^ Keith McMahon (1995), Misers, shrews, and polygamists, Duke University Press
- ^ J.B.Smith (1984), "Of Skinflints and Pinch-Farthings", Folklore, 95 (ii): 177+
- ^ Scott Gillam, Andrew Carnegie
- ^ Gordon Mackenzie (1972), Marylebone: great city north of Oxford Street, Macmillan
- ^ Bruce Johnston (30 Nov 2002), Michelangelo is branded a 'multi-millionaire' miser
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j John Mullan (7 March 2009), Ten of the best misers, The Guardian
- ^ Jennifer Doane Upton, Dark Way to Paradise
- ^ Adler, Ben (4 August 2007). "The Simpsons sell out". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
- ^ Lantz, K. A. (2004). The Dostoevsky encyclopedia. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 118. ISBN 0313303843.