Meaning & Analysis
A person relies on money above all else, treating wealth as their most dependable companion.
Insights
Reliance on Wealth
The proverb conveys that for some, financial resources take precedence over personal relationships, with money becoming their primary source of support and security.
Self-Interest and Isolation
Highlights a worldview shaped by self-interest, where trust is placed not in people, but in possessions—implying emotional distance and skepticism toward genuine friendship.
Pragmatic Companionship
Acknowledges the practical reality that money can solve problems, provide comfort, and offer agency in ways that even close friends sometimes cannot.
Cultural and Moral Critique
Frequently applied with irony or criticism, the proverb comments on the uncharitable or materialistic mindset prevalent in societies where economic survival often eclipses other bonds.
Historical Parallels
Parallels similar sayings—'There is no companion like the penny'—from a long tradition of folk wisdom that both celebrates and cautions against the power of money to supplant human ties.
Psychological Dimension
Reveals the psychological comfort found in material security, but also hints at loneliness or distrust, suggesting that prioritizing wealth above relationships may bring both freedom and isolation.
Rhetorical Devices
Personification
The purse is personified as a 'best friend,' intensifying the message and lending an ironic or satirical edge.
Hyperbole
Exaggerates the loyalty of wealth, making the proverb memorable and highlighting its underlying social critique.
Direct Assertion
The statement’s bluntness and clarity give it the force of a maxim, immediately conveying both judgment and insight.
Transcription
Quotations
Our Friends are in our Purse.
There are three faithful friends—an old wife, an old dog, and ready money.
Cross References
Annotations
- So said of all vncharitable Worldlings through all Where.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
Used under CC BY-NC 3.0.