cheap sell things

This article is about parsimonious people. For other uses, see Miser (disambiguation).
Miser by Princess Dagmar in 1890

A miser, cheapskate, curmudgeon, niggard, penny pincher, piker, scrooge, 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]
Death and the Miser by Hieronymus Bosch in 1494
Contents
[hide]

* 1 Famous misers in history
* 2 Misers in fiction
* 3 See also
* 4 References

[edit] 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]

[edit] 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

Ebenezer Scrooge encounters Ignorance and Want in A Christmas Carol

* Eugene H. Krabs – in SpongeBob SquarePants

* 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

* Harpagon – in Molière's play The Miser[8]

* 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

* Nami - navigator of Straw Hat Crew, from the manga/anime series One Piece.

* 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]