Stinginess, I'll buy you a coffee

Le Regard Libre N° 40 - Loris S. Musumeci

From The Miser to the film Radin! by Danny Boon, stinginess is a titillating subject. It reddens the cheeks of those who feel concerned, those who break out in a cold sweat when they have to unfold their wallets in front of a little white ticket. Where does stinginess come from? Is it natural or cultural? Does it concern spending on oneself or on others? Is it a vice in every respect? Or perhaps a necessary vice to regulate one's spending? Here's a brief reflection, short on words and too philosophical in depth.

To assert that avarice has always existed would be an almost pointless truism to mention. But what causes it? Without wandering too far into direct accusations against the notorious «consumer society», it's worth noting that insofar as man is first and foremost a being of grasping, and then of possessing, he has a more or less ordered relationship with his properties.

Rousseau and socialism deny an inherent part of being human, deeming property unhealthy. To avoid any caricature, Rousseau considers property to engage a structure of vice rather than to be bad directly. In any case, we are endowed with hands - parts of the body not specialized in any particular action - that appropriate an object, build a house or erect fences to mark a private territory. In a way, the hunting and gathering of those good old nomadic savages is also property. It's just that property is mobile.

Without being necessary, avarice comes from a natural state of being, which is that of possession. Natural: does that mean non-cultural? Not necessarily. Culture expresses a universal nature in a particular social and geographical context. Some cultures and eras are more generous than others, and - as you would expect - the richest societies are often not the most generous. We're not talking here about social benefits, which are fairly proportional to a country's wealth. We're talking about individual generosity, the generosity of «the people».

And there's plenty to laugh about. Or rather, something to cry about. Have you ever seen this poor guy counting the pennies to pay for his coffee at the bistro? Have you ever been there? He calculates that 3.90.- CHF is 3.90.- CHF and not 4.00.- CHF. Leaving a ten-cent tip once is fine, but leaving a ten-cent tip ten times for the waitress, who is charming and friendly to boot, is the equivalent of a precious franc! And just imagine, after thirty-nine ten-cent tips, that's an extra coffee. What a horror! What an awful waste!

Monsieur makes this clever calculation, and doesn't even dare think about the financial disaster if he'd bought a friend a coffee. And yet, as our society illustrates perfectly, when it comes to buying useless and futile things - for oneself, of course - there's no problem. In fact, the miser's generosity is limited to himself; the person who spends little on himself because he has a hard time making ends meet is not miserly, he's thrifty. To cure stinginess, there's no need to consult a doctor: we need to reconsider giving and the status of others in our lives. In a circle that the usual grumblers will always link to selfishness, let's experience gain through generosity. André Comte-Sponville finds the right words: «Generosity lifts us up to others, And of ourselves as liberated from our little selves.» 

If the article upset you, write to me and I'll buy you a coffee to make up for it.

Write to the author : loris.musumeci@leregardlibre.com

Photo credit: © Loris S. Musumeci for Le Regard Libre