H.L. Mencken: Comparative Wealth
on Sunday, January 23, 2011Funny Money Quotes: Perception of riches is sometimes determined by the bank balance of those we are forced to compare ourselves with. H.L. Mencken said:
“Wealth – any income that is at least one hundred dollars more a year than the income of one’s wife’s sister’s husband” — H.L. Mencken
Share the H.L. Mencken Money quote image above on your site:
Short Link to this Quote:
This humorous quote by H.L. Mencken offers a tongue-in-cheek definition of wealth. It suggests that a person considers themselves wealthy if they earn just $100 more per year than their wife’s sister’s husband.
The quote implies that perceptions of financial prosperity are often relative – what seems like wealth depends on comparing one’s income to similar others nearby. Mencken appears to be satirizing how subjectively and arbitrarily people define financial success or wealth based on their immediate social circles and environments.
Overall, the quote lightheartedly underscores that wealth is in the eye of the beholder to some extent.