Love or Riches

Informant: My informant, G.L., is 19 and was born and raised in West Lake Village. G.L. parents both run their own company together. She has one older brother and her family is mainly Italian but is completely Americanized.

Folklore: “When money stops coming through the door, love flies out the window.” G.L. heard this story from her dad after he found out one of his friends from college was getting divorced to his wife of 20 years after going through financial problems for several years. He told her this saying as a lesson for her to never let money be the reason to get in the way of a relationship. She said that her parents have been together for almost 30 years now, and have never considered getting a divorce even when her family was struggling financially when they first got married.

Analysis: I’ve never heard this piece of folklore like this but have always heard of people splitting up because of their financial status. To me it just felt like this was common sense because people who are constantly struggling to make ends meet usually lose their love along the way. This is a very common phrase known around the world now, and its origin is unknown.