“La mona aunque se vista de seda, mona se queda”

“Monkey although wears of silk, monkey remains”

“Although a monkey wears silk, he’s still a monkey”

Laura was born in Huaraz, Peru, a small town located in the foothills of the Andy Mountain range. She mentions that the economic background in Peru was and still is not well. There had been many dictators throughout the ages, the last one being Fujimori. She sees this proverb as being prejudice toward poor people. As there are an enormous percentage of poor in Peru, she feels that it is geared towards keeping those that have power in power, and keep those that do not in their place. She says that if someone growing up in poverty acquires different mannerism and ways of carrying themselves, it is not their fault. Thus, if they somehow they manage to acquire wealth or inherit money, the person is not given the same respect that would be given to a person born into wealth. He instead is mocked and laughed about at gatherings. She says heard this saying growing up, but does not remember specifically from which person. I agree with Laura’s analysis of the proverb. This example makes it clear how paramount it is to understand the background information when looking at a piece of folklore.