“A penny saved is a penny earned.”

My informant first heard this phrase at the age of six or seven.  Her parents would always give her a dollar for ice cream every week.  However, when she wanted to buy a Barbie doll, she had no money and her parents would not buy it for her.  So her parents told her the phrase “A penny saved is a penny earned.”  In telling my informant this phrase, her parents were trying to teach her to save her money instead of always buying ice cream so that she could buy the doll herself.  My informant believes this proverb means that if you save money, then in the end you’ll have more money to spend.  Since then, my informant has been very good with saving her money.  She has never been worried with not having money.  She believed it was a good lesson to learn as child because it also helped her to learn to only buy things that are necessary. This proverb taught her the value of money.

I as well believe that this proverb means that saving even a little bit of money will be better for a person in the end.  I also think it means that a person will save his or her money a little at a time by not spending their money.  Therefore, the proverb is saying that not spending money is the same as earning money.  This proverb originated from Benjamin Franklin.  Benjamin Franklin stated this proverb to encourage more Americans to save more money.  He believed that saving even a penny can lead a person to prosperity in the future.