This Fruit Seller Cried When He Heard His Banana Sold for Millions
scrape by: to live with very little money or resources
When Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan taped a banana to a wall and called it art no one could imagine how much it would sell for. Last week, crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun purchased it for $6.2 million.
When New York City fruit seller Shah Alam heard the banana he sold for 35 cents was purchased for millions of dollars, he cried. Alam, who is 74 years old, works long hours selling fruit on the streets of Manhattan. He struggles to scrape by, earning $12 an hour and paying $500 a month to share a small apartment with five other men. He said, “Those who bought it, what kind of people are they? Do they not know what a banana is?”
Catelan told the New York Times, “The reaction of the banana vendor moves me deeply, underscoring how art can resonate in unexpected and profound ways. However, art, by its nature, does not solve problems — if it did, it would be politics.”
When Justin Sun heard about the fruit seller’s reaction, he said he would buy 100,000 bananas to say thank you. Unfortunately, Alam is just an employee not the owner of his fruit stand, and the profit on 100,000 bananas is quite low.
Sample sentences
Many students scrape by on part-time jobs while they study at university.
After losing his job, he had to scrape by on savings until he found work.
She opened a small shop and scraped by until her business started to grow.