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"Gift of the Magi" -- Mary Moon, Jeff Eklund, Hannah Lindmark

Page history last edited by linkinpark91106@... 14 years, 2 months ago

Return to English III Block 1B

 

by  Mary Moon, Jeff Eklund, Hannah Lindmark

 

     “The Magi, as you know, were wise men--wonderfully wise men--who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger.  They invented the art of giving Christmas presents.”  (Henry).  In the works of literature, authors often use biblical terms to reveal the meaning of a short story.  The Gift of the Magi is a popular short story by O. Henry that uses biblical allusions.  By the use of this O. Henry ties in the many themes of this story.  Sacrifice, poverty, and love are the many themes used throughout the story.  The characters sacrifice their most valuable possessions for each others happiness.  Poverty is emphasized all throughout the story repeatedly.  The apartment and how the characters save every penny they have to use on each other is another theme in the story.  The theme love in the story has the ultimate power and influence in the characters decisions.  The authors use of many literary elements in this short story are used to reveal themes.

     The main antagonist of the story is the society. The society throughout the whole story is very flat and does not change at all.Near the beggining, Della gets her wage from 30 bucks a month cut down to 20 bucks a month which does not help her get a good gift for Jim. Everything Della wanted to get was to expensive for her to afford and made her cut her own hair and sell it to buy Jim a nice gift for him. Without the society in play there would of been no major theme that it is orginally. Society is always a static type of form cause it never changes at all during the story. The proof of that is the money Della had at the beggining could not get her any gift she wanted to get for Jim at all. The main motivation that Della has is to have the best of everything.  Della will not just settle for an adverage or cheap gift for Jim.  Della needs to sacrafice her in in order to get Jim something nice.  O. Henry shows the importance of Della's hair and how large of a sacrafice it was to cut it off by stating, "Now, there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took mighty pride in.  One was Jim's gold watch.  The other was Della's hair."  Della was so motivated to get Jim the perfect gift that she gave up her most prized possesion.

      Relate ability is an important component when writing a short story. If the story can relate to a wide variety of people, the amount of readers will increase. For the story, The Gift of the Magi, writer O.Henry did an excellent job of making this story apply to the majority of people in that time period. Critic Karen Charmaine Blansfield states, "There are a variety of reasons that readers like O.Henry. Perhaps one of the most important is that not all art is meant to appeal promarily to the intellect or intellectuals"(Blansfield). The protagonist, or the main character of this short story is Della Young, the wife of James Dillingham Young. Della and Jim are a young married couple living in a cheap apartment. They are barely scraping by, and Della just found out that her check from work has been cut down from $30 dollars a week to $20. Christmas is tomorrow and Della needs to find a gift for Jim. Della would be considered a flat character. Throughout the whole story all she wants to do is find a Christmas present for Jim, and she is willing to go to any measures to find the perfect gift for him. Not once does she act selfish or put herself first, all of her actions relate to Jim, and she puts him before herself. Della only has $1.87 saved up from a month of work to buy Jim a Christmas present. She wants to get him something nice and that he will love. She decides to sell her hair, which is past her knees, for $20 to buy Jim a chain for his pocket watch. These events impact the story because Della is sacrificing one of her prized possessions, her hair, for Jim’s happiness. Della would be considered a static character, or a character that remains unchanged, for many reasons. One being her focus is Jim, and also she was crying because she only had not even $2 to spend, so she did something about it and sold her hair. The goals of Della are pretty simple. She needs to buy a Christmas gift for her husband. This motivates her because she loves Jim and she wants to do something special for him. This phase, it is the thought that counts, does not apply to Della she is determined to buy him something he will cherish.

     In the Gift of the Magi the setting plays a major role in describing the characters, Della and Jim.  The place and time where Della and Jim are placed fits perfectly into the story and helps emphasize their dilemma.  Although, the setting is not clearly stated in the story, O. Henry gave away many clues to give the reader an idea of where the story takes place.  

     Della and Jim live in a cheap, run-down apartment flat in New York City.  While researching about O. Henry I found out that he placed a majority of his short story settings in New York City.  One critic said, “O. Henry was a politic American short story writer who wrote about the life of ordinary people in New York City.”(Overview).  Since it was common for O. Henry to base his story in New York City, it made sense that that was where he would place Della and Jim.  In the beginning of the story O. Henry states, “There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl.”  By saying the couch was shabby O. Henry gives off the clue that they do not have the best furniture.  If Jim and Della had a nice apartment they would not have a beat up, broken-down couch in it.  Also, while O. Henry is describing their apartment he mentions how much it costs, “Perhaps you have seen a pier-glass in an $8 flat.”  Eight dollars is not a lot of money, so obviously this apartment flat isn’t anything fancy or even nice.  Since O. Henry has described their apartment as beat up, cheap, and run-down it really put an impact on the story.  The setting really captures how little money Jim and Della have.  It makes their sacrifice for the perfect gift look even greater.

     The time that the Gift of the Magi took place was most likely in the late 1800’s or the early 1900’s.  Most of O. Henry’s works were based off of ordinary people he knew, so to have it the setting for this book placed in the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s would make sense.  Also, O. Henry states in the story, “The ’Dillingham’ had been flung to the breeze during a former period of prosperity when its possessor was being paid $30 per week.  Now, when the income was shrunk to $20...”   Now a days it is very uncommon for someone to get paid that little, but it was common during the 1800’s to 1900’s.  O. Henry added a reference to the lighting people used in the 1900’s.  O. Henry said, “She got out her curling iron and lighted the gas and went to work…”  Gas lights were the lights that people used during that time period.  So, with that clue given it really helped to pick a time period that the setting could take place in. 

     The atmosphere that is given off in this story would be dull, weary, or somber.  They way O. Henry describes their apartment it seems so beat up and boring.  One way O. Henry described the apartment flat was, “A furnished nat at $8 per week.  It did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad.”  By saying that it makes the apartment seem very tedious.  This description shows their poverty and how the apartment is furnished with tattered and worn furnishings.  They also have a lonely, barren back yard.  In O. Henry’s words he says, “She stood by the window and looked out dully at a gray cat walking a gray fence in a gray backyard.”  His repetition of gray really elaborates on how dully, boring the atmosphere in this story is.  By choosing a weary setting it puts emphasis on the love that Della and Jim have for each other.

     The setting puts a huge impact on the story.  The description of their confined, poor setting adds to the mood that O. Henry wanted to create.  A critic once said, “O. Henry wrote with realistic detail based on his first hand experiences in both Texas and New York City.” (overview).  The setting makes you realize just how poor Jim and Della are, and how big of a sacrifice they make for each other just to get the perfect Christmas present for each other.

     First off, the conflict in this short story is realistic and not so much enjoyable at all. The conflicts are usually well defined though. There are many different types of conflicts in this story. The main two are man verus man and man verus himself. The first main specific conflict that comes up in the story is Della verus money. “One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one’s cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close dealing implied,” (O. Henry). When you look at this quote from the story you can tell that Della is struggling with money issues and can not find her husband Jim a present for Christmas. This part of the conflict is very important because this is what the whole main story is based around which is Della verus money she has to buy Jim a Christmas present. The most important minor conflict is Della verus society. “The other was Della's hair. Had the queen of Sheba lived in the flat across the airshaft, Della would have let her hair hang out the window some day too dry just to depreciate Her Majesty's jewels and gifts. Had King Solomon been the janitor, with all his treasures piled up in the basement, Jim would have pulled out his watch every time he passed, just to see him pluck at his beard from envy” (O.Henry). These quotes show the importance Della’s hair was to her and how beautiful it was. She had to fight society and cut her hair off to get money for her husband Jim’s present. Another minor conflict is Della verus Jim at the end of the story. “Jim stopped inside the door, as immovable as a setter at the scent of quail. His eyes were fixed upon Della, and there was an expression in them that she could not read, and it terrified her. It was not anger, nor surprise, nor disapproval, nor horror, nor any of the sentiments that she had been prepared for. He simply stared at her fixedly with that peculiar expression on his face. For there lay The Combs--the set of combs, side and back, that Della had worshipped long in a Broadway window. Beautiful combs, pure tortoise shell, with jewelled rims--just the shade to wear in the beautiful vanished hair” (O. Henry). These quotes show that the two presents Della and Jim got each other are useless now. Della cut her hair that she can not use her combs and Jim sold his watch for which the bracelet was. The main conflict is shown in the repetition of words and Della’s struggle throughout the story. “So, even before having knowledge of the impoverished circumstances of the protagonists Delia and Jim Dillingham Young, the reader has learned that the main conflict of the story concerns their lack of money,” quoted by Rena Korb. Rena states that pretty much since the use of Della does not have any money to buy Jim a present any reader can pick that up from the story. “One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies” (O.Henry). This is a repeated sentence throughout the story that add emphasize on this sentence a lot. The main emphasize is that Della does not have a lot of money to buy Jim a present which results in a conflict. The most important minor conflict showed in the story is Della verus society. “Now, there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took a mighty pride. One was Jim's gold watch that had been his father's and his grandfather's. The other was Della's hair” (O.Henry). This quote shows that Della’s hair was very valuable and she did not want to get rid of her hair to get Jim a present at first. Della’s hair was compared to the hair of a goddess. “Had the queen of Sheba lived in the flat across the airshaft, Della would have let her hair hang out the window some day to dry just to depreciate Her Majesty's jewels and gifts” (O.Henry). This quote shows how hard it was to sell Della’s hair for money so she could get Jim a nice Christmas present for him. She had to face society to get a nice present for her love or husband. These conflicts had a good impact on the theme of the story about love and sacrifice. “Love, generosity, and the various definitions of wealth and poverty are central themes in “The Gift of the Magi,” in which a poor, loving young husband and wife sell the only valuable things they own to give each other special Christmas gifts,” wrote Kathleen Wilson. This statement sums up that the themes of love include sacrifices from both sides, which results in conflicts. The ones who love each other the most will be able to sacrifice for one another to show their love to each other like Della and Jim.

     In a short story, symbols are extremely vital. it gives an overall meaning and atmosphere to the story by showing the reader the underlyinhg meaning

to the plot. Critic Karen Charmaine Blansfield stated, "There are a variety of reasons that the the readers like O.Henry. Perhaps one of the most important is that not all art is meant to appeal primarily to the intellect or intellectuals"(Blansfield). This statement shows tha the characters in this story are belivable and realistic.  One of the many symbols used in this short story is Della’s hair. She cherishes it, and it is long and beautiful. As the narrator states, “So now Della’s beautiful hair fell about her rippling and shining like a cascade of brown waters. It reached below her knee and made itself almost a garment for her”(Henry). Obviously Della adores her hair, and this symbol will be vital to the storyline. The importance of Della’s hair and how much she loves it shows the ultimate sacrifice for her husband, Jim. Della sells her hair for twenty dollars in order to pay for Jim’s Chain for his pocket watch that she will give him as a Christmas present. When Jim sees that Della cut her hair incredibly short he is stunned. The narrator explains Jim’s reaction to Della’s new look,” It was not anger, nor surprise, nor disapproval, nor horror, nor any of the sentiments that she had been prepared for. He simply stared at her fixedly with that peculiar expression on his face”(Henry). In response to Jim’s reaction Della goes on to say, “My hair grows awfully fast”(Henry). Della gave up her most prized possession for her husband’s happiness. Not knowing what Della had done, Jim also sacrificed something important to him for Della. Jim had a pocket watch that was passed down from his grandfather and then to his father and then to him. This family heirloom meant a lot to Jim, but his love for Della meant more. This pocket watch becomes the second symbol in this story. The two symbols parallel each other in a way that ties the entire story together. Jim gave his gift to Della first, she was shocked, “For there lay The Combs--the set of combs, side and back, that Della had worshipped for a long time in a Broadway window. Beautiful combs, pure tortoise shell, with jeweled rims”(Henry). Jim had gotten her magnificent combs, but Della has no hair to comb. It was Della’s turn to give Jim his present. Della states, “Isn’t it dandy, Jim? I hunted all over town a hundred times a day now. Give me your watch. I want to see how it looks on it”(Henry).  Della had given Jim a silver chain for his pocket watch. Instead of being exited, Jim laid on the couch and threw his hands behind his head and chuckled. Della is confused, she does not understand why Jim is not acting exited about his present. Jim confesses to Della about his actions, “I sold the watch to get the money to buy your combs” (Henry). This whole incident just verifies the love they have for each other. Both of them sacrificed prized possessions for each other’s happiness. The reason for selling these treasures ties into the final symbol. Della received a pay cut at her job, she went from making thirty dollars a week, to twenty. She had been saving for months for Jim’s gift, but she could rummage up one dollar and eighty-seven cents. Jim had the same money issues. Della and Jim’s apartment also connects to the storyline in many ways. Their apartment shows the condition they are living in, and their way of life. It is very drab and dull, and they do not own very many things. After spending most of their money on the bills and apartment, it is no surprise they had to sell possessions to get each other gifts. After Della counts every penny she has, the narrator states, “There is not a thing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl”(Henry). This is an example of how the young couple is living. Sacrifice and poverty are really the main components of “The Gift of the Magi.” Critic John A. Rea states his opinion on sacrifice, “In this trite little tale of mutual self-sacrifice, O.Henry crystallized dramatically what the world in all its stored up wisdom knows to be fundamental value in ordinary family life”(Rea). Sacrifices are made on a daily basis for loved ones and family. O.Henry emphasized that importance of putting others first. For that reason, this short story is highly relatable to all readers.

     The literart terms that the author chose in this short story are used to help reveal the stories themes.  The literary element setting helps reveal poverty in many ways. The drab apartment Jim and Della live in is very run down and cheap. This shows how they do not have much, and they are barely scraping by. The element conflict shows man verses himself by Della selling her beautiful hair for money for her husbands Christmas present. Della does not want to cutt her hair, but she has to because it was her only option to get the perfect gift for Jim. There are many important symbols throughout this story. Della's hair and Jim's watch are two important symbols. The two items are very important to both of them and because they sell them for eachother, it shows the ulitmate sacrifice of love. Critic's reviews on the short story by O.Henry are highly positive. Critic Karen Charmaine Blansfield is an example of that, "There are a variety of reasons that readers like O.Henry. Perhaps one of the most important is that not all art is meant to appeal primarily to the intellect or intellectuals"(Blansfield). This quote shows that this story does not just appeal to one group of people, it relates to many groups and types of readers. Jim and Della's situation in the story can relate to many people today. The apartment they live in shows that they do not have much,for them to sell their most valuable belongings shows that their love for eachother is more important that anything money can buy. That situation can be related to today's society. Two young people living in a run down apartment that sell thier belongings for the others happiness. This short story is so popular with all readers, because O.Henry made it relatable, no matter when it is read.

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

 

Blansfield, Karen Charmaine. In her Cheap Rooms and Restless Hearts: A Study of Formula in the Urban Tales of William Sydney Porter, Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1988. Web. Jan. 18. 2010.

 

O. (1862-1910). “EXPLORING Short Stories. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. MCHS. Web. 14, Jan. 2010.

 

Rea, John A. "The Idea for O.Henry's 'Gift of the Magi', " in Southern Humanties Review, Vol. VII, No. 3. Summer, 1973, pp. 311-14.

 

William Sydney (1862-1910).”DIScovering Authors. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003.     MCHS. Web. 14 Jan, 2010

 

Korb, Rena. "an overview of The Gift of the Magi." Short Stories for Students. Detroit:Gale, 2002. Literature Resources from GaleGale. Web. 12 Jan.2010.

 

Rollins, Hyder E. "O. Henry." The Sewanee Review. 22.2 (Spring 1914): 213-232. Rpt. in Twentieth- Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Dennis Poupard. Vol. 19. Detroit: Gale Research, 1986/ 213-232. Literature Resources From Gale. Gale. Web. 12 Jan. 2010.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments (8)

ldunnreier@... said

at 11:47 am on Jan 19, 2010

Hannah == Go ahead and cut your part out of the comment section and post into the regular wiki by opening up the edit tab.
LDR

ldunnreier@... said

at 4:41 pm on Jan 19, 2010

Make sure to add the Works Cited at the bottom of the page and parenthetical citations. I'm VERY worried because there's not a single direct quote in either paragraph? Why not? Please look at some of the other papers to see how this is done. You are far short of what you're supposed to have -- both paragraphs. Where are the critics' quotes? (Part C of the outline). This group has some work to do yet! Let me know if you need help!

Mary Moon said

at 5:59 pm on Feb 3, 2010

I think that we did a good job with fitting examples from the story into our paper. Also i think that we did a good job explaining our examples.
We could have had more transition words or more variety in started a quote.

Shannon Phalen said

at 7:19 pm on Feb 4, 2010

Aside from some MLA difficulties (sources not cited alphabetically, some in-text errors) and a couple of spelling errors, this is a well done paper.

Shannon Phalen 3A

sarahkat19@... said

at 7:43 pm on Feb 4, 2010

i really think you guys have a good attention grabber, the paper seems nicely written, just watch that some of the paragraphs are'nt double spaced. but very good paper.!! Sarah Riola 1B

hannah Lindmark said

at 8:53 am on Feb 5, 2010

we had a good attention grabber, and the sentences flowed well. Paragraphs are not proportionate, and MLA format is not correct.
Hannah Lindmark 1B

Sarah Scott said

at 8:03 pm on Feb 7, 2010

This paper had a nice attetion getter and good explanations of what the story is about and
helping the readers get a sense of what happens in the story by knowing when and where to
put examples to help readers comprehend the meaning of the story and it's theme.

Sarah Scott 3A

ldunnreier@... said

at 8:59 pm on Apr 12, 2010

Work all quotes into a sentence! Probs w/punctuation with parenthetical citations. Well-written introduction, but watch the punctuation!!!! Nice ref. to Biblical allusions! Too many mechanical errors, though, from word choice (slang) to spelling! Was the second paragraph proofread by anyone? Good incorporation of critic quote in 3rd paragraph, but improper citation. These mistakes are killing your content because they distract from good content.

Setting part is particularly strong. Work on transitions between paragraphs, though.
Conflict -- no use of "you"!; OREO!!!! Where are your paragraphs?!
Symbols -- Good incorporation of quotes! Some silly mechanical errors, though!

Conclusion lacks transitions between ideas! Clincher needs a little work, too. Again, the mechanical errors are killing you!

Some excellent content; some very poor mechanics. Work on consistency! Shows great promise!

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