The author of “The Gift of the Magi”, O. Henry, uses indirect characterization and situational irony to establish the theme of the story, true love is selfless. To begin, Henry indirectly characterizes Della as a very giving woman, holding true to the theme of selfless love, she is deeply in love with Jim despite their perilous financial situation. Sitting and sobbing in her shabby flat Della counts her money on Christmas Eve, a meager sum. Given her pathetic conditions, she feels as if “life is…
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William Sydney Porter who goes by his pen name O. Henry. He wrote the short story The Gift of the Magi. The short story is about a loving old couple that has no money to spare for Christmas gifts. They both sell the most prized and valuable possessions in their lives for money to buy each other Christmas gifts. The title has some history behind it, symbolism of love throughout and ending with irony. The magi is heard of as the "three kings" (as in the famous Christmas carol, "We Three Kings of…
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The Gift of the Magi is an excellent representation of situational irony. In the beginning of the story, Della decides to sell her hair, her most valued possession, so she can afford to obtain a chain for her husband's watch. Ironically, little did Della know, her husband had sold his watch, his most valued possession, to afford combs for her hair. Nevertheless, when they exchange gifts, they are both surprised and upset, realizing neither is able to utilize their gifts. The situational irony occurs…
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Buying presents for loved ones is always difficult, but buying presents with a small amount of money is even more difficult. The author of “The Gift of the Magi” uses irony along with a theme of selflessness to tell the story of Jim and Della. When someone is in love they would do anything and everything just to make their loved one happy, even if that means they have to make sacrifices. The characters in this story did not realize at the time that the greatest present they received was each other’s…
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In the short story, The Gift of The Magi by O. Henry, the author tells the story of how a married couple spends all of their money to buy each other gifts. There are named Della and Jim. When they receive the gifts, they can no longer be used. The couple had given up their most prized possessions to afford a gift that was supposed to be used for the other’s prized possession. In The Gift of The Magi by O. Henry, the theme of love and sacrifice is developed through irony, symbolism, and characterization…
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powerful meaning. Money has been said to be the root to all evil, yet some argue it is a necessity. However, this quote is truly brought to life in The Gift of a Magi, due to its underlying statement that love is all that is needed to feel fulfilled in life. In The Gift of the Magi, a couple must go through the conflict of finding one another a gift for Christmas. This inner conflict derives from the couple’s limited amount of money each one of them has due to hard times. However, both partners possess…
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the story “The Gift of the Magi,” the author O. Henry writes about a married couple who demonstrated the real meanings of sacrifice and unconditional love. Mr. James and Mrs. Della Dillingham Young appreciated each other despite the ironies and obstacles in their lives. They also had a very passionate love for each other, and they would do almost anything to make one another happy. O. Henry indicates these significant traits of their marriage through the use of imagery, cosmic irony and literary allusion…
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common motifs in “The Gift of the Magi.” However, they are all interconnected in the story to produce one overall theme, but how is this theme developed in the story? O. Henry’s short story, “The Gift of the Magi,” centers around Della and James Dillingham Young who struggle to buy one another Christmas gifts. In O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi,” he develops the theme that putting others before oneself is the ultimate sacrifice to prove love and gain happiness by using setting, irony, and characterization…
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Sacrifice in The Gift of the Magi Ben Sharp The gift of the Magi shows sacrifice in many places. It shows sacrifice with happiness, love, and generosity. This sacrificing creates the theme of happiness, love, and generosity. The author shows the theme of sacrifice by creating irony where Jim and Della both buy gifts for what the other sacrificed . The gift of the Magi shows sacrifice through happiness. Jim sells his watch so he can buy something for Della. Della sells her hair so she can buy Jim…
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between two people is a key principle in forming a bond and truly knowing how each other feel about a certain thing. The two short stories “Gift Of The Magi” and “Button, Button” both feature common misunderstandings between people and how they relate with one another. In the short stories “Button, Button”, and “Gift of the magi” O. Henry and Richard Matheson use irony and a common misunderstanding to show how human relationships are not always what they seem. In the story “Button, Button” Richard Matheson…
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