“The Gift of the Magi” O. Henry

“The Gift of the Magi” O. Henry
The following entry presents criticism on O. Henry's short story “The Gift of the Magi”
(1906).
INTRODUCTION
“The Gift of the Magi” (1906) remains one of the most recognizable and frequently
anthologized stories in American literature. In its time the tale was extremely popular, both
commercially and critically, and O. Henry was called the “Yankee Maupaussant.” Today
the story is considered juvenilia and has not garnered much serious critical attention. “The
Gift of the Magi” initially appeared in one of O. Henry's best-known collection of stories,
The Four Million, which was published in 1906.
Plot and Major Characters
On Christmas Eve, a young married woman named Della has cut and sold her long,
beautiful hair to earn the rest of the money she needs for her husband's Christmas present: a
platinum chain for his treasured watch. When her husband, Jim, returns to their apartment,
he is shocked to see her hair gone; he has sold his watch to buy her a pair of tortoise-shell
combs for her long hair. Touched by his thoughtfulness, Della assures him that her hair will
grow back and she gives him the watch chain. When he sees the gift, he lovingly tells her
that he has sold his cherished watch to buy her the combs for her hair. The story concludes
with an omniscient narrator praising the sacrifice and love of the young couple.
Major Themes
Critics have noted the irony of the young couple sacrificing their most treasured possessions
—Della's hair and Jim's watch—in order to buy each other gifts related to those same
possessions. Poverty is also a prominent theme, as Della saved her money for months to buy
the platinum watch chain, but she still had to cut and sell her beautiful hair. The descriptions
of the environs and the couple's clothing also underscore the indigence of the characters in
the story. As O. Henry was categorized as a realist, “The Gift of the Magi” has been
perceived as an authentic, anecdotal look at lower-class American life near the turn of the
century. The story is also thought to exemplify the author's interest in the elements of
surprise and trick endings, as the impact of the mutual sacrifice is not revealed until the
conclusion of the tale.
Critical Reception

Upon its publication in The Four Million, “The Gift of the Magi” caught the attention of the
American public as well as reviewers. It was frequently mentioned as a prime example of O.
Henry's work and has appeared in several anthologies of American short stories. Yet the
story has mostly failed to attract serious critical analysis. There has been some debate as to
the source of “The Gift of the Magi,” and a recent critic, John A. Rea, has determined where
the plotline for the story originated. Many commentators consider the story more of an
anecdote, devoid of complex characters and themes. Recently “The Gift of the Magi” has
been classified and republished as a story for children. Despite the lack of considerable
critical attention, most literary scholars still consider it one of the best Christmas stories
ever written.
The reader quickly understands that $1.87 is not a lot of money when the narrator says ‘That
was all.’ We get a better understanding of their poverty when we witness Della’s
embarrassment. She must haggle for every household purchase to save sixty cents worth of
pennies and she is ashamed of the necessity and the poverty it indicates. And, just in case
the reader is slow, we are told that such dealings indicate parsimony.
Porter contrasts the poverty of the Youngs to the vast wealth and riches of King Solomon
and the Queen of Sheba. He shares with the readers the two small treasures of the household
and contrasts the value of these treasured objects to the vast storehouses of wealth that
Solomon and the Queen of Sheba have. Yet despite the obvious poverty and meagerness of
these treasures, Porter will soon show us that what Jim and Della have is of more value than
any priceless treasure locked up in a storehouse.
Generosity
Generosity is a major theme in Gift of the Magi. Clearly, any story that focuses on gift-
giving as its major plot-line must deal with the concept of generosity. However, Porter is
interested in something deeper than superficial generosity of giving a gift that comes easily.
He is interested in generosity born out of a love so deep it transcends reason or wisdom.
Love, such as we see between Jim and Della.
Both Jim and Della sell their personal treasure in order to enhance the treasure of the other.
Della sells her hair in order to buy a watch chain for Jim’s only valuable inheritance. Jim
sells his watch in order to enhance Della’s crowning glory. The narrator of the story

comments on their actions by saying “And here I have lamely related to you the uneventful
chronicle of two foolish children in a flat who most unwisely sacrificed for each other the
greatest treasures of their house. But in a last word to the wise of these days let it be said
that of all who give gifts these two were the wisest.”
Love
In the paragraph where we are introduced to Jim, the writer gives us an idea of Della’s
exuberant affection for Jim when he says “whenever Mr. James Dillingham Young came
home and reached his flat above he was called "Jim" and greatly hugged by Mrs. James
Dillingham Young, already introduced to you as Della. Which is all very good.”
When the narrator writes “Which is all very good.” He hints that there must be more in a
marriage. And in some small way Jim sums it up when he sees his gift from Della and says
“They're too nice to use just at present. I sold the watch to get the money to buy your
combs.” His statement seems a natural commentary on the uselessness of the gifts since
their intended purpose has been ironically removed.
However, Jim’s remark, is also a comment on the value of the gifts. They are too nice not
only because of the money they represent but also because of the sacrificial love they
represent. Self-sacrifice in the name of love is the wisest gift.
The Gift of the Magi
Special allowance for a period of translated fiction will probably have to be made in the
history of the 20th century Russian literature, just as it had to be done for the Russian
literature at the beginning of the 19th century, when work by a Russian author was a rarity.
Perhaps this is not so much in the context of history of literature as in that of the history of
the Russian reader and publisher, granted the possibility of such a history. For some
reason, the unawareness of the name O. Henry existed until 1923, although he had died
back in 1910 and during the years preceding his death was one of the most popular and
beloved authors in America.
The Gift of the Magi written by O. Henry is a little drama of mutual self-sacrifice between
husband and wife that encapsulates what the world in all its stored-up wisdom knows to be
indispensable or ordinary family life. Unselfish love shared, regardless of the attendant
difficulties or distractions, is the idea implied again as a major criterion in the treatment of

domestic affairs.
In The Gift of the Magi O. Henry's style of narration is invariably ironic or playful. His
writing is studded with metaphors but only for the purpose of amusement with the
unexpectedness of the comparisons made - a surprise of a literary nature:
"Her eyes were shining brilliantly, but her face had lost its color within twenty
seconds."
"Della's beautiful hair fell about her rippling and shining like a cascade of brown
waters."
In the narrative and descriptive passages of The Gift of the Magi, O. Henry enters into a
conversation with us, the readers, making no point of arousing in us an illusion of direct
contact or of reality but rather forever emphasizing his role as the writer. Therefore,
conducting the story not from the standpoint of an impersonal commentator but from that
of his own person, he brings in an outside narrator. Given such a system of narration,
dialogue stands out with particular relief and takes on a substantial share of the effect of
plot and style. The conversations of the characters have a direct connection with the plot
and with the role of the character. They are rich in intonations and ambiguous in some
special way.
The Gift of the Magi is a love story built-in in the most traditional way but some details are
added. In this story it is a comic detail which is not directly connected with love but which,
at the same time, turns out to be the fundamental detail for the plot. Love plays the simple
motivation for creating the intrigue.
O. Henry's pervasive tendency to lay bare the construction of the story and subject the plot
to a parody play, the unexpectedness of his ending acquires a special meaning in The Gift
of the Magi. By itself, the surprise effect is a common feature of both the novel and the
short story. In O. Henry's story this quality of the unexpected constitutes the very heart of
the construction and bears a perfectly specific character. The ending of the story The Gift
of the Magi is merely a surprise or contrary to expectation, it appears in a sort of a lateral
way, as if popping out from around the corner; and it is only then that we, the readers,
realize that certain details here and there had hinted the possibility of such an ending. But
why is it a masterpiece? Not because it tries to take us into the home of a married couple

attempting to exist in our largest city on the husband's income of $20 per week. It is the
writers double-surprise technique. This is the surprise of parody, a trick surprise which
plays on our literary expectations.
The “Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry is a short story that has an interesting theme. The main
themes in this short story are that people do not need money to express love,
and the true meaning of Christmas. Things such as the characters, setting, and events
contribute to the theme.
The characters Della and Jim have very little money, and yet they express their
love by each selling their greatest treasures. Della sells her hair and Jim sells his watch. If
they were both wealthy people, the story would have most likely have changed for the
worse. Since these people make very little money, their gifts come more from the heart
and show how much they care about each other.
Having the story set in a big city impacted the theme of the story. Life is more
stressful in the city, especially for those who are less fortunate. The difference of the
setting being in the city rather than a small town, is that the cities often have many people
who cannot afford expensive presents. The city has people just like Della and Jim who
can only afford to have presents from the heart.
The events have a large role in the theme of people expressing their love without
money. Della sells her hair to buy a watch chain for Jim. Jim sells his watch to buy an
set of combs for Della. In the end they each end up not being able to use the
gifts but realize how much affection they each have. O. Henry describes the scene where
Della is preparing to go sell her hair very vividly. “So now Della's beautiful hair fell
about her rippling and shining like a cascade of brown waters Once she faltered for a
minute and stood still while a tear or two splashed on the worn red carpet.” This just
shows how much they have to sacrifice to express love without money.
This story’s morals and themes show how ignorant people today are compared to
then. Modern people use more money than love on presents during the holidays. Today, it
seems that to express love, you need to buy things. In a way, not having money at hand
can transform you into a better, more compassionate person.