The Gift of the Magi
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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| - | '''''[[The Gift of the Magi]]''''' is a short story, written by O. Henry | + | '''"The Gift of the Magi"''' is a short story, written by [[O. Henry]] (a [[pen name]] for William Sydney Porter), about a young husband and wife and how they deal with the challenge of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. As a sentimental story with a moral lesson about gift-giving, it has been popular for adaptation, especially for presentation at [[Christmas]] time. The plot and its [[twist ending]] are well-known, and the ending is generally considered an example of [[comic irony]]. It was allegedly written at [[Pete's Tavern]] on Irving Place in [[New York City]]. |
| - | The Gift of the Magi may also refer to: | + | The story was initially published in ''[[The New York World|The New York Sunday World]]'' under the title "Gifts of the Magi" on December 10, 1905. It was first published in book form in the O. Henry Anthology ''[[The Four Million]]'' in April 1906. |
| - | *Gifts of the [[three wise men]] in the Bible | + | |
| - | *''The Gift of the Magi'', 1958 TV musical by [[Richard Adler]] | + | |
| - | *''The Gift of the Magi'', 2015 episode of [[The Gift of the Magi (Fargo)|Fargo]] | + | |
| - | *[[The Gift of the Magi (Rautavaara opera)|''The Gift of the Magi'' (Rautavaara opera)]] 1994 | + | |
| - | *[[The Gift of the Magi (Conte opera)|''The Gift of the Magi'' (Conte opera)]] 1997 | + | |
| - | *''Gift of the Magi'', composition by [[Tommy Banks]] | + | |
| + | == Summary == | ||
| + | Mr. James Dillingham Young ("Jim") and his wife, Della, are a couple living in a modest apartment. | ||
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| + | On [[Christmas night]], with only $1.87 in hand, and desperate to find a gift for Jim, Della sells her hair for $20 to a nearby hairdresser named Madame Sofronie, and eventually finds a [[platinum]] [[pocket watch]] fob chain for Jim's watch for $21 and she was satisfied with the perfect gift she got for Jim. | ||
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| + | At 7 o'clock, Della sits at a table near the door, waiting for Jim to come home. Unusually late, Jim walks in and immediately stops short at the sight of Della, who had previously prayed that she was still pretty to Jim. Della then admits to Jim that she sold her hair to buy him his present. Jim gives Della her present – an assortment of combs, useless now that her hair is shortened. Della then shows Jim the chain she bought for him, to which Jim says he sold his watch to get the money to buy her ornamental combs. Although Jim and Della are now left with gifts that neither one can use, they realize how far they are willing to go to show their love for each other, and how priceless their love really is. | ||
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| + | The story ends with the narrator comp | ||
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Revision as of 19:55, 26 September 2018
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"The Gift of the Magi" is a short story, written by O. Henry (a pen name for William Sydney Porter), about a young husband and wife and how they deal with the challenge of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. As a sentimental story with a moral lesson about gift-giving, it has been popular for adaptation, especially for presentation at Christmas time. The plot and its twist ending are well-known, and the ending is generally considered an example of comic irony. It was allegedly written at Pete's Tavern on Irving Place in New York City.
The story was initially published in The New York Sunday World under the title "Gifts of the Magi" on December 10, 1905. It was first published in book form in the O. Henry Anthology The Four Million in April 1906.
Summary
Mr. James Dillingham Young ("Jim") and his wife, Della, are a couple living in a modest apartment.
On Christmas night, with only $1.87 in hand, and desperate to find a gift for Jim, Della sells her hair for $20 to a nearby hairdresser named Madame Sofronie, and eventually finds a platinum pocket watch fob chain for Jim's watch for $21 and she was satisfied with the perfect gift she got for Jim.
At 7 o'clock, Della sits at a table near the door, waiting for Jim to come home. Unusually late, Jim walks in and immediately stops short at the sight of Della, who had previously prayed that she was still pretty to Jim. Della then admits to Jim that she sold her hair to buy him his present. Jim gives Della her present – an assortment of combs, useless now that her hair is shortened. Della then shows Jim the chain she bought for him, to which Jim says he sold his watch to get the money to buy her ornamental combs. Although Jim and Della are now left with gifts that neither one can use, they realize how far they are willing to go to show their love for each other, and how priceless their love really is.
The story ends with the narrator comp
