Chapter 7: Writing A Critique

O. Henry, The Gift of the Magi (2019) is frequently have known for his surprise
endings, and his stories are also known for witty narration. Most of O. Henry's stories
are produced in his own time, the early 20th century. Many take places in New York City
and deal, for the most part, with ordinary people: policemen, waitresses, etc.
The story all about opens with a housewife, Della Dillingham. She had been
anticipating Christmas day, but she had no budget to buy his husband a gift, for she
only had $1.87. Mr. and Mrs. Dillingham Young are both financially low, and as a result
of this, they struggle to find a gift that would fit in their budget. The story takes place in
New York. O'Henry describes the apartment where Jim and Delia live in great detail for
the reader to understand the great sacrifices Delia and Jim are making when they sell
their most prized possessions. The details of their apartment also give the setting a
more realistic feeling to identify with the characters. They desperately want to buy a gift
for one another, Della sells her beautiful hair, and Jim sells his precious watch. (2019)
There are two main characters and one minor character. The major ones are
Della and James, and the little is the hair shop owner called Sofronie. Della takes up the
name of a woman with a positive attitude and never gives up. Even when money is not
enough, she figures out what to do. She is submissive, loving, and determined. She
does everything possible to get a gift for his husband. She always wanted to make her
husband happy. When she cuts her hair, she tries to style it appropriately and made
excellent food for her husband. She hoped that he would not be upset with her. (2014)
The setting of this story is in New York. The descriptions given by the author
suggest it is in this city. The narrator talks of the couple living in a decent apartment,
and Della went to the hair shop across the street from their apartment. He mentions an
amusement park that is found in New York. It is called Coney Island. It is the most
popular park in this city, and it is Brooklyn. Another reason suggesting this story's
setting is where the author lived when he wrote and published this story. Therefore, he
lived in New York; he used the city as the setting of his story. (2014)
The conflict in The Gift of the Magi is poverty. Because of their poverty, Jim and
Delia have to make great personal sacrifices to buy Christmas gifts.
Jim finally told his wife to put the presents away for a while and stated that they
were too lovely to be just a present. While sitting on the couch, he told Della that he had
sold his watch to buy the comb set for Della. Now, Jim asked his wife to prepare the
dinner for them both.
James Young is a committed husband who shows his love for his wife. He sells a
valuable gold watch to buy her wife a simple present for Christmas. It shows how much
he could sacrifice for his wife's happiness. He is good at adjusting to change. When she
notices her wife has cut her hair, it does not alter his love for her. What only worries him
is that she will not use the combs he bought her. This story is an excellent example of
lessons about love (2014).
The story is all about Della and James Young. They are a poor couple who live in
New York. They hardly earned enough, so they did not get money to save. It was
already the evening of Christmas, and she did not have money to buy a present for her
husband. She just had I dollar and seventy-five cents. This amount could not buy any
gift. She felt so sad and frustrated, and she could not help crying. She eventually
decided to sell her hair and use the money to buy the present for his husband.
I think this story is original from O. Henry. He deals, for the most part, with
ordinary people like he sees in New York City. Most of O. Henry's stories have known
for his surprise endings, and his stories are also known for witty narration, wordplay,
and warm characterization.
I enjoy the story because I admire Della, she sold her hair to buy a gift for his
husband, and Jim sold his watch for his wife, their gift to each other are gifts of love
even though they have no money, but they led to sacrifice their most valuable
possessions to find Christmas gifts for each other.

References:

The Gift of The Magi (literary Criticism), “9n0kr8yw6p4v”, Nov. 2019,

https://idoc.pub/documents/the-gift-of-the-magi-literary-criticism-9n0kr8yw6p4v
Accessed 6 Oct. 2020

Gift of Magi short story criticism. (2014, January 31). GPA

Help. https://www.gpahelp.com/gift-of-magi-short-story-criticism/ Accessed 6 Oct. 2020