JAMES DILLINGHAM YOUNG

- Lovingly referred to as Jim by Della.

- Appearance:
+ Jim is still young, at 22 years of age, but keeps on tirelessly working to provide
for himself and Della, leading to his poor physical health: “He looked very thin,
very serious “He needed a new coat, and he had nothing to cover his cold hands.”
- Personality:
+ Hard-working: Jim works every day from dusk to dawn, with very low wages in
blistering cold weather, even when his salary was dropped to $20 from $30. Still,
he was very serious about his job, even costing him his health in the process.
+ Humble: Jim is a very humble husband, who prioritizes his loving wife over
himself, going as far as not buying new coats and gloves for the winter. Even with
a valuable watch passed down from his grandfather, he keeps it to himself only,
even though he knew even kings would have been green with envy should he
showed it to them.
+ Affectionate: Jim loves his wife Della above everything in the world, even his
precious watch. He would trade his most prized possession for an expensive comb
that Della liked, the comb that would accentuate the beauty of her and her hair.
Even when he had seen what Della has done to get a gold chain for his watch, he
would hug and comfort her, saying: “Nothing like a haircut could make me love
you any less.”, and then settled down to have dinner together, because spending
time with his wife is already a very satisfactory gift.
- Speech: Jim’s voice is soft and caring towards his wife, filled with shock and
concern when he saw that she had cut her precious hair, but turned to comfort and
understanding to calm Della down after she had realized their sacrifices.
- Action: Jim’s unseen actions show his immense love for his lovely wife. He
worked incredibly hard, even with poor wages, to provide for her. On Christmas
day, to get a gift deserving of Della, he traded his precious watch, which was given
to him by his father, and his father before him. He was willing to trade away his
family heirloom for a gift that Della merely likes.
- Jim is described as a flat, static character: He gives unconditional love to his wife
Della, even when he realizes that they have sacrificed their most valuable things
for one another. He is also a typical diehard for his family, working himself to the
bone to provide for his wife.

 Della and Jim are incredible lovebirds, who would go any length for each
other.