The Gift of the Magi
The Gift of the Magi
As you read the short story The Gift of the Magi by O Henry, answer the following questions on your own paper.
What conflict is introduced after the first page of the story?
How much money does Della have to by Jim a present?
What does Della Sell for twenty dollars?
What point of view is the author using in this story? How do you know?
How does the narrator help to make the climax of the story?
What gift does Jim give to Della?
How did Jim get the money for Della’s gift?
What is the central conflict of the story?
Describe the setting of the story.
Explain how the ending of the story is ironic.
Find 3 examples of figurative language from the story. Explain which type of language is used and where it is used. Example: Simile-like a cascade of brown waters
“The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry
Literary Analysis: Conflict
Like a novel, a short story has a plot. However, the plot of a short story is usually simpler
than that of a novel because the writer must accomplish his or her purpose in relatively few
words. The plot, therefore, typically involves one or two main characters who face one major
problem, or conflict. A conflict is a struggle between opposing forces and can be external or
internal. An external conflict involves a struggle with an outside force, such as another character
or an aspect of society. When a conflict occurs within a character, it is internal.
DIRECTIONS: In the following chart, identify the external and internal conflicts in “The Gift of
the Magi.” Use the information in each box at the top to help you identify each conflict. Then
answer the questions that follow.
|Information |Information |
|It is Christmas. |Della wants to buy Jim a gift. The only way she can make money |
|Della has no extra money after paying the bills |for a gift is to sell her hair. |
|External Conflict |Internal Conflict |
| | |
1. How do you think these two conflicts are related?
2. How do you think these conflicts contribute to the impact of the story?
Plot- Graph the plot of the story.
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“The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry
Reading Strategy: Asking Questions
One way good readers monitor their comprehension of a text is by asking questions as
they read. By stopping to question something that is unclear, you will better understand and
remember what you read. Ask questions to
• clarify the meaning of a word, sentence, or idea.
• determine what caused an event to happen or why a character acted in a certain way.
• predict what will happen next.
DIRECTIONS: Read the following passages from “The Gift of the Magi.” Below each one are
examples of questions that readers might ask themselves as they read. Add two questions of
your own.
In the vestibule below was a letter-box into which no letter would go, and an electric button
from which no mortal finger could coax a ring. Also appertaining thereunto was a card bearing
the name “Mr. James Dillingham Young.”
1. What does the word vestibule mean?
2. Why can’t anyone “coax a ring” from the doorbell?
3. ______________________________________________________________________________________
4. ______________________________________________________________________________________
Suddenly she whirled and stood before the glass. Her eyes were shining brilliantly, but her
face had lost its color within twenty seconds. Rapidly she pulled down her hair and let it fall to
its full length.
5. What is the meaning of glass in this context?
6. Why has she pulled down her hair?
7. _________________________________________________________________________________________
8. _________________________________________________________________________________________
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