Questions Answers and Study Guide on THE GIFT OF THE MAGI by
O Henry:-
Question:
What were the possessions
of Dillingham youngs? How does the author show the greatness of their possession?
How were they gone?
Answer:
In O Henry’s love story ‘The Gift of The Magi’ the two
possessions are Dellas long beautiful hair and her husband’s gold watch.
O Henry shows
the greatness of the possessions of the youngs with comparison.
If the rich
Queen of Sheba had a look at Della’s rippling and shining hair the Queen must
have grown jealous of Della’s riches. Della’s beautiful hair was enough to
depreciate her majesty jewels and gifts. Similarly treasure king Solomon would
have plucked at his beard from envy after having a look at Jim reading his
watch. Della’s beautiful hair reached like a cascade of brown waters below her
knee. It was almost a garment for her and Jims gold watch had a rich heritage
and tradition. It had been his father’s and grand father’s.
Jim and Della
could not think of passing the Christmas without a gift to one another. But the
two were too poor to buy a Christmas gift for one another. So he sold his gold
watch to buy a set of tortoise shell combs for Della’s beautiful tresses. And
she sold her beautiful tresses to buy the platinum fob chain to adorn his gold
watch. That is how the possessions of the young were gone.
