Poverty, Love, and Each Other
“The Gift of the Magi” remains one of the most recognizable and frequently read stories in American literature. During its time the tale was extremely popular. Today the story is considered juvenilia and has not garnered much serious critical attention. “The Gift of the Magi” initially appeared in one of O. Henry's best-known collection of stories, The Four Million, which was published in the late 1906. This story’s plot has two main characters on Christmas Eve. A young married woman named Della has cut and sold her long beautiful hair in order to gain enough money to purchase her husband a Christmas present. The present that she wants for her husband is a platinum chain for his pocket watch. However when her husband Jim returns he is stunned to see that she has cut her hair. He is in turn has sold his pocket watch to purchase her a pair of tortoise-shell combs for her long hair. The author throughout this story is trying to explain to us the feeling of mutual respect people have for one another as well as the love that these two people feel for one another even though they are poverty stricken . As the author tells the story he is sure to describe the mutual feeling, love and respect that Jim and Della have for one another. He also is showing how much they were devoted to one another and gave themselves to one another to ensure that the other one was happy no matter what their situation may be.
Jim and Della were totally devoted to each other and they gave of themselves to make the other happy not knowing that their gift would be irrelevant for the moment. Della's hair was a beautiful thing and women in those days looked down upon a woman who did not have long hair that could be styled in many different ways; a woman with short hair was either a woman of deep poverty or a working woman who couldn’t have her hair due to it getting in the way of her daily work or activity. When Della returns home from selling her hair she tries to fix her short hair so it would not upset Jim. She knows she may have made a mess of her hair and looks, but she also knows that it was worth the sacrifice she had made for Jim. She knows in a sense she has gave up her respectability to buy a watch chain for Jim. Jim is the most important person in her life regardless of their situation however poverty struck they may be. The most important thing is that they have each other.
Jim had a possession of great value his watch. A watch was a much needed item for a working man during this era because there were times he needed to be on time and or early to be taken seriously by an employer or perspective employer. By giving up his watch to buy tortoise combs to beautify Della's long hair, he made her more important in his life than work. This makes her the priority and the center of his world. Her hair would grow back and as times improved, a new watch could be bought but the lack of money made them both reach for a gift that more than came from the heart. It came from their deep love and care for each other. The story portrays the couple’s poor state of life they are sharing. The couple have sunk into poverty and hard times. The description of their apartment in the story shows a poor state of life characterized by a poor pay amounting to $20 dollars a week and high expenses on basics life needs. Jim’s salary has shrunk from $30 dollars to $20 dollars per week and they are barely surviving on the $12 dollars that is left after paying for their rent and weekly essential items.
That kind of love is rare and notable and the author O. Henry wrote about the reaches that people go to in order to be more human, more aware, more idealized. This love and mutual respect for another human being is a thing of the past back when this short story was written. The rare in tune affection that these two people felt was unprecedented. This story really shows the sacrifice and love of the young couple. Della’s deep contemplation and sentiments of helplessness show how much she loves and appreciates Jim, and as a result she would like to offer him the best. Her deep concern and love can be seen in these two quotes: “Only $1.87 to buy a present for Jim” This statement indicates how deeply concerned Della is about the situation. “Many a happy hour she had spent planning for something nice for him: Something fine and rare and sterling, something just a little bit near to being worthy of the honor of being owned by Jim.”(Have and Have-Nots page 158) This statement shows how much Della values Jim and it portrays her deep love for him.
The theme of love and sacrifice that emanates from the love is widely played out throughout the short story. The story’s core is on the two whose love for each other seems to be the greatest treasure in their lives because each one of them offers up for sale some of their most prized possessions that they highly to treasure for the sake of expression their love for one another. Despite the risks, humiliation and costs of the sacrifice each of them is ready to lose what they have to express their love. By this action for each other the author is showing us the extreme connection that this couple feels towards one another.
It should be noted that the irony of the young couple sacrificing their most treasured possessions, Della's hair and Jim's watch, in order to buy each other gifts related to those same possessions. Poverty is also a prominent theme, as Della saved her money for months to buy the platinum watch chain for Jim, but she still had to cut and sell her beautiful o obtain enough money to complete her Christmas purchase. The author has been categorized as a realist, “The Gift of the Magi” has been perceived as an authentic, anecdotal look at lower-class American life near the turn of the century. The story is also thought to show the author's interest in the elements of surprise and trick endings, as the impact of the mutual sacrifice is not revealed until the conclusion of the short story. This is indeed a surprising turn of events that is so interesting and emotional. The couple displays great love for each other, because they both show a desire to offer their partners the best gift possible. However, their financial constraints leave them with least discretionary space and they have no choice but to sacrifice the only possessions that they treasure in their lives Della’s hair and Jim’s watch. There was no greater sacrifice that would have been offered apart from what the two did. Della particularly displays great love for Jim, because she sacrifices not only her pride to shamelessly haggle and humiliate herself in grocery purchases, but further shaves her hair and sacrifices her good looks to secure Jim a present that would show her great love for Jim.

Works Cited
O. Henry, The Have and Have-Nots New York, New York: Signet, 1999.
Book rags (2011), The Gift of Magi Study Guide, retrieved on 19th March, 2011 from http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-giftmagi/themes.html
O. Henry. (1992), The gift of the Magi and other short stories; Dover thrift edition series, Courier Dover Publications