The Gift of the Magi Theme Analysis

The essay begins with Henry George referring to his audience as ladies and gentlemen. He then goes on to state that poverty is a crime. A crime not committed by the poor, but rather the poor as victims of the crime. He also does not wholly blame those perpetrating the crime, he also gives a kind of notion that the victim has a hand the situation he or she finds themselves in. He says the poverty is a curse that not only the poor have but is on every level of society even the rich. He says the rich also suffer because it is like the air all the community breathes. They too must breathe it.

Since the story uses a certain object, the Jacket, as the meaning of several issues, it primarily focuses on the narrator's poverty-stricken family. First of all, an example of the poverty is demonstrated when the narrator complains that the jacket "was so ugly and big that I knew I'd have to wear it a long time"(paragraph 3). It is clear that his lack of money was a problem in which he

The objects people keep in their homes can tell a story about who they are or were. Each item possessed by the residents of a house is evidence of how these people may have lived. Ted Kooser’s poem “Abandoned Farmhouse” takes the reader on a walkthrough of the remains of a farmhouse where a poor family once lived. In “Abandoned Farmhouse,” Kooser selects seemingly insignificant relics left behind by each family member to illustrate who these people were and how they lived. The picture he paints is a bleak one and reflects the impoverished life which the residents lived within this now lonely and desolate building.

The author uses a seemingly endless cycle of poverty to emphasize the cage in which the characters are trapped. As Lizabeth muses over her childhood, she recalls the daily cycle of how “each morning our mother and father trudged wearily down the dirt road and around the bend, she to her domestic job, he to his daily unsuccessful quest for work.” (1). Every morning began the same way, passed the same way, and ended the same way. Lizabeth feels trapped, forced to go through the same series of events for what seems to be the rest of her life, with the same people, in the same place. When the author pairs this with the “dusty” setting of the town and the time placement of the Great Depression, it creates an effect of hopelessness for the first part of the story. This is only furthered by Lizabeth continually returning to the idea that “Poverty was the cage in which we were all trapped.” (1). Lizabeth opens the story by first giving a description of her hometown as “dusty”, remembering the poverty and hopelessness. She then continues by referring to the cage of not having enough money, and the cycle that it put them through, and ends by alluding to her future being limited to her poverty.

Imagine: A young boy scavenges for food to provide for his impoverished family which was composed of his ill mother and starving siblings or a homeless, single mom desperatley seeking for shelter. These synopses from "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt and "The Street" by Ann Petry share a common theme: perseverance through hardships. In "Angela's Ashes," a memoir by Frank McCourt, he stells about the harships he endured through his childhood, such as, struggling to assist his family in the midst of poverty by stealing food to provide for them. Futhermore, in "The Street," a novel by Ann Petry, tells the story of young Lutie Johnson, a homeless single mom who is seeking shelter for herself and her children. In these two excerpts, the authors use the characters, settings, and events to develop the theme, which I've identified as perseverance through hardships.

The truth behind the poem “Poverty and Wealth” is bone-chilling, almost as if it was meant for a character like Ponyboy Curtis. On the east side of town, there lives

Parker also explains her purpose through the use of stylistic devices like imagery. She uses concrete images to portray the idea of poverty. She explains that “Poverty is staying up all night on cold nights to watch the fire knowing one spark on the newspapers covering the walls means your sleeping child dies in flames.” What adds to the readers idea of poverty is the horrendous image of a child burning to death, also the newspaper-covered wall of a make-shift house. There are plenty other nouns like grits with no oleo, runny noses, and diapers that paint an image of poverty in the reader ́s head. You also have the sense of ́smell ́ through this essay by phrases that describe the “sour milk”, “urine”, and “stench of rotting teeth”. You can also ́feel ́ poverty through hands that are “so cracked and red”, since the author cannot afford vaseline. The use of imagery makes the a!udience more conscious of the effects of poverty. !

In “Another Holiday for the Prince” by Elizabeth Jolley the author draws upon many themes, one in particular that Jolley illustrates is how poverty influences changes in the individual lives within one family. To begin with the head of the family; a father is never mentioned in the story, not even once. But by not having a father figure in the story the reader can understand a lot. In society the man is the one who earns the money and provides all the essentials for his family, however this story is presented in a society were the mother has to be the man of the family. Ones self-esteem can be diminished as a result of poverty, alienation; destructive effects of a week personality or society on the individual. The author effectively

However, when their mother came through the door and told them of a hungry family, the 4 women did not hesitate in giving away their luscious breakfast to those in need. The children delivered the food to the family and “a poor, bare, miserable room it was, with broken windows, no fire, ragged bedclothes, a sick mother, wailing baby, and a group of pale, hungry children cuddled under one old quilt, trying to keep warm”(24). The sisters realize what a harsh environment they live in, and because the setting is so pessimistic, they try to share the little wealth they have so that everyone may live long full lives. The setting in which they live, houses many people who have even less wealth than their own family. However, because of this dreadful place, they try and make sure that their community, or their family, is taken care of, even at the expense of their luxuries.

The four of them, his mother, Ella, his father, his brother, and himself lived in a cramped space. Richard’s father worked as a night porter; therefore, he was the sole breadwinner and law-giver of the house. Although Richard was never close to his father, it was in this house that their relationship grew

Think about the last time that you opened a present that had been given to you by someone you love. Did you take a moment to think about what they might have gone through just to give you that one perfect gift? In the short story "The Gift of the Magi", by O. Henry, the couple, Mr. and Mrs. Dillingham Young sacrificed their most prized possessions for one another. They did this in order to buy each other nice Christmas presents. Della's most prized possession was her beautiful hair that she cut off and sold for the money. Jim¹s was his gold watch which he also sold so that he could buy Della a gift. Della and Jim both sold their favorite things to buy each other something special. Della bought Jim a platinum chain for his watch. Jim bought Della tortoise shell clips for her hair. Since both had given up their most prized possessions for each other, the gifts were worthless, but very special in their eyes. In this short story the author presents a wonderful example of a true love story. It paints a picture of how true love should be and the sacrifices required to have a relationship like these two people had.

In a short story by Katherine Mansfield called “The Doll’s House,” there is a social barrier between a family with less that is struggling to make ends meet and a flourishing family, that appears to not have any difficulties getting through life. The Kelvey family, whose hard-working mother makes the best of life that she can by crafting clothing from materials she can salvage from the wealthy clients’ houses she cleans. The Burnell family, who is getting through life with ease because of their position in the wealthy class, is the complete opposite in lifestyles. The short story “The Doll’s House” suggests society is unfair to the people with less and that possessions play a part in the deciding factor whether people will be your friend, but it only takes one person to break from the social expectations.

Maureen and Mag are isolated because of their physical location and their relationship with each other. Maureen dreams of being free of her mother’s house and small town life in Leenane. She blames her mother and her sisters for her circumstances; however, she is faced with the hard truth that men don’t come to call. Farming towns like Leenane were previously communities built on supporting each other, but over time families grew more isolated from one and other, leaving people like Mag and Maureen without the help of friendly neighbours.

The Journey of the Magi by TS Elliot centres around one of the three Wise Men who travelled to Bethlehem shortly after his birth bringing him gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh.

So here the theme for The Gift of the Magi. Here are my three topics. Selflessness, generosity, and sacrifice. The reasons I have chosen these three was because they showed generosity when even though not able to use their gifts now that one of them had no hair and the other had sold his watch. They also showed selflessness when Jim went of and sold his watch so he would have the money to buy Della her gifts. Then when Della cut and sold her hair because she didn't have very much money to purchase Jim something. Sacrifice was when he sold his watch and she cut and sold her hair. (O’Henry The gift of the magi page 205)