The Gift of the Magi: An Appreciation
It is customary to show old and new movies, play great music and songs of all time, etc. around the festival and other important days.
This is how it is done in the weeks and months leading up to Christmas. The television will be full of great movies on the theme of Christmas and “Jingle Bell, Jingle Bell” will be sung for the umpteenth time.
This is one of the great stories of all time on the subject of Christmas written by one of the best short story writers of all time.
The story is titled “The Gift of the Magi”, and its writer is O. Henry, whose real name was William Sydney Porter.
First, what do we mean by magicians?
When Christ was born, it is assumed that the Magi brought him gifts of gold, myrrh and frankincense (by the way, the English word ‘magic’ is derived from him) or three Wise Men or three Kings of the East.
The writer gives his own explanation at the end of the story. This tradition of author commentary within the story is used less and less in modern stories. In fact, modern stories, like modern art and poetry, are becoming increasingly difficult to understand and that may be one of the reasons why the storytelling genre is disappearing, although it is not yet dead.
O. Henry writes at the end of the story: “The Magi, as you know, were wise men, wonderfully wise men, who brought gifts to the Child in the manger. They invented the art of giving Christmas gifts. Being wise, their gifts were undoubtedly wise, possibly having the privilege of exchange in case of duplication. And here I have related without conviction the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children in an apartment who in the most reckless way sacrificed to each other the greatest treasures of their house . But in a last word to the wise men of these days, let it be said that of all those who give gifts, these two were the wisest. Oh, all those who give and receive gifts, as they are the wisest. Everywhere they are the wisest. They are the magicians.. “
The story is about a poor couple, Della and Jim, who don’t know what to get to each other on Christmas Eve as they have no money. How much did they have?
“One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was it. And sixty cents were in cents. The pennies were saved one and two at a time by taking down the grocer, the greengrocer, and the butcher until one of his cheeks burned with the silent Indictment of the parsimony involved in such a close deal. Della counted it three times. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And tomorrow would be Christmas.
Of course, it was the time when things and services were cheap. They paid $ 8 weekly rent for their furnished apartment, and Jim was earning $ 20 a week, even though he used to earn $ 30 a week. Still $ 1.87 was too little to buy any Christmas present.
However, they were able to buy expensive and exactly the gifts that others needed and wanted the most:
“Dell,” he said, “let’s put our Christmas gifts away and keep them for a while. They are too good to use now.”
The story ends with a “tail twist” surprise, which was a favorite ploy of traditional writers and one that modern writers frown upon. However, this bittersweet ending makes it one of the best immortal tales.
Of course, to know the surprise ending and savor this great story, I have not revealed all the details and I would recommend it as a must-read for everyone and especially for those who are young at heart. But who is not?
I would also like to ponder for a moment if the owner of a major sound card with the name “Mr. James Dillingham Young” belonging to an unused mailbox and a non-working electrical button in the lobby, had no money to spend on Christmas. gift, how desperate the really poor can feel on Christmas Eve! If we think of them at Christmas, God will surely bless us.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
LIVE THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE!
BE HAPPY! BE HEALTHY! SUCCEED!
TODAY, TOMORROW AND ALWAYS!