The Gift of the Magi and Other Stories Literary Elements

Parable, short story.

Christmas Eve, early 20th-century in a town or city.

Third-person omniscient point of view mostly following Della.

Humorous and sardonic; sentimental; romantic; cynical and rueful.

Protagonists: Della and Jim. Antagonist: poverty, and their own best intentions.

Della and Jim lack the money to purchase the special, lavish Christmas gifts they desperately want to give each other.

The story reaches its climax when Della opens Jim's present to discover expensive combs.

The narrator's comment that Della and Jim's life "...did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad" sardonically understates the extent of their impoverishment and economic hardships, especially because "mendicancy" has the same meaning as "beggar" (7).

The narrator makes religious allusions to the Magi, King Solomon, and Queen Sheba.

Jim and Della's cheaply-furnished apartment—equipped with a "shabby little couch," a broken doorbell and mailbox, and a worn rug—signifies the couple's constrained socioeconomic status (8). Moreover, the image of Jim's "very thin and very serious appearance" and old overcoat connotates the burdens he faces as a young head of a household.

The narrator uses a paradox in his closing remarks, as he characterizes Della and Jim as “foolish children” yet extols them as “the wisest” of “all those who give and receive gifts” (16). This paradox highlights Della and Jim's irrational commitment to giving each other gifts they cannot afford, while also praising the love and admiration that motivate them to do so. In other words, Della and Jim are simultaneously poor and rich—poor in material success and sensible actions, but rich in love.

Della and Jim's narrative arcs parallel one another, as they each make great sacrifices to purchase lavish gifts for the other—which prove unusable for the other person. The parallelism of their sacrifices embodies their profound love for each other, while also cementing the reciprocity and equilibrium of their relationship.