A. Answer the following questions :
1. What is Jim's full name ?
Ans - Jim's full name is Mr. James Dillingham Young .
2.How much money had Della managed to save for Jim's present ?
Ans- Della managed to save one dollar and eighty-seven cents for Jim's present .
3. Who did Della go to, to get money for Jim's present ?
Ans- Della went to " Mme Sofronie " to get money for Jim's present.
4. What was Della's Treasured possession ?
Ans- Della's treasured possession was her hair . It was beautiful enough to make Queen of Sheba jealous.
5. What was Jim's gift for Della ?
Ans- Jim's gift for Della was The combs -- the set of combs , side and back, that she always longed for .
B. Answer the following questions in a few words .
1. Who were the Magi ?
Ans- The magi were the wise men who brought gifts to the infant Christ in the manger . They travelled from the East to Jerusalem , guided by a star .
2. Why was Della worried ?
Ans- Della was worried that Jim would be angry to see her hair cut short . She became really tense thinking what might happen if Jim felt that she looked no longer beautiful without her short hair.
3. What did Jim do to get a gift for Della ?
Ans- Jim sold his gold watch to get a gift for Della .
4. What did Della do after reaching home ?
Ans- On reaching home , after selling her hair , Della got on her curling irons and lighted the gas and went to work repairing the damaged hair . Within forty minutes her head was covered with tiny, close-lying curls that made her look wonderfully like a truant-schoolboy . At 7'0'clock she made coffee and got the frying pan ready to cook the chops, thus she waited for Jim to come.
5. What was Jim's reaction when he returned home ?
Ans- Jim was dumb-struck to find Della without her long, beautiful hair . His eyes were fixed upon her . There was an expression in them that she could not read , and it terrified her . It was not anger , nor surprise , nor disapproval , nor horror , nor any of the sentiments that she had been prepared for . He simply stared at her fixedly with a particular expression on his face .
C. Answer the following questions in your own words :
1. Bring out the relation between Della and the Queen of Sheba?
Ans- Queen of Sheba was a Biblical character . She was a rich and powerful queen who came to King Solomon with a wealth of spices , gold and jewels to test whether Solomon was truly wise . Here, the author draws the relation between Della and Queen of Sheba to show the beauty of Della's hair . He says that even the rich Queen of Sheba would of jealous of Della's beautiful long hair .
2. Bring out the relation between Jim and King Solomon?
Ans- King Solomon was a very rich and powerful king of Israel . The author draws the relation between King Solomon and Jim to show the worth of Jim's gold watch . Even King Solomon with all his riches would envy the gold watch of Jim.
3. Show the "twist in the tale" makes the story of Jim and Della a moral lesson ?
Ans- The ironic twist in the tale is that both Della and Jim traded off the very treasures each possessed and for which the gifts were meant . Della sold her beautiful hair to buy the costly watch chain for Jim's gold watch ;and Jim sold the gold watch to buy the comb for Della's hair. Jim told Della that they must put their Christmas presents away and keep them a while . They were too nice to be used just as presents . This twist in the tale makes the story of Jim and Della a moral lesson that the selflessness and the spirit of sacrifice are the essence of gift-giving on Christmas.
D. Give suitable answers to the following :
1. Examine the significance and appropriateness of the title of the story "The Gift of the Magi "?
Ans- The magi were the wise men who brought gifts to the infant Christ in the manger . They invented the art of giving Christmas presents . Being wise , their gifts were no doubt wise . The author has very appropriately chosen the title " The Gift of the Magi " for the story of Della and Jim .
The ironic twist in the tale is that both Della and Jim traded off the very treasures each possessed and for which the gifts were meant . Della sold her beautiful hair to buy the costly watch chain for Jim's gold watch ; and Jim sold the gold watch to buy the comb for Della's hair . Jim told Della that they must put their Christmas presents away and keep them a while . They were too nice to be used just as presents . This twist in the tale makes the story of Jim and Della a moral lesson that selflessness and the spirit of sacrifice are the essence of gift-giving on Christmas . Their gifts make them wise very much like the wise magi .
2. Based on the events , attempt a justification of the story as an example of comic irony ?
Ans- The streak of comic element touches upon the story of Della and Jim with the ironic twist in the event . Both of them traded- off the very treasures each possessed and for which the gifts were meant . Della sold her beautiful long hair to buy the costly watch chain for the gold watch of Jim ; and Jim sold his gold watch to buy 'The Comb ' for Della's hair . A faint smile spread across the lips of the reader with this ironic twist in the plot . This justifies the story as an example of comic irony .
