Tej Johnson

Pre-AP English 9
Mrs. Shutt
2015

In the story,The Gift of the Magi by O.Henry, the author developes the theme,
love has sacrifices by using repitition and by expressing their love for one another
through their conversations and what they say. The authors use of repitition is shown
throughout the story in lines such as, One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all.
This was just one of the many times the author said that she only had one dollar and
eighty-seven cents and tried to express how little she had. Despite this, Della still
wanted to spend her money on a gift which further shows her sacrifice. Another
example is when Della looks out the window, She stood by the window and looked out
dully at a gray cat walking a gray fence in a gray backyard. This use of repitition is to
express how Della feels about not being able to buy Jim a present. She loves him so
much that her whole world is colorless because of this and this shows the love aspect of
the theme. By using repitition, the author manages to develop the theme in the story.
Henry also developes the theme by showing their sacrifices for love by what they
do and say. For example, Henry writes, She had been saving every penny she could
for months, with this result. This shows Della made the sacrifice not to spend her
money on anything. She loved JIm so she wanted to save for hum. Next, Della does
something extreme. After realizing she wont have enough money for a gift, she says,
dont look at me that way, I had my hair cut off and sold because I couldnt have lived
through christmas without giving you a present. This shows the sacrifice she went

through for love, she cut off her hair just so she could buy a gift. Henry used repititon
and actions and conversations to show the theme, love has sacrifices in the story.