The recent column by David Brooks in the New York Times, We’re Living Through the Great Detachment, somberly details the falling out of love among our youth. A comparison from the 1980s to the 2020s shows fewer high school students dating than previously with current marriage rates hovering at an all-time low. According to the data he presents, Brooks arrives at the sad fact that Americans are experiencing less love now than in earlier times. He concludes that “to be loveless is to be on autopilot and disengaged from life.”
The enduring popularity of O. Henry’s short story, The Gift of the Magi, a love story written in 1905, would appear to be at odds with the above observations that Brooks makes. O. Henry’s story title frames it as if its underlying theme is a religious one. The Gift of the Magi alludes to the three wise men that play a part in the nativity scene by travelling hundreds of miles to present the infant Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Although the time of the story is Christmas Eve, the plot centers around the deep love that a young couple feels toward one another. In my discussion of this very beautiful tale, I will be sure not to let any spoilers slip in. Many of you, my readers, I am sure are familiar with the story. For those that have never read it, I highly recommend you take a break from your schedule and peruse it.
The story is considered one of O. Henry’s best because it has a universal appeal in which most readers can identify. The love and affection reflected by the couple probably has been experienced by most of us. I hope those who have never felt this way, at some point in their life’s journey, can experience it. It is such a strong feeling that it may render a change in the way you see your life in relation to the everyday tasks of living.
It is the way O. Henry spins this tale that makes it so unforgettable. It is told through the eyes of the omniscient third person narrator with little dialogue or conversation between the young couple until the end. This narrative sets the tone and captures the reader’s attention to the description depicted of each partner’s desire to bring happiness to the other. But both have a dilemma, the story’s opening sentence: “one dollar and eighty-seven cents.” That is all Della, the wife, has to buy her beloved husband, Jim, a Christmas present. She sits on the “shabby little couch” in her apartment teary eyed, weeping not knowing what to do.
When Della looks out the window, suddenly, she realizes what she needs to do, and when she does, O. Henry lets the reader see Della’s facial expression change from gloom to a “brilliant spark in her eyes.” I cannot go further without revealing the plot containing the ironic twist so much a part of O. Henry’s style. Much like Hemingway, every word in the story is necessary with no need for extra words or phrases.
Artificial intelligence has the capability of beating the best chess players in the world along with doing many other things such as writing essays for college students. But the regurgitation of all human knowledge, the base of AI, is not equal to the creative impulse of a skilled writer such as O. Henry. My bet is any attempt at a reproduction of The Gift of the Magi by AI would result in an inferior product. That said those of who have never read this story, read it, and enjoy it as a most pleasurable gift O. Henry has given you.
Dr. Bernard F. Natelson 