Question

Which type of conflict does Della face in O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi

Answer 1

The main conflict in The Gift of the Magi is poverty. Because of their poverty, Jim and Delia have to make great personal sacrifices to buy the other a Christmas present.

"In "The Gift of the Magi," O. Henry uses a folksy narrator to tell the story of Jim and Delia Young, a poor young couple who buy each other special Christmas gifts, which ironically cancel each other out because Delia sells her hair to buy Jim a chain for his watch, which he in turn has sold to buy her a fine set of combs for her hair. Despite the fact that these gifts are now useless, Jim and Delia have given each other the greatest gift of all, which the narrator compares to the gifts given to the Christ child by the wise men, or magi: selfless love."

Answer 2

The type of conflict Della faces is Man vs Self, which is poverty.

Step-by-step explanation:

Man vs Self refers to the internal conflict someone can go through, affecting their ability to decide whether to do something or not. In “The Gift of Magi” by O.Henry, Della is very poor. However, she wants to buy her husband a gift but she knows that she has no money to do so. That is why she decides to sell her own things. During the entire story, Della is struggling with her own self because of her desire.