THE GIFT OF THE MAGI, O. HENRY The Gift of the Magi, short story by O’Henry, published in the New York Sunday World in 1905 and then collected in The Four Million (1906), introduces us to a young couple by the names of Della and Jim Dillingham. They are suffering the throes of poverty as evidenced by the story’s description of their circumstances and surroundings. With Christmas speedily approaching and their financial state ever increasingly bleak, they are in a dilemma on how to buy Christmas gifts for one another. Della has secreted away some money by embarrassingly haggling every merchant she deals with, however the sum is not nearly enough for the gift she has in mind. O’Henry does not give us the details surrounding Jim’s conundrum, but we can conclude he also lacks in monetary means to purchase the gift he wants to give Della.
'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry and 'The Necklace' by Guy de Maupassant are two short stories that share some similarities. Namely, they are both ironic. The two main characters in both also happen to be husband and wife and make sacrifices for their spouse. The husband in 'The Necklace' is a 'thrifty clerk' who doesn't like to spend too much money. After implored by his wife, he gives her the money that he saved up for a rifle so she could buy a nice dress instead.
In addition to this, it was believed that the kingdom of God would arrive with the messiah, and this is shown in the miracle of the centurion slave when Jesus says to the centurion “feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob”. From this miracle we see that you can get to heaven as long as you have faith in God, as the centurion did. Yet again it shows that Jesus is a universal messiah, as he lets a gentile into the kingdom of God. Furthermore, scholars like Jeremais, would say that the kingdom of God has not fully arrived, it will only fully arrive after the parousia, this is known as Inaugurated Eschatology. This miracle supports this as Jesus say that you will “feast with , Isaac and Jacob” in heaven, this would be after the parousia, when the good will be rewarded and the evil punished by going to hell.
E) The parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25) among others. THE PURPOSE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT MESSAGE: The below summary may help the believer to have a sound faith: I) the modern believer need to appreciate among other things that the grand subject is that of Salvation and the redemption message of how Christ came from heaven to earth. Christ came to seek and to save the lost. Man became sinner because of the Adamic nature and needs a savior (Romans 3:23, 6:23). ii) Those who believe in Christ become sons of God (John1:10, 12) and they will not be condemned (John3:16-18), the believers are entitled for eternal life.
As I started reading the book I found that the language of the book a bit strange, as the author attempts to sound like this is an authentic tale from the ancient days, but the messages are as clear as sunlight. I think that the "seven cures for a lean purse" are great methods for saving money, some I thought were very easy to apply like the first one which is " Start thy purse to fattening" that is to save 10% of your income. Also controlling the expenditure I thought this was a great point and everyone can apply. There are some other methods I thought were more difficult to apply like "make the gold multiply" which is investing the money and making the right choices for investment. Another great addition in the book is "The five laws of gold" which seem to give more guild lines on investing.
A STUDY ON ISAIAH 9:1-7 BY DIANIA SPORISKY A STUDY ON ISAIAH 9:1-7 The Bible comforts and reminds those of us who have come to trust in Jesus Christ not to despair as if there was no hope. We have the revelation of our Lord that not only announces His sovereign reign but also charts the course of world events. One of the most significant revelations is found in Isaiah 9. Against the background of the prophecy of war and destruction, darkness and gloom (chapter 8) Isaiah gave this prophecy about the Messiah—the glorious coming king. “Messiah” is a Hebrew term that means “anointed one,” that is, the anointed king.
: In the first scene where Nora buys piles of things for Christmas and by what Torvald says about 'squander-bird', we can simply guess that Nora is wasting precious money her husband earns. However, in reality, from where Nora talks about the truth to her friend Mrs.Linde, it is quite settled that Nora puts much effort to clean up what she made in the past. However, Nora is lack of
When two people marry it should be because they love each other not because of money and the pressures from you family. F. Scott Fitzgerald describes the lives of Daisy and Tom Buchanan and also Daisy’s former lover, Jay Gatsby. In this novel ‘The Great Gatsby’ the conflict occurs when Daisy is about to marry Tom but finds out that Gatsby wants to resurrect their previous relationship. Family pressure, money and love are ideas presented in the passage through characterisation and symbolism and the reader is encouraged to disagree with Daisy’s actions. In many families there are conflicts or disagreements.
The scene when the charity collectors visit Scrooge is an example of this. It is in this scene on Christmas Eve, where he is asked to make “some slight provision for the poor and destitute, which suffer greatly at the present time.” The men are endeavoring to raise funds to buy the poor some basic necessities, with this time of year being chosen because “it is a time, of all others, when want is keenly felt and abundance rejoices”. Dickens strong and values centered around helping the less fortunate is exemplified in this with the Christmas period being no better time for the wealthy and the more fortunate to help. Secondly Christmas is used to
* Poem Journey of the Magi: Thomas Sterne Eliot - Summary and Critical Analysis The poem Journey of the Magi is based on the theme of the Bible. It is full of religious feeling. The visit of the Three Wise Men of East to Palestine at the time of Christ's birth has been described in a very realistic way. The wise men started their journey in the extreme cold of the winter to reach the place of Christ's birth to offer presents to him. ------------------------------------------------- Thomas Sterne Eliot In the course of their journey they got many hardships and suffering.