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John Millen

Each week  Young Post will cover part of the NSS curriculum, teaching English through different mediums. This week  A short story takes only a few minutes to read.  The Gift of the Magi is a classic short story about giving and receiving
What is a short story?
A short story is a short piece of fiction that takes only a few minutes to read.
A short story has to be sharp because the writer has no time to waste. Usually a short story focuses on one incident, has only one plot thread and is over and done with in a short period of fictional time.
Short and snappy
The short story writer has no time to build up characters or settings. He must start his plot in the opening paragraph. Many writers like to finish their short story with a twist or a surprise, leaving the reader thinking the ending is very clever.
When you are writing a short story, you have to think very carefully about its structure so that no time is wasted. Short stories can be great fun both to read and  to write.
Christmas gifts
American short story writer O. Henry's most famous tale is The Gift of the Magi (1906). It is a perfect example of a clever story told in only a few minutes. Jim and Della haven't been married very long. They don't have a lot of money and they are finding it very difficult to make ends meet.
Christmas is approaching. Della decides to buy Jim a chain for his pocket watch and Jim decides to buy Della a set of beautiful combs to keep her long hair in place.
How could anything go wrong with presents such as these?
Story structure
1. How does O. Henry grab the reader's attention at the start of the story?
2. What do the first paragraphs of the story tell us about Jim and Della?
3. Where does the writer place the main focus of the story?
4. When does O. Henry introduce the two most important objects in the story?
5. What is Della's solution to her problem?
6. Explain the twist that comes at the end of the story.
A twist at the end
The Gift of the Magi has a twist, or surprise, ending. This is an unexpected conclusion to what has gone before in the story.
A twist ending is something the reader does not expect to  happen.
A. In a short film about Mickey Mouse ,  Mickey sells his harmonica to buy a necklace for Minnie and Minnie sells her locket to buy a case for Mickey's harmonica. What other objects could be used like this? What ideas can you come up with?
B. Write plot outlines for short stories that will end like this. Make notes on what has happened before this final paragraph.
1. The maid almost fainted when I stopped speaking. 'I had an accident this morning when I was cleaning,' she whispered.  'I dropped the vase and it broke. I put all the pieces into the rubbish bin.'
2. 'I had a telegram from the shipping company this morning. We have a booking for next week on board a new luxury liner called Titanic. I hope you are pleased.'
3. My mother became white with fear. 'We have never told you. You are not our real son. We bought you from an orphanage when you were a few days old. I hope this will not change what you feel about your father and me.'
You can read The Gift of the Magi on websites such as www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/Gift_of_the_Magi.html and www.online-literature.com/o_henry/1014/



The Gift of the Magi