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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What are the most significant symbols in "The Gift of the Magi"?
(a) The hair shop and the jewelry store.
(b) The cat and the apartment building.
(c) The combs and the watch-chain.
(d) The ring and the necklace.

2. How old is Jim said to be in the narrative?
(a) 29.
(b) 32.
(c) 22.
(d) 24.

3. How does the narrator describe Jim and Della in the end of "The Gift of the Magi"?
(a) Two children who were selfish.
(b) Two children who were not wise.
(c) Two children who were disappointed.
(d) Two children who were tired.

4. The gifts that Della and Jim are revealed to have bought for one another are an example of what literary device?
(a) Literary allusion.
(b) Simile.
(c) Verbal irony.
(d) Comic irony.

5. On what floor is the hair shop described as being?
(a) The third floor.
(b) The basement.
(c) The first floor.
(d) The second floor.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Jim's middle name?

2. What does Della tell Jim she could not live through when he arrives home in "The Gift of the Magi"?

3. How is Della's physical stature described by the narrator?

4. How much is Jim's income now, according to the author in the opening of "The Gift of the Magi"?

5. The narrator says in the beginning of "The Gift of the Magi" that Della knows that her hair is more beautiful than what?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the "inciting incident" in "The Gift of the Magi" and how does it drive the story?

2. What are the financial circumstances of the Youngs?

3. Describe the character of Madame Sofronie in the story. What imagery does the author present with her introduction?

4. What adaptations have been developed of "The Gift of the Magi"?

5. How is the theme of sacrifice developed in the story through character?

6. Where does the rising action take place in "The Gift of the Magi"?

7. What is Della's most prized possession and how is it described?

8. How has "The Gift of the Magi" been critically received since its publication?

9. Where does the climax occur in "The Gift of the Magi"?

10. What does Jim purchase for Della and how is this object described?

(see the answer keys)

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