1. High School Literature 2.34 The Gift of the Magi By O. Henry

2. William Sidney Porter (O. Henry) William Sidney Porter was born on September 11, 1862, in Greensboro, North Carolina, but was not known by his pen name, O. Henry, until 1899. His father was a physician and his mother died of tuberculosis when he was three. He and his father moved into the home of his paternal grandmother where he grew up reading everything from classics to dime novels. O. Henry graduated from his aunt’s elementary school in 1876 and was tutored by her until he was fifteen. In 1879, he started working in his uncle's drugstore and by the age of nineteen, he was licensed as a pharmacist. At the drugstore, he also showed off his natural artistic talents by sketching the townsfolk.

3. In the next few slides, identify the many things that may have influenced his writing. In 1882 O. Henry traveled to Texas to help alleviate a persistent cough. He worked as a shepherd, ranch hand, cook and baby-sitter and learned bits of Spanish and German from the mix of immigrant ranch hands. He spent time reading classic literature. As his health improved he worked at different jobs over the next several years, first as pharmacist, then as a draftsman, bank teller and journalist. He began his writing career as a sideline.

4. The Family While in Austin, he married Athol Estes who suffered from tuberculosis. She always encouraged her husband to pursue his writing. In 1888 she gave birth to their son who died within hours. Their daughter, Margaret, was born later and always remained a great comfort to her father.

5. Discuss how his jobs influenced his writing. O. Henry worked at various jobs to support his family often earning a salary of $100 month. He made maps from survey and field notes for Texas General Land Office while he continued writing for magazines and newspapers. While working for the Land Office he began developing characters and plots for such stories as "Georgia's Ruling" (1900), and "Buried Treasure" (1908). The castle-like building he worked in was woven into some of his tales such as "Bexar Scrip No. 2692" (1894).

6. What does this experience tell us about O. Henry? The same year, O. Henry began working at the First National Bank of Austin as a teller and bookkeeper and was thought to be careless in keeping his books and may have embezzled funds. In 1894, O. Henry was accused by the bank, lost his job but was not indicted. A year later he moved his family to Houston where he began writing for the Post. It was at this time that he gathered ideas for his column by loitering in hotel lobbies and observing and talking to people there. This was a technique he used throughout his writing career.

7. What does this reveal about his character? While O. Henry was in Houston, the First National Bank of Austin was audited and he was arrested on charges of embezzlement. His father-in-law posted bail and he was released but due to stand trial on July 7, 1896. The day before his trial, as he was changing trains to get to the courthouse, an impulse to escape hit him. He fled, first to New Orleans and later to Honduras. While living in a Trujillo hotel for several months, O. Henry wrote Cabbages and Kings. He had earlier sent Athol and Margaret back to Austin to live with Athol's parents but Athol became too ill to meet Porter in Honduras as planned.

8. How did his wife’s illness effect the outcome of his life? When he learned that his wife was dying, O. Henry returned to Austin and surrendered to the court, pending an appeal. Once again, his father-in-law posted bail so he could stay with his dying wife and daughter. Athol died on July 25, 1897, from tuberculosis. O. Henry was found guilty of embezzlement the next spring in February 1898 and sentenced to five years in prison. He was imprisoned on March 25, 1898 at the Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus, Ohio.

9. How did O. Henry act during a difficult situation? While in prison, O. Henry worked as a licensed pharmacist in the prison hospital and as the night druggist. He was given his own room in the hospital wing, and there is no record that he actually spent time in the cell block of the prison. He had fourteen stories published under various pseudonyms while he was in prison. It was at this time he became known as "O. Henry". He used this pen name for the first time when the story "Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking" appeared in the December 1899 issue of McClure's Magazine.

10. Discuss his legacy. O. Henry was released on July 24, 1901, for good behavior after serving three years. He was reunited with Margaret, now age eleven, who thought he had been away on business. In September 2012, Texas attorney Scott Henson filed a formal application for a posthumous pardon for O. Henry. This was the same month the U.S. Postal Service issued its O. Henry stamp in recognition of the 150 th anniversary of his birth.

11. Discuss the following. Porter's most prolific writing period started in 1902, when he moved to New York City to be near his publishers. While there, he wrote 381 short stories. He wrote a story a week for over a year for the New York World Sunday Magazine. His wit, characterization, and plot twists were adored by his readers, but often panned by critics.

12. Compare O. Henry to Guy de Maupassant. O. Henry's stories frequently have surprise endings. In his day, he was called the American answer to Guy de Maupassant. While both authors wrote plot twist endings, O. Henry stories were considerably more playful. His stories are also known for witty narration. Most of O. Henry's stories are set in his own time, the early 20th century. Many take place in New York City. Generally his stories are about ordinary people like clerks, policemen, waitresses, and others who roamed the cattle lands of Texas. He explored the art of the con-man, and the tensions between class and wealth at the turn of the century.

13. O. Henry O. Henry died on June 5, 1910 at the age of 47. In a 1909 interview to The New York Times, O. Henry said he adopted his pen name by going through the newspaper looking for a list of notable people. He decided on the name Henry and chose the letter “O” because it was the easiest to write. Others say he constructed it from the first two letters of “Ohio” and the last two of “penitentiary.” Others claim he was paying homage to a prison guard named Orrin Henry.

14. The Gift of the Magi One of O. Henry’s most enduring stories of selfless giving is, "The Gift of the Magi." It is a story of a young married couple and how they deal with the challenge of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. It is a sentimental story with a moral lesson about gift- giving.

15. Reason and Relate Discuss the life of O. Henry and what factors in his life allowed him to develop his characters, and understand the lives of others. How did these experiences influence his talent of writing? Discuss the following scripture: 1Timothy 4:14 “Neglect not the gift that is in thee” How did O. Henry make use of his gift? It what ways can you develop your gifts now?