Available Answers

1. 1.

   Match the meanings of the new words correctly.

   1. chronicles	a. unsure
   2. dully	b. deserving
   3. possessions	c. a record of events
   4. worthy	d. without interest or feeling excited
   5. faltered	e. what one owns

    

2. 2.

   Fill in the blanks with some of the new words.

   1. Have you heard of the proverb __________ wise and pound foolish?
   2. The heroine's hair was set in a __________ of curls and she looked stunning.
   3. Sleepwalkers are often found in a state of __________.
   4. "If I ever get a chance to visit New York I will shop till I drop at __________", said Chandrabali.
   5. "If you do get a chance to shop there you will need plenty of __________ as the place is frightfully expensive," commented Ranbir.
3. 3.

   Look up the thesaurus, write and learn another work for:

   1. saving
   2. furnished
   3. honour
   4. moment
   5. expression
   6. invented
   7. sacrificed
   8. children
4. 4.

   Match the two columns A and B.

   A	B
   1. Jim and Della had taken a furbished flat at	a. gold watch and Della's hair.
   2. Cascade of brown refers to	b. hair goods of all kinds
   3. Mme Sofronio deals in	c. surprise
   4. Jim earns just	d. a platinum watch chain
   5. Two possessions of the couple were	e. Broadway window
   6. Jim's present to Dells was	f. a school boy
   7. Dells's present to Jim was	g. a set of combs
   8. After her hair-cut Della looked like	h. $20 a week
   9. Della had seen the combs in a	i. Della's long hair
   10. The story ends on a note of	j. $8 a week

    

5. 5.

   They are the true Magi

   1. How would the situation have changed had the couple been well-to-do?
   2. Both Jim and Della sacrifice what they loved best. Whose sacrifice is greater? Explain what you think.
   3. The last paragraph ends with the narrator calling Jim and Della 'foolish children' who had unwisely sacrificed. How had they been foolish and unwisely sacrificed? Explain.
   4. How does the author compare the gift of the Magi with those of the gifts Jim and Della give to each other
6. 6.

   The gift of the Magi is a classic example of irony in literature. Some thing ironic occurs when a character or reader expects one thing but what really happens is just the opposite.

   Example:

   • A fire station burns down! What an irony! A police station gets robbed! What an irony!
   • Geeta gladly helped her neighbors as and when they were in need of money. One night there was a robbery in her apartment. After the investigations were over it was discovered that she had been robbed by the very neighbors she had helped all this while.

   What did Della expect at the beginning of the story and how did reality turn out to be different? Likewise, what did Jim expect at the beginning of the story and how did things turn out at the end of the story?