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1、四川外语学院成都学院Chengdu Institute Sichuan International Studies University本科毕业论文题目（中文）浅析麦琪的礼物中人性的升华（外文）A Study on the Sublimation of Humanity in The Gift of the Magi系 别英语师范系专 业英 语年 级2009 级学生姓名 陈 泖 蓉指导教师 罗 惠结稿日期2012年10月15日四川外语学院成都学院教务处制2012年10月15日填专业资料主页尽享A Study on the Sublimation of Humanity in The Gift
2、of the MagiAbstractThe paper will be divided five parts. The first part introduces some important information about the background of the author and article. The second part will give a detailed description of the hero and heroine. The third part puts emphasis on the embodiment of humanity sublimati
3、on. It will state from three aspects: self-sacrifice, selfless dedication and simplicity. The forth part indicates the causes of sublimation of humanity. And the last part is the conclusion. Through the whole analysis, we can learn what the true humanity is and have profound understanding of humanit
4、y depicted in literary works.Key words: background; humanity sublimation; self-sacrifice; selfless dedication; simplicityA Study on the Sublimation of Humanity in The Gift of the MagiOutlineThesis Statement: Through the whole analysis, we can learn what the true humanity is and have profound underst
5、anding of humanity depicted in literary works.I. IntroductionII. Depiction of Characters in The Gift of the Magi A. Considerate and Meek Heroine B. Thoughtful and Kind Hero III. The Sublimation of Humanity in The Gift of the Magi A. Self-sacrificeB. Selfless Dedication C. SimplicityIV. Causes of Hum
6、anity SublimationA. Economic CauseB. Political Cause C. Individual CauseV. ConclusionA Study on the Sublimation of Humanity in The Gift of the MagiI. IntroductionThe Gift of the Magi is a short popular and highly regarded story by O. Henry which has moved people such a long period of time all over t
7、he world. It will be impressed much more people in the following years and centuries. The author, O. Henry (1862-1910), left us 600 short stories which were published in 1917 in 14 volumes. Since O. Henrys works were published, a great many scholars were all over the world, had aroused continuous re
8、searches into those works and found their values. Critics have singled out O. Henry as one of the greatest American short story writers-describing him as a “writers writer” who also possesses universal appeal.O. Henry was brought up by an aunt in Greensboro, where, at the age of fifteen, he went to
9、work in an uncles drugstore. He married in 1887 and his wife had a daughter in 1889. Because of the troubles that came one after the other, he left his wife and child unloaded banana boats. In fact, his travels were funded by the $30,000 proceeds from a robbery committed by one of them. These two ye
10、ars on the run provided the initial fuel for his stories. In 1897, after learning of his wifes serious illness, Henry returned to Austin knowing that it meant a prison term. His wife died that year. After his release, he headed to New York City, where he worked as a journalist. The collection of col
11、orful characters in his writing was enhanced by O. Henrys habit of wandering the streets and parks, talking to people of all conditions. He wrote sixty-five short stories in 1904 alone, and fifty the next year including The Gift of the Magi.The old classic The Gift of the Magi concerns the unselfish
12、 sacrifice a young man and wife make in order to buy Christmas gifts for each other. Each secretly selling his or her most prized possession. This information revealed, of course, in the characteristic O. Henrys surprising ending. However, Della and Jim are not saddened by what they seem to have los
13、t. In their selfless giving, they are likened to the most wise man. O. Henry primarily uses the story of the Magi to compare the acts of the two characters in The Gift of the Magi. He does this through the use of symbols and by comparing the selfless giving of presents of Della and Jim to that of Ma
14、gi. We know that the author wants to reflect something through the whole story.The Gift of the Magi is an extraordinary novel. Form the social point of view, it is a story about a very poor but blissful young couple named Jim and Della in the end of 18th century in England. As a love story, one of t
15、he most moving things is that in spite of the difficulties in their everyday life, their true love to each other and the enthusiasm for life doesnt change at all. This story reflects the sympathy with the poor and critical to the unfair society. At the same time, it being the simplicity and true lov
16、e.So it was worth to praise and sing the pure humanity. As to have a deeper understanding of the contribution that O. Henry has made and his achievements, the author of this paper would like to discuss his writing techniques in The Gift of the Magi. The author holds that his works are mainly charact
17、erized on the sublimation of humanity. The next three parts of the paper will be discussed the characters, the embodiment and the causes of sublimation of humanity, then giving a conclusion by summing up his main achievements in his respect and the conventional virtue what we need to promote.II. Dep
18、iction of Characters in The Gift of the MagiA. Considerate and Meek Heroine At the beginning of the novel, the author has deliberately exaggerated Dellas poor life condition. Those are all the moneyone dollar and eight-seven cents. “And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at
19、a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher. Three times Della counted it”.1There are one dollar and eight-seven cents. And the next day would be the Christmas. The author emphasizes that Della counts money pitifully and hardly, especially through “several” repeated action
20、to let us feel the difficulty of Dellas life.This description indicates Dellas shy and kind-hearted personality. At the same time, it also allows us to deeply understand the poors life in that money society. Her homea furnished flat is $8 per week. In the vestibule below is a letter-box into which n
21、o letter would go, and an electric button from which no mortal finger could coax a ring. Della is with $20 income to maintain their lives per week. Therefore, we could understand one dollar and eight-seven cents are so difficult to her. Facing such a distress of life, Della has no choice but to cry
22、down on the shabby little couch. Della finishes her cry and stands by the window, and she thinks tomorrow would be Christmas Day. But she just has one dollar and eight-seven cents with which to buy Jim a present.In face of hard situation, Della is so weak and helpless. It gives us a simplicity impre
23、ssion of Della. She wants to buy a rare and valuable thing to her husband for Christmas gift. There are only one dollar and eight-seven cents to buy a present for Jim. There is a pier-glass between the windows of the room. “Suddenly she whirled from the window from the window and stood before the gl
24、ass. Her face had lost its color within twenty seconds”.2There are two possessions of the Mr. James Dillingham Young and Mrs. James Dillingham Young in which they both take a mighty pride. One is Jims gold watch that has been his fathers and his grandfathers. The other is Dellas hair. Has the queen
25、of Sheba3(the women who rules the ancient kingdom of Sheba and is referred to in Habeshan history, the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and the Quran. ) lived in the flat across the airshaft, Della would have let her hair hang out the window some day to dry just to depreciate Her Majestys4 jewels an
26、d gifts. Dellas beautiful hair falls about her rippling and shining like a cascade of brown waters. It reaches below her knee and makes itself almost a garment for her. It seemed that the hair was so beautiful and cherished. Della decides to sell her beautiful hair eventually, and this decision is p
27、ainful and heavy. However, she feels pleased, because she loves her husband, so she would prefer to suffer losses. That is Dellas true love and considerate heart. Della receives twenty dollars from the Madame for her hair. After that, she ransacking the stores for Jims present. Because of the love,
28、she researches the gift from one shop to another one. Finally, she finds the suitable chain. Della is a considerate and meek woman. At this moment, there is only one person in her mindthat her husband. In order to buy the simple and chaste chain, she costs twenty-one dollars.B. Thoughtful and Kind H
29、ero The author does not have great crucial on the role of the hero-Jim. For instance, he seems to pay less attention on selling and buying gift for his wife. However, his characteristic could be given in indirect way, such as Jim never late, indicating that Jim is always punctual. While it is descri
30、bing“He looked thin and very serious. Poor life was following, he was only twenty-two and to be burdened with a family. He needed a new overcoat and had no gloves”.5 They live a hard life and struggled for living in a better condition, but no enough money and way to change their current situation.Al
31、though in such a difficult life environment, Jim sells his most previous chain. Because he could not have lived through the Christmas if he without giving his wife a present. He draws a package from his overcoat pocket and throws a gift on the table. That is The Combs-the set of combs, side and back
32、, that Della has worshipped long in a Broadway window. They are expensive and beautiful combs. The combs seem to suit Della only. This is not only the true love but also reflects Jims personality. Jim is a thoughtful and kind husband. He and his wife both are sincere and honest people.III. The Subli
33、mation of Humanity in The Gift of the MagiA. Self-sacrificeO. Henry creates a special ending of the article. It means that at the end of the whole passages mental status or the fate of the character has changed greatly. From the special ending, the humanity is clearly presented. Among O. Henrys shor
34、t stories, the eternal theme proves to be the humanity. The great success of the story could not be separated from the humanity of characters. First of all, one of the most beautiful human virtues is the couples self-sacrifice. There exist good and evil elements in human nature, for the two are usua
35、lly mixed with each other more or less. While the good elements replace the predominant portion, man will carry forward his virtues such as kindness, self-sacrifice, selfless dedication, simplicity and so on. Della has the most prized thingthat is her hair. And her husband just owns the most valuabl
36、e thinggold watch that has been his fathers and his grandfathers. These two things are so priceless and meaningful for themselves. Although poor life they facing, they still want to express their love through a unique gift. But they have no enough money, so they have no other choice. Their mind just
37、 has one solution, and then they sell their own most valuable thing to buy the gift for each other. In this condition, both of them do not consider themselves. They only want to the other person whom they love feels happy. Dellas hair is so beautiful, and she cries when she cuts off it. Of course, s
38、he loves the hair, because that is her most proud hair. Not only does she love the hair, her husband loves her long and living hair too. So she feels sad more. But for a valuable gift for her husband, she finishes her cry and selects gift happily for Jim. Finally, she finds the suitable chain. She c
39、onsiders this is the fittest thing for Jim. Therefore, she cuts off the hair and adds another one dollar to buy the unique chain without hesitation. At the same moment, Jim also plans to prepare a particular gift for wife. Because of the lack of money, Jim sells his most valuable gold watch. Eventua
40、lly, Jim gives Della the set of combs. The combs are Dellas favorite combs.B. Selfless DedicationO. Henrys stories usually win the artistic effect within the plot and pay much more attention on the characters artistic power. But he adopts the perspective way to pride the human beauty.In New York, in
41、 America, families like Della and Jims could hardly keep their economy balanced. So it is impossible for them to buy a good gift for the other people. The only one thing, which could comfort the Della and Jim is their sincere and warm love for each other.Another one of the most beautiful human virtu
42、es is the couples selfless dedication spirit. In the story of The Gift of the Magi, there are many mental and physical actions to express their selfless dedication. Della is a little fear after cutting off the air. Because her husband loves her hair too, and she fears that she is not as beautiful as
43、 before. Although she knows that, she could not help thinking anymore instead of buying a valuable gift for her husband. When Della returns home, an anxiety comes on her. She finds herself like a truant schoolboy. She tells to herself“Does Jim like me?”6 full of worry. She has prepared for supper an
44、d waited for her husband. When she doubles the fob chain in her hand, waiting for, Della keeps saying a little prayer, “Please God, make him think I am still pretty”.7From those describing it can be known that Della loves Jim so deeply that she cares about every detail. Della presents her love under
45、 such harsh conditions, she might be the only way is selfless dedication to make other happy.After Jim going back home, he is confused by Dellas hair. On one hand, his wifes appearance changes, and he has sold his gold watch to buy the comb for Dellas beautiful hair. But Dellas hair has cut off. We
46、know, Jim can not think Della that she is not as beautiful as before. In his heart, she is the most beautiful woman. He feels a little surprised because he sells his precious gold watch to buy the comb. However, his wife has no long hair, so he is confused. Both Jim and Della have the same thought i
47、n their mind. They just hope to the other person happy whom they love.Now, there is no watch to match the platinum fob chain, and also no the brown hair to suit the set of combs. It can be said that the chain at the expense of Dellas brown hair and Jims watch for the combs. These presents quite prec
48、ious for both, but the presents are like useless temporarily. But, in fact, their gifts are most precious for them. Because that their sincere and warm love and deep emotion. That is their selfless dedication for he and she loves people.C. SimplicityLove is an eternal theme of the whole world, and has a significant role in peoples life. At most of time, functions like a magic power gives people a sense of secure. And in the story of The Gift of the Magi, this point that love has great impact on peoples life and growth.Between Della and Jim, simplicity is one of the most human virtues