The Gift of the Magi%0D%0Aby O'Henry%0D%0A%0D%0AOne dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one’s cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close dealing implied. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas.%0D%0A%0D%0AThere was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it. Which instigates the moral reflection that life is made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating.%0D%0A%0D%0AWhile the mistress of the home is gradually subsiding from the first stage to the second, take a look at the home. A furnished flat at $8 per week. It did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad.%0D%0A%0D%0AIn the vestibule below was a letter-box into which no letter would go, and an electric button from which no mortal finger could coax a ring. Also appertaining thereunto was a card bearing the name “Mr. James Dillingham Young.” The “Dillingham” had been flung to the breeze during a former period of prosperity when its possessor was being paid $30 per week. Now, when the income was shrunk to $20, the letters of “Dillingham” looked blurred, as though they were thinking seriously of contracting to a modest and unassuming D. But whenever Mr. James Dillingham Young came home and reached his flat above he was called “Jim” and greatly hugged by Mrs. James Dillingham Young, already introduced to you as Della. Which is all very good.%0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0A%0D%0A"The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry%0D%0A%0D%0AQuestion%0D%0AUse the passage to answer the question.%0D%0A%0D%0AWhat does the setting help convey about the characters’ lives?%0D%0A%0D%0A(1 point)%0D%0AResponses%0D%0A%0D%0AThey live in a modest flat because that is all they can afford.%0D%0AThey live in a modest flat because that is all they can afford.%0D%0A%0D%0AThey do not do enough to maintain their surroundings.%0D%0AThey do not do enough to maintain their surroundings.%0D%0A%0D%0AThey spend more money on living expenses than is within their budget.%0D%0AThey spend more money on living expenses than is within their budget.%0D%0A%0D%0AThey are comfortable in their present living conditions.
1 answer
The best response is:
They live in a modest flat because that is all they can afford.
This choice reflects the financial struggles of the characters, as evidenced by the details provided in the passage about their limited income and the state of their living conditions.
