Della's hair (Symbol)
As a central symbol of beauty and femininity, Della’s long, brown hair is her most beloved possession, one the narrator compares to the Queen of Sheba’s jewels and gifts. When Della sells her hair so she can afford a proper Christmas present for Jim, she breaks with the ideals of femininity and instead takes on a more masculine, or immaturely girlish, appearance. The narrator remarks that Della now looks like a “truant schoolboy,” while Della references her resemblance to a “Coney Island chorus girl” (11). Della prays for Jim’s acceptance of her haircut—“Please God, make him think I am still pretty”—which suggests that Della has internalized normative conventions of femininity, which dictate that a woman’s value lies in her ability to please a man (12).
However, when Della addresses the haircut with Jim, she emphasizes her love for him over her haircut, as proven by her comment, “Maybe the hairs of my head were numbered...but nobody could ever count my love for you” (13). In other words, the value of her love for Jim surpasses the value of her long hair, despite its key contributions to her pride, external beauty, and womanhood.
Jim's watch (Symbol)
Jim’s most valuable material possession is his gold watch, which is likened to King Solomon's collection of treasures. As a sentimental possession that has been passed down for generations in his family, the watch symbolizes familial love, traditions, and rituals.
While a gold watch can more conventionally represent prosperity and wealth, the narrator reveals that Jim often discreetly checks his watch due to the cheap, old leather strap that he uses instead of a chain. Thus, while the watch is the finest and most concretely valuable item Jim owns, his limited income prevents him from buying a proper chain, and thus renders him unable to be proud of the watch and freely display and use it around others.
The chain (Symbol)
After searching for a worthy present for Jim, Della finally purchases a “simple and chaste” platinum fob chain to attach to Jim’s watch. Della admires the chain because of its “chaste” and understated appearance, which reminds her of Jim: “It was like him [Jim]. Quietness and value—the description applied to both” (11). To Della, the chain represents Jim’s inner attributes, as she projects the value of the chain’s lack of adornment onto the value of Jim’s quiet, unassuming demeanor. As such, Della’s selection of the chain for Jim’s present demonstrates her system of allocating value, which prioritizes simplicity and sentimentality over opulence and ornamental appearances.
The Apartment
Della and Jim live in a cheaply furnished apartment, characterized by a shabby couch and rug, a broken doorbell and mailbox, and an impractical pier-glass. Further claiming that the dilapidated apartment does not “exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad,” the narrator posits that the apartment shares visual similarities to the dwellings of beggars (7). The apartment thus represents Della and Jim’s low socioeconomic status and lack of functional material possessions.
The Magi (Symbols)
Also known as the Wise Men and Three Kings, the magi are the biblical figures who offered Jesus gold, frankincense, and myrrh on the night of his birth. As a symbol of wisdom and enlightenment, the narrator claims that the magi invented the art of Christmas gift-giving and praises their wisdom, claiming, “The magi, as you know, were wise men—wonderfully wise men—who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger” (16). The narrator then compares the magi to Jim and Della, who “unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures of their house” (16). Della and Jim's sacrifice evokes the true ethos of the magi and the act of gift-giving, which is rooted in selflessness, generosity, and love.
