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【标题】从《麦琪的礼物》看欧?亨利的写作特色【作者】刘燕【关键词】欧?亨利；麦琪的礼物；写作特色【指导老师】白敏卢静【专业】英语【正文】1.IntroductionO.Henry,originallynamedWilliamSydneyPorter,isadistinguishedAmericanstorywriter.Hewrotemorethan300shortstoriesinhislife.Hisstoriesarefullofcolorfulcharactersmostofwhomarederivedfromhisinclinationtowanderstreetsandparks,andtotalktopeopleofeverykindandcondition.Andallofhisstoriesareingeniouslyconceived,withtheendingsalwayscontrarytoreaders’expectations.Thoughhisstories’endingsarealwayssurprising,yetitisnotbeyondreason,forbothwaysconformwelltothelogicoflife.Hecreatesanoriginal,typicallyAmericandemocraticformofshortstorieswith,atitsbest,avaluablecriticalawarenessoflifeandsocietytellinglyexpressedthroughhumor.Therefore,somecriticscallhim “thefounderofAmericanstories”.1Beinggiftedwithhumorandakeenawarenessofdetails,heobjectivelyshowsuswhatAmericalookslike.Ashisexperienceshows,themajorityofpeoplehemetinhisdailylifearethoseinlowerclass ----clerks,policemen,andwaitresses.AllhisstoriesputtingtogetherconstituteatruepanoramaofAmericanlife,orassomeonesaid, “TheencyclopediaofAmericanlife”.2Since1918TheO.HenryMemorialAwardhadbeenestablishedtobegivenannuallytothebestmagazinestories,thewinnerandleadingcontenders’workswouldbepublishedinanannualvolume.Heusesauniquemethodtowriteso-calledO.Henry’stechnique.O.Henry’stechniqueisabigmagicweapon,whichleadsthisartisticmastertohisgreatsuccessandbringsusahugewealth.ThispaperwishestodiscusssomeoftheWritingcharacteristicsinTheGiftoftheMagi.TheoldclassicTheGiftoftheMagiconcernstheunselfishsacrificeayoungmanandwifemakeinordertobuyChristmasgiftsforeachother,eachsecretlysellinghisorhermostprizedpossession.Thisinformationisrevealed,ofcourse,inthecharacteristicO.Henry’ssurprisingending.However,DellaandJimarenotsaddenedbywhattheyseemtohavelost;eachismadehappierbythegiftoflovegiven.Intheirselflessgiving,theyarelinkedtothewiseman,orMagi,whobroughtgiftstotheinfantJesus.O．HenryprimarilyusesthestoryoftheMagitocomparetheactsofthetwocharactersinTheGiftoftheMagi.Hedoesthisthroughtheuseofsymbols andbycomparingtheselflessgivingofpresentsofDellaandJimtothatoftheMagi.Fromthistitle,wecanknowthathewantstowritesomethingaboutthegiftwhichisthecluerunningthroughthewholestory.Thewholepaperconsistsfiveparts.ThefirstpartisanintroductiontoO.Henryandthegiftofthemagi.ThesecondpartistheCharacterizationintheGiftoftheMagi.Thethirdpartisaboutthearrangementofplot.InthispartIwilldiscusssomemaincharacteristicsofO.Henry’sshortstorieswithexample.TheforthpartisthemainrhetoricdevicesemployedinTheGiftoftheMagi.ThelastpartisaconclusionwhichsumsupO.Henry’sachievement.II.TheCharacterizationofFiguresinTheGiftoftheMagiAsweknow,O.Henrywasfromthelowerrankofsocietyandheworkedinvariousjobs.SoO.Henry'sshortstorieshaveveryextensiverangeofsubjects，andheknowsthecommonpeople’slifestyleverywell.Inhisstory,thecharactersheportrayedareawiderangeofcommonpeopleincludeshopgirlsandmillionaires,policemenandburglars,cowboysandtramps,confidentmenandsoutherngentlemen,andotherassortedtypes.TheCharacterizationoflittleandinsignificantcommonpeoplearealwaysthesoulofhisstories.Hewritesfortheordinarypeopleandheisskillfulinwritingthecivillivesandthepeoplearoundhim.ThecharactersinO.Henry’sshortstoryoftengivemeadeepimpression,althoughtheyarecommonpeople,suchasJimandDellainthegiftofmagi.A.TheCharacterizationoftheHeroFromthisstory,weknowO.Henrydoesnotattachgreatimportanttotheroleofthehero,Jim.Heseemstoignorehissellingandbuyinggiftforhiswife.However,hischaracteristiccanbegotinindirectway,suchasJimisneverlate,indicatingthatJimisalwayspunctual.Whilethereisactuallybolddescribing, “Helookedthinandveryserious.Poorfellow,hewasonlytwenty-twoandtobeburdenedwithafamily.Heneededanewovercoatandhewaswithoutgloves”.3Heleadsahardlifeandstrugglesforlivinginabettercondition,butnoenoughmoneytochangetheircurrentsituation.InordertobuyDellaaniceChristmaspresent.Jimsoldthewatchtobuythejeweledtortoise-shellcombs.ButwhenJimsteppedinsidethedoor,HenrydescribestheexpressionofJimasthefollowing: “Jimsteppedinsidethedoor,asimmovableasasetteratthescentofquail.HiseyeswerefixeduponDella,andtherewasanexpressioninthemthatshecouldnotread,anditterrifiedher.Itwasnotanger,norsurprise,nordisapproval,norhorror,noranyofthesentimentsthatshehadbeenpreparedfor,hesimplystaredatherfixedlywiththatpeculiarexpressiononhisface.”4Evidently,JimisconfusedbyDella’shair.Ononehand,hiswife’sappearancechanges,andhehasjustsoldhisgoldwatchtobuythecomb,butDella’shairhasgone.Facingtheunexpectedfact,hecertainlycan’thelpthinkingsomuch.However,JimtellsDellathemoresurprisingandmoredramatic,thatis,thecombisatthepriceofhiswatch.SoDella’s buyingthechainisaseffortlessasJim’sbuyingthecomb.Jimjustsmiles,notcaringmuchaboutChristmaspresent,andsays, “Della,let’sputourChristmaspresentsawayandkeep’emawhile.They’retoonicetousejustatpresent.Isoldthewatchtogetthemoneytobuyyourcombs.Andnowsupposeyouputthechopson.”5Thus,theirlifestillgoeson.Asthewritersays,bothofthemaremagi,thewisestmen,whohavegotthemostpreciouspresentintheworld,thatis,theyalwayscareabouteachother,forthepurposeoflivingahappyandcomfortablelife.O.Henrybuildsuptohissurprisetwistveryartfully,heelicitsthereader’sadmirationandsympathyfortheyoungcouplewhoseloveforeachotherthaneverything.Asthewritersays,bothofthemaremagi,thewisestmen,whohavegotthemostpreciouspresentintheworld,thatis,theyalwayscareabouteachother,forthepurposeoflivingahappyandcomfortablelife.B.TheCharacterizationoftheHeroineDellaisbeautifulfromthebolddescribingaboutherhaircandepreciatetheQueenofSheba’sjewelsandgifts.Christmasiscoming,Dellaisfilledwithgloomaftercrying,butshehasonlyonedollarandeighty-sevencents.It’snotenoughforhertobuyherhusbandapresent. FormonthsshehasbeensavingeverypennyshecouldforChristmas,butonly ￡1.87isallshehasgot.Shecouldfindnowayout.InNewYork,inAmerica,familieslikeJimandDella’scouldhardlykeeptheireconomybalance—incomeconstantlyreducesdownandlivingexpensesincrease.SoitisimpossibleforthemtobuypresentforChristmas.Suddenly,whenDellastandsinfrontofthelooking－glass, “hereyeswereshiningbrilliantly.”6Obviouslyshehastheideaofsellingherhair, “butherfacehadlostitscolorwithintwentyseconds.”7Howreluctantlysheistodoit.However,DellastilldecidestosellherbeautifulhairandbuyJimaplatinumchainforhiswatch.Shedoeseverythingjustforherhusband;shetakesJimasthemostimportantpersoninherlifetime.ThewayDellaexpressesloveundersuchharshconditions,sacrificingselfmightbetheonlyandalsothemostlovingwaytomakeotherhappyandrewarding.Thelovebetweenthemisshownbythemgivingupsomethingtheylovetobeabletobuysomethingspecialfortheirpartner.Tounderstandthetruelovebetweenthecouple,thereadermustlookdeeperthanwhatisjustonthesurface. III.TheArrangementofthePlotinTheGiftoftheMagi It’snotaboringthingtoreadthestorywrittenbyO.Henry.Theplotsareexceedinglycleverandinteresting,humorabounds,andtheendisalwayssurprising.HavingplotshingingonimprobablecoincidenceandvariationsonthesurpriseendingisthemaincharacteristicofO.Henry’sshortstoriesandthemostcreativecontributiontotheliterature.Itisalsothereasonwhyheisreveredasagenuineartistoftowering,internationalstature.Intermsofplot,O.Henry’sstoriesarefirstlynotedforperfectcommandofcarefulplottingandironiccoincidence.Hisstoriesalwaysfocus ontwoorthreeindividuals,inventingimaginarysituationsandpredicamentsforthem,workingoutingeniouslyunexpectedsolutionsfortheirproblems.Hissuggestivedescriptionaboutthecharactersjustformonefineviewiscapableofshowingvividlytheirrealfeaturesandawkwardpositions.Evenwhenchoosingplotstoreflectthesocialbackground,O.Henrystillinclinestopickthoseincidentsorfragmentsfromdailylifeofafewpeople,insteadofdirectlydescribingthesignificanteventsinthesociallife.TypicalisTheGiftoftheMagi.A.TheTwistPlotandIronicCoincidenceTypicalforO.Henry’sshortstoriesisatwistofplotthatturnsonanironicorcoincidentalcircumstance.O.Henrydesignedthetwistofplotusuallyforshowingthetruebetweentherelatives,thefriendsandthelovers.Unselfishloveshared,regardlessofdifficultiesordistractions.Thisistheidearepeatedlyimpliedasacriterioninhisfictionaltreatmentofdomesticaffair.Ifsuchloveispresent,lifecanbeagreatadventuretranscendingallblocks;ifitisabsent,nothingelsecantakeitsplace.TheGiftoftheMagigivesusagoodexampleofO.Henry’stwistplotandironiccoincidence.Fromthebeginningofthestory,theyoungcoupleischaracterizedastheirtrueloveholdershowingsincerityandloyaltythroughthewayofsacrificingtheirprecioustreasure.First,Dellacries,whirledfromthewindowandstandsonthefrontglass,hereyesareshiningbutherfacehaslostitscolorwithintwentyseconds.Rapidlyshepullsdownherhairandletitfalltoitsfulllength.LaterDellamakesuphermindtodoonethinggivingthereadersanastonishingshock.It’stemptingtothereaderstoshedtearsrightnow.TheonlypurposeisjusttogivepresentonChristmas.Dellaisfullofpleasure,hasthoughtthatshewouldgiveherhusbandthemostsuitablegiftontheChristmasDay,butastrongsenseofanxietyaccompanywithher.WhenJimhasreturnedhomeandstaredatDella,abustofcomplexfeelingoccurstohim,hisinnerworldfraughtwithmanyunluckyideas.ByDella’sexplanationJimhasknowneverythingabouthiswife’shair,justforthechain.Unexpectedly,JimhasdonethesamethingasDelladoneforhim,hehassoldthewatchtogetthemoneytobuycombsthatDellalovessomuch,fortunatelythecouplepresentstheirmostpreciouspresentstoeachother,realpresentsistemporarilyuselessbuttheirmutualloveistrueandlastingforever.Thereisnodoubtthatitembodiesthelifeofhappinesswithsadnessanddeepenstheirlove.HereHenrypresentstheclimaxandlatercommentson “thefoolishchildreninaflatwhomostunwiselysacrificedforeachotherthegreatesttreasuresoftheirhouse”.8Theyoungcoupleindeedsacrificestheirpreciouspossessions,theunwiseaspectliesintheirdecisionwithouttellingeachotheraheadoftimeandthecouplejustwantstobringasurprisewithgreathappinesstoshowtheiraffection.WhenIfirstreadthisstory,Ifeeldistressedbutpleased.IbegintounderstandtherealmeaningofO.Henry’s “smilewithtears”9.Thetwo loveseachothersodeeplythattheywouldliketoexchangethesmilingfaceoftheotherwiththemostpreciousthingtheyhave.Buttheironiccoincidencehappensthatthesweetestgiftbecomessomethinguseless.AtonetimeIhasthoughtifthereisahappyendinginthestory,doesshestilllikeit?Theanswerisno.Withouttheironiccoincidence,thestoryisnothingbutatrifle.ThefaultyendingmakesthestoryperfectanddemonstratesanotherfeatureofO.Henry’sshortstories –thesurprisingendings.B.TheSurprisingEndingThesurpriseendingisthemaincharacteristicofO.Henry’sshortstoriesandthemostcreativecontributiontotheliterature.Hewouldsetastorymovinginonedirection,andwhenthereaderswereconvincedofthegeneraldirectionofthenarration,thestorywouldbecompletelyreversed.ThiskindofunexpectedbutreasonableendingwhichcalledO.Henry’sendingcanmakethereadersfeelenlightenedandenthusiastic.Eveniftheendingmaybealittlesorrowfulbutitstillgivesthereaderssomehope,whichisso-called “O.Henry’shumor (smilewithtears)”.10Ifwelookbacktothetotalstory,theendingseemslogicalandplausible.Asaplot-maker,anddesignerofincident,heisanamazinggenius.Noonecansurpasshiminholdingthereaderinsuspended.Morethanthat,thereaderscarcelyknowsthattheyaresuspendeduntilattheverycloseofthestory.Heoftenstressesonsomethingimportantbutnotthemostimportantinhisworks.Themostimportantpartalwaysseemstowriteincidentally,whicheventhemostcircumspectivereadermayignoreit.Whenthestoriesendinatotallyunexpectedbutreasonableway,wecandonothingbutcheerforO.Henry’sliterarytalent.Inthegiftofmagi,wefeelsopitythatDellahasherpreciouslonghaircut.Buttooursurprise,Jimhassoldthewatchtobuythejeweledtortoise-shellcombsforherwife’shair.O.Henrydoesnotendonthenoteofironyandsurprisebutgivestowhathecallshisuneventfulcoincidenceoftwofoolishchildrentheappearanceofalittleparablewithasignificantmeaning.Themagi,heremindsthereader,werewisemenwhobroughtgiftstotheChristchild.AsforJimandDella,theyarethemagi.ThisistheendingofthestorywithO.Henry’sownstyle.Thefunctionofsuchtwistendingliesinthefactthattheylightupthehumanityofthecharacters,showtheemotionsoflove,andthusarousethereaders’sympathy.PerhapsthatisthereasonwhyO.Henry’stechniqueofarrangingendingsenjoyssuchagreatreputation. IV.RhetoricDevicesEmployedinTheGiftoftheMagiExceptthetwistofplotandthesurprisingending,charactersinO.Henry’sshortstoriesareportrayedwithmanykindsofrhetorictactics.Withthevariousportrayingmethods,thecharactersaremademorevivid,distinctandlifelike.Soitissaidthatawriterisjustlikeamagicianoflifesincehecanusehispentomakesomanyfictionalcharacterswithflesh andblood.O.Henryisaskillfulmagiciantoo,whofiguredmanyvisualprotagonistsverysuccessfully.Thekeytothesuccessaretherhetorictactics,suchashumor,irony,metaphor,simileandsoon.Theserhetorictacticsplayanimportantpartintheshortstoriestoimpulsethedevelopmentoftheplot,tofigurethecharactersandtoshowthecharacters’feelings.Sothewritingcharacteristicscannotbeignoredsincetheyhelpalotincharacterportraying.A.HumorandIrony AsagreatAmericanwriter,O.Henry’shumorexistsinalltheworks.DifferingfromothersheusedtousesuchasimplelanguagethatthecommonAmericanscouldeasilyunderstand. ThehumorinTheGiftoftheMagiderivesmainlyfromhisstyle.O.Henry’sstyleofhumorrunsthroughoutthestory.Forexample,inthestoryJim’sgoldwatchandDella’shair,twotrivialthings,aremorepreciousthanallthefortuneQueenofShebaandKingSolomonpossess.Thoughthesharpcontrast,humorouseffectisproduced.Andthetitle,TheGiftoftheMagi,isalsoagoodexampleofO.Henry’shumorandwisdom.InChristiantraditiontheMagi,ThreeWiseMen,ThreeKingsorKingsfromtheEastaresaidtohavevisitedJesusafterhisbirth,bearinggifts –gold,andfrankincenseandmyrrhwhichareveryrarebususelesstothebaby.O.HenryuseTheGiftoftheMagitotellthereaderhowuselesstheirgiftare,whilehowprecioustheloveis.TherearealsomanysentencesthatconveytheeffectofhumorcanbeseeninthedescriptionofthepoorconditionsofDellaandJim’sroom.Forexample, “Itdidnotexactlybeggardescription,butitcertainlyhadthatwordonthelookoutforthemendicancysquad.”11Itisacomplicatedsentenceforus. “Beggardescription”means “exhaustthepowersofdescription”.12First,whilereadingit,wemaybemuddle-headed.But,ifwereaditagain,wewillfindthatO.HenrytriestousethiscomplicatedsentencetodescribeJim’stoughsituation.Atlast,wesuddenlyseemtoseethelightthattheJimsareverypoor.Asaresult,aneffectofhumorengenders. AnotherdistinctiverhetoricdeviceofO.Henry’sshortstoriesisirony.Ironyisakindofexpressionofsomethingwhichiscontrarytotheintendedmeaning;thewordssayonethingbutmeananother.O.Henryisgoodatusingrhetoricalironytoemphasizesomespecialfeaturesofthecharacters,todisclosesomeseriousproblemsandtoembodyhisfeelingstowardssomebodyorsomething.Weshouldunderstandhisrealmeaningaccordingtothewholepassageandthebackgroundoftheage.Therhetoricalironycanmakethestoriesmorehumorousandmoresignificant.ItisatypicalwritingcharacteristicofO.Henry.IntheGiftoftheMagi,ayoungcoupleistoopoortobuyeachotherChristmasgifts.Themanfinallypawnshisheirloompocketwatchtobuyhiswifeasetofcombsforherlong,beautiful,prizedhair.She,meanwhile,cutsoffhertreasuredhairtosellittoawig-makerformoneytobuyherhusbandawatch-chain.Theironyistwofold:thecouple, havingpartedwiththeirtangiblevaluables,iscausedbytheacttodiscovertherichnessoftheintangible.Anotheristheironictwistthathasbeenplacedattheendofhisshortstories,whichneverfailstosurpriseandentertain.O.Henry’ssuspenseandtrademarkironictwistensuresthatreaderswhohaveagoodliterarytasteinshortstorieswillnotbecomedisappointed.Thetwistissosuddenlythatyou’llhavetore-readtheentirestoryafterreadingtheendingbutcompletelydelightedatthatwayinwhichOHenryhasmisledyou. B.MetaphorandSimile SimilesandMetaphorsareanothereffectiverhetoricdevicesthathelpreadersseesomethinginfreshorunusualways.Metaphorisimpliedcomparisonachievedthroughafigurativeuseofwordsorthewordisusednotinitsliteralsense,butinoneanalogoustoit .WhileSimileisanexplicitcomparisonbetweentwothingsusing “like”or “as”.O.Henryusesalotofmetaphorandsimileinhisshortstorieswhichbringssomethingnewandfunnytothereader.TheGiftoftheMagiseemstobefilledwithhumorousrhetoricdevices.Theauthor’sdeepsympathyforthepublicsshowsthrougheulogizingthenaturalbeautywhenheusesthefigureofspeechtoportrayDella’shair. “Itfellaboutherripplingandshininglikeacascadeofbrownwaters.Itreachedbelowherkneeandmadeitselfalmostagarmentforher.”13Thereadercanfancythecolor,character,lengthofDella’shairbecauseofsimileandmetaphor.Besides,thereisalsoanexampleofmetonymy “Downrippledthebrowncascade.”14Theotherexamplesofsimiles “asimmovableasasetterofthescentofquail”, “likealittlesignedcat”, “…madeherlooklikeatruantschoolboy”15reflecttheportraitofthewaiter’scoolnesstoJimandDella.Thevividfiguresofspeechgivetheworkmorefun.Peoplelaughatthemfirst,butwhentheyreadtheend,theycannotlaughoutagain.Andifthereisany,itisthelaughwithtears.Thus,figuresofspeechinthisstorynotonlyaddfuntothisstory,butalsomakeavividdescriptionofthepoorhusbandandwife.Anotherexampleofmetaphorwecancitehereisthe “hashedmetaphor.”16Theauthorreferstohisowncomparisonintheprevioussentence “…thenexttwohourstrippedbyonrosywings”.17ThesesentencesdescribeDella’sconflictinginnerworld.O.HenryadoptsthevividfigureofspeechinordertomakeusknowDella’srealideas.Thisfigureofspeechletstheabstractinnerworldbecomemuchpicturesque.C.Allusions Anallusionisareferencetoawell-knownperson,place,orevent.Anallusionmaybeusedtoprovidethereaderwithadeeperunderstandingofthemainidea.FollowingaretheallusionsO.HenryusedinTheGiftoftheMagi.Howtounderstandthestory?WhatadditionalideaswasO.Henrysuggestingabouttheeventsandcharacters?O.HenryusedallusionswhenhementionedtheMagi.Theallusionisaboutthereligiousstoryofthethree kingswhocamefromtheeasttoadorethenewbornJesus.Itaddstothestory’sspiritualmeaningandstrengthensitsqualityasafable.HealsousedallusionwhenmentioningtheQueenofShebaandKingSolomonofIsraeltolearnofhisgreatwisdom:Shebroughtmagnificentgifts.ThereferencetotheQueenofShebasuggestsgreatwealthandluxury;thereferencetoSolomonsuggestswisdom.TheseallusionsstrengthenthedescriptionofJim’sandDella’streasures.V.ConclusionInaword,theshortstory,asisknowntoall,depictsthecharacterbyadoptingprecisewords,conceivetheplotandendingbyuniquewritingstyle,andnarratesthestorybyemployingrhetoricdevices.Henryissofamiliarwiththesecharacteristicsoftheformsofliteratureandutilizesthemjustright.InTheGiftoftheMagi,apartfromthetwistplotandthesurprisingending,theskillfulemploymentofsomerhetoricdevicesalsomakeshimquitedifferentfromothershortstorywritersandhelpshimachievearespectablepositionintheworldofliterature.Suchashumorandirony,metaphorandsimileandallusionaddmuchmorefuntothestoriesontheonehand,andmakethethemeofthestorymoreprofoundthanothers.Inaword,bothsignificanceandartistryofthisstorycansurelyberegardedasanexcellentworkwhichenjoysgreatpopularityamongtheshortstoriesofthe20thcentury.ThispaperdevotesitselftoadetailedanalysisofO.Henry’swritingcharacteristicsintheshortstoryTheGiftoftheMagi,soastohelpreadershaveageneralideaofO.Henry’slanguagefeatures,whichenablesthemtounderstandtheimplicitmeaningfromthecontext.Notes1 朱立华，《英语经典名篇赏析》，天津：南开大学出版社，2007年，第78页。2SaraColeman.Porter,TheCompleteWorksofO.Henry (NewYork:GardenCityPublishCo.,Inc.,1937), 27.3田艳，《欧?亨利短篇小说精选》，大连：大连理工大学出版社，2005年，第13页。4GeraldLangford,ABiographyofWilliamSidneyPorter (NewYork:Macmillan,1957),152-153.5AnnetteT.Rubinstein,AmericanLiteratureRootandflower,SignificantPoets,Novelists &Dramatists1775-1995 (Beijing:ForeignLanguageandResearchPress,1988),63.6ArthurVoss,TheAmericanShortStory (Norman:UniversityofOklahomaPress,1958),55-56. 7Ibid.8Ibid.9李国宁，《欧亨利式结尾的艺术魅力》，北京：清华大学出版社，2003年，第6页。10 同上。11JosephLewis.Frence,TheBestofAmericanHumor (NewYork:GrandenCityPublishingCo.,Inc.1941), 213.12 胡曙中，《英语修辞学》，上海：上海外语教育出版社，2002年，第63页。13 同上。14 同上，第64页。15 同上。16潘绍嶂，《英语修辞与写作》，上海：上海交通大学出版社，1998年，第32页。17 同上。BibliographyFrence,JosephLewis.TheBestofAmericanHumor.NewYork:GrandenCityPublishingCo.,Inc.1941,213.Langford,Gerald.ABiographyofWilliamSidneyPorter.NewYork:Macmillan,1957,152-153.Porter,SaraColeman.TheCompleteWorksofO.Henry.NewYork:GardenCityPublishCo.,Inc.,1937,27.Rubinstein,AnnetteT.AmericanLiteratureRootandflower,SignificantPoets,Novelists &Dramatists1775-1995.Beijing:ForeignLanguageandResearchPress,1988.Voss,Arthur.TheAmericanShortStory.Norman:UniversityofOklahomaPress,1958,55-56. 胡曙中. 英语修辞学. 上海：上海外语教育出版社，2002.李国宁. 欧亨利式结尾的艺术魅力. 北京：清华大学出版社,2003.潘绍嶂. 英语修辞与写作. 上海：上海交通大学出版社，1998.阮温凌. 走进迷宫—欧亨利的艺术世界. 北京：中国社会科学出版社，1999.田艳. 欧?亨利短篇小说精选. 大连：大连理工大学出版社,2005.朱立华. 英语经典名篇赏析. 天津：南开大学出版社,2007.
