O. Henry‟s last years were shadowed by alcoholism, ill health, and financial problems. He died of cirrhosis of the liver (肝硬化) on June, 1910, in New York.
Christmas is coming and both Della and Jim give up their most precious possessions for the love of each other.
Porter„s most prolific (多产的) writing period started in 1902, when he moved to New York City to be near his publishers. While there, he wrote 381 short stories. He wrote a story a week for over a year for the New York World Sunday Magazine.
• Porter and his family moved to Houston in 1895, where he started writing for the Post (《休斯敦 邮报》). • While he was in Houston, the First National Bank of Austin was audited (查账) by federal auditors ( 稽查员) and they found the embezzlement shortages that had led to his firing. A federal indictment (控告，起诉) followed and he was arrested on charges of embezzlement. • In early 1898 Poter was found guilty of the banking charges when he returned to Austin to see his dying wife, and was sentenced to five years in an Ohio prison.
2.Some masterpieces
The Cop and the Anthem 警察与赞美诗 The Furnished Room 带家具出租的房 间 The Gift of the Magi 麦琪的礼物 The Last Leaf 最后一片叶子 A Service of Love 爱的隐秘 The Ransom of Red Chief 红毛酋长的 赎金
Life experience
He took writing as a way to kill time in the jail by the pen name O. Henry.
He was liberated 3 years later due to good conduct and went off to Pittsburgh (匹兹堡) to start a new life.
• He then worked full-time on his humorous weekly called The Rolling Stone ( 《滚石》), which he started while working at the bank. The Rolling Stone featured satire on life, people and politics and included Porter„s short stories and sketches. Although eventually reaching a top circulation ( 发行量) of 1500, The Rolling Stone failed in April 1895 since the paper never provided an adequate income.
O. Henry
(William Sidney Porter)
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Life experience Literary works His writing style His status and some famous aphorisms
Life experience
Born at Greensboro （格林斯伯勒）, North Carolina（北卡 罗莱纳州） on September 11, 1862. His mother died of tuberculosis when he was three. Porter graduated from his aunt Evelina Maria Porter's elementary school in 1876. He then enrolled at the Lindsey Street High School. His aunt continued to tutor him until he was fifteen. In 1879, he started working in his uncle„s drugstore and in 1881, at the age of nineteen, he was licensed as a pharmacist. At the drugstore, he also showed off his natural artistic talents by sketching the townsfolk (市民).
Porter married again in 1907, to childhood sweetheart Sarah Lindsey Coleman (莎拉· 林德赛· 科尔曼 ), whom he met again after revisiting his native state of North Carolina. But he marriage was not happy, and they seperated a year later.
• By 1887, Poter began working as a draftsman in the General Land Office. • In 1891, Poter resigned and became a teller with the First National Bank in Austin. The bank was operated informally and Porter may have embezzled funds. In 1894, he was accused by the bank of embezzlement and lost his job but was not indicted (起诉，控 告).
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1862.9.11 出生 3岁，母亲去世 15岁，药房当学徒 1882年，在Texas一牧场作牛仔两年 1887年， 与Athol结婚并生一女孩 1894年，创办 the rolling stone周报 1896年，躲避受审，逃亡洪都拉斯 1897年，因回家探视病危的妻子被捕入狱，被判处5年 徒刑。 • 1901年，因“行为良好”提前获释，来到纽约专事写作 。 1907年，欧· 亨利再婚。 • 1910年６月３日，他病倒了。两天后，即６月５日，与 世长辞，死于肝硬化，年仅48岁。
• 1902年，他移居纽约，成了职业作家，创作了 上百篇优秀的短篇小说。他是为了离杂志社和出 版商更近一些才这样做的。尽管他没有忘记早年 的欢乐，他却看见了生活的阴暗面。他不辞辛劳 的日夜写作，大量优秀的作品就是这一时期创作 的。他这时的写作速度非常快，极少修改。他为 此曾说过：“一篇小说一旦开了头，我就非得一 口气写到底不可，要不然就再也写不下去。”在 纽约，由于大量佳作的发表，他名利双收，有时 也受到记者的采访。可他不仅挥霍无度，而且赌 博，染上了他父亲的恶习——酗酒。写作的劳累 与生活的无节制使他的身体受到了严重损伤。
1.Novel collections
• 1904: Cabbages and Kings《白菜与皇帝》 唯一的长篇小说 • 1906: The Four Million《四百万》 • 1907: Heart of the West《西部的心》 • 1907: The Trimmed Lamp《剪亮的灯盏》 • 1908: The Voice of the City《城市之声》 • 1908: The Gentle Grafter《善良的骗子》 • 1909: Roads of Destiny《命运之路》 • 1909: Options《选择》 • 1910: Strictly Business《毫不通融》 • 1911: Sixes and Sevens《乱七八糟》 • 1917：Waifs and Strays 《流浪儿》
• At the age of 20, Poter came to Texas primarily for health reasons, hoping that a change of air would help alleviate a persistent cough he had developed, and worked on a sheep ranch. It was here that Poter gained a knowledge for ranch life that he later described in many of his short stories.
He went to Austin in 1884 and led an active social life there. He tried various jobs, first as pharmacist then as a draftsman, bank teller and journalist; he also began writing as a sideline (副业); he met his future wife Athol Estes (阿索尔·埃斯蒂 斯), who was 17 years old and from a wealthy family. On July 1, 1887, Porter eloped with Athol to the home of Reverend R. K. Smoot, where they were married.