A Lickpenny Lover by O. Henry (1911)

Name: A Lickpenny Lover
Author: O. Henry

The story revolves around a young woman who marries an older man for financial security. She discovers that he has been embezzling funds from his employer and decides to leave him. However, she soon realizes that her husband's actions have ruined the company, leaving many people unemployed. She then meets a wealthy businessman who is interested in marrying her, but she refuses due to her past experience with her previous husband. The businessman offers her a large sum of money to marry him, which she accepts. However, it is revealed that the businessman has ulterior motives and plans to use her as a means to gain control over the company's assets. The young woman realizes too late that she has made another mistake in choosing a partner for financial gain rather than love. The story highlights the theme of materialism and the consequences of prioritizing wealth over personal relationships.

By O. Henry · First published 1911 · Genre: Romantic Fiction, Social Commentary, Short Story · 2,572 words

First lines

There, were 3,000 girls in the Biggest Store. Masie was one of them. She was eighteen and a saleslady in the gents' gloves. Here she became versed in two varieties of human beings -- the kind of gents who buy their gloves in department stores and the kind of women who buy gloves for unfortunate gents. Besides this wide knowledge of the human species, Masie had acquired other information. She had listened to the promulgated wisdom of the 2,999 other girls and had stored it in a brain that was as secretive and wary as that of a Maltese cat. Perhaps nature, foreseeing that she would lack wise counsellors, had mingled the saving ingredient of shrewdness along with her beauty, as she has endowed the silver fox of the priceless fur above the other animals with cunning.

What this Textopian page supports

A Lickpenny Lover is listed on Textopian as a short story by O. Henry, dated 1911 CE.

This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.

Work type: Short story
Author: O. Henry
Date: 1911 CE
Language: English
Genres: Romantic Fiction, Social Commentary, Short Story, Humor, Slice of Life
Length: 2,572 words
Structure: 1 section, 52 paragraphs
Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)

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Discussion starters

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Similar titles

Genres

Romantic Fiction — The central plot revolves around the romantic relationship between Masie and Carter, exploring themes of love and social class.
Social Commentary — The narrative critiques social class distinctions and the lives of shopgirls, highlighting the contrast between different social strata.
Short Story — The work is a concise narrative that encapsulates a complete story within a limited word count, typical of the author's style.
Humor — The dialogue and situations contain elements of humor, particularly in the interactions between characters and their perceptions of social norms.