7.In "The Last Leaf," pneumonia is personified in different ways.

First, O'Henry refers to pneumonia as "a

cold, unseen stranger." This stranger "stalked" about Greenwich Village and laid his "icy fingers" on his
victims. The disease is also compared to a "ravager." O'Henry also says that pneumonia is not chivalrous
because he attacks a little woman, meaning Johnsy. Pneumonia is also called "the red-fisted, short-
breathed old duffer."

These images make the reader call to mind a ruthless and revolting old man who wheezes, who is cold at
heart, and who has fingers made of ice. By personifying the disease, O'Henry makes Johnsy's opponent
seem real and makes the reader want to rally behind Johnsy in her fight against pneumonia. It is only
hope and faith that will be able to help Johnsy defeat this enemy, and until she has something to believe
in (which turns out to be the last leaf clinging to the ivy vine on the brick wall outside her window), she
can't begin to defeat her opponent, pneumonia.

8.In the story, pneumonia is personified as a bold "ravager" who stalks a community unawares and
smites his victims "by scores." The author tells us that Mr. Pneumonia is a "red-fisted, short-breathed
old duffer."

9. When Sue visits Behrman, she tells him about Johnsy's condition, and reveals that she fears Johnsy
will float away, since she is "light and fragile as a leaf herself." In this simile, Sue compares Johnsy's
fragility to that of a leaf, suggesting that she is just as vulnerable as the ivy leaves.

10.According to the doctor, Johnsy's condition was worrisome because she did not show any signs of
improvement despite good treatment. He thought that perhaps she had lost her will to live and no
medicine could help her in this negative state of mind.

11.For Johnsy, watching the leaves of the ivy vine fall becomes an obsession. She watches them
obsessively and becomes convinced that she will die once the last leaf falls. For Johnsy, then, the ivy leaf
comes to symbolize death and giving up, while it can also come to symbolize will to live and hope.

12.In '' The Last Leaf,'' Mr. Behrman was an older painter who lived under Johnsy's and Sue's shared
apartment. He had been a painter for forty years but had not produced his masterpiece in that time. An
old and somewhat cantankerous artist who lives downstairs from Sue and Johnsy. He has been painting
for four decades without any commercial success, but still hopes to paint what he calls his
“masterpiece.” He is an alcoholic and earns money by posing as a model for artists in the neighborhood.
Despite his gruff exterior, he has a soft spot for Sue and Johnsy. He is initially dismissive of the idea that
leaves on a vine could have anything to do with Johnsy’s health, but ultimately goes outside on a cold
and rainy night to paint a realistic-looking leaf onto the wall outside her window so that she will think
one last leaf has miraculously survived the storm

13. As a result of this sacrifice, he catches pneumonia and dies—but Sue remarks that he had finally
painted his masterpiece.
14. Because he went outside in a storm to paint the leaf, however, Behrman catches pneumonia and
dies. This sacrifice is not the only selfless act in the story: although the three protagonists have few
possessions to call their own, they survive hardship by loving and caring for one another.

15.

The title of The Last Leaf is significant as it compares the falling of the last leaf to death. Johnsy, who
suffered from pneumonia, felt that when the last leaf fell, she would die. Her neighbor, and artist, was
determined to keep the last leaf intact on the tree.

The title “The Last Leaf” raises the curiosity of the reader regarding a happening or an event towards
some kind of 'end'. The word 'last' reflects the main idea of the story which is the last breath of Johnsy.
The last leaf becomes the last hope of survival and keeps the reader hooked until the end.

The title “The last leaf” is conveying the relation beyween the last leaf and the death of Johnsy. Johnsy
believe that she will die with the falling of the last leaf. Berhman, an old painter gives Johnsy a new hope
by painting a masterpiece, the leaf, which was looking real leaf which saves Johnsy’s life. This we can say
that the title is appropriate.

The title of The Last Leaf is significant as it compares the falling of the last leaf to death. Johnsy, who
suffered from pneumonia, felt that when the last leaf fell, she would die. Her neighbor, and artist, was
determined to keep the last leaf intact on the tree. He braved a storm to paint the last leaf on a wall,
making Johnsy believe that the leaf had not fallen. He contracted pneumonia in doing so, and died when
the last leaf fell.

16.In an ironic reversal of fates, the story ends with the revelation that Behrman contracted pneumonia
during the night he painted the ivy leaf on the brick wall to fool Johnsy. The situation is ironic, because
Behrman unwittingly sacrifices his own life in order to save Johnsy's.

Henry that can be called ironic in a tragic way: Behrman dies trying to save the life of Johnsy who has
given up on her survival already. Having caught pneumonia, Johnsy convinces herself that she is going to
die soon, and there seems to be nothing in the world that can make her change her mind: “Leaves.

17.The chief message that this story gives is the spirit of sacrifice we need to have in our life. The old
artist, Behrman sacrificed his life so that Johnsy could live. In this process, he also achieved his ambition
of painting a masterpiece. The other message is that we should have a positive attitude in life.29