The story ‘The Last Leaf’ is a story of supreme sacrifice by an old artist. The old artist Behrman paints a masterpiece to keep someone’s hopes and willpower alive. He dies in this good cause. His sacrifice fulfils his ambition of creating a masterpiece too. Johnsy and Sue were two young artists.
They shared a small room on the third floor of an old house. Johnsy fell ill in November. She had pneumonia. Sue sent for a doctor. The doctor declared that Johnsy had lost the will to live. No medicine could help her.
Johnsy fancied that she would die soon. She linked her life to the falling leaves of an ivy creeper. She began to think that she would die with the fall of the last leaf. Her condition went from bad to worse each day.
Sue was much worried and wanted to help her. She tried her best to revive Johnsy’s interest in life. But she failed. Sue told this problem to their common friend, Behrman. Behrman was not a successful artist. He always desired to make a masterpiece. When he learnt about the fanciful idea of Johnsy, he decided something and went out in the rain. He painted a true painting of the last green ivy leaf. It did not fall in the rain storm. It looked so real that it made Johnsy believes that neither it nor her life would end. She improved and regained faith in her life.
Sue told Johnsy all about Behrman who sacrificed his life for saving her life. Behrman died of pneumonia. He made a supreme sacrifice.