Top 14 Best Summaries of O. Henry's 'The Last Leaf'

Two impoverished artists, Sue and Johnsy, share a small rented apartment. Unfortunately, Johnsy falls ill with pneumonia, a condition that tortures her and leaves her with no will to live. Each day, Johnsy gazes out the window at a vine of ivy and tells herself that when the last leaf falls, she will die. After a harsh night of snow and rain, Johnsy believes the vine will be completely stripped of leaves, but to her surprise, a single leaf remains steadfast. This sparks a new sense of hope in her, and she begins to recover. Eventually, she learns that the elderly Behrman, a fellow artist living below them, passed away after the storm, having painted the final leaf to save her life.

Sue and Johnsy are two poor artists who live together in harmony. Johnsy falls ill with pneumonia but refuses to seek treatment, resigning herself to death. Every day, she watches the ivy leaves outside, waiting for the last leaf to fall, believing that when it does, she too will die. Upon learning of her intentions, the elderly Behrman secretly paints the last ivy leaf during a stormy night. When Johnsy sees that the leaf has not fallen, she finds the strength to recover. Tragically, Behrman dies of pneumonia, having sacrificed his life to create the masterpiece that saved Johnsy.

Sue and Johnsy are two young female artists full of ambition, living together in a boarding house. Behrman, an elderly artist, also resides there, having spent his life yearning to paint a masterpiece but never achieving it. That winter, Johnsy falls ill with pneumonia, and her condition becomes dire. She loses all hope, despite Sue's constant worry and encouragement. Outside their window, an ivy plant sheds its leaves every day. Johnsy decides that when the last leaf falls, she will die. However, after a fierce storm, the last leaf remains attached, giving Johnsy the strength to fight and recover. She later learns that the final leaf was a masterpiece painted by Behrman, who passed away from pneumonia shortly after, having sacrificed his life to create the leaf that saved her.

Sue and Johnsy are two young female artists living together in a boarding house. Behrman, an elderly artist, also lives with them, having spent his life longing to create a masterpiece but never succeeding. Unfortunately, that winter, Johnsy contracts severe pneumonia. The illness causes her to lose hope, and she believes that when the last ivy leaf falls, she too will die. Despite Sue’s constant care and efforts to encourage her, Johnsy remains despondent, silently counting each leaf as it falls. When Behrman learns of Johnsy’s thoughts, he scolds her but later spends the entire stormy night painting the final leaf. The leaf appears real, and when it does not fall during the storm, Johnsy regains hope, desiring to live and create. Johnsy recovers, but Behrman dies of pneumonia shortly after completing the painting, having sacrificed his life to save her. Sue quietly informs Johnsy of Behrman’s death and the secret of the final leaf.

The story describes the harsh life of struggling artists: Two young female artists, Xiu and Johnsy, live together in an apartment with the elderly artist, Behrman. Their financial difficulties have drained their creativity, pushing them into a state of despair. Behrman, for forty years, had dreamed of creating a masterpiece but never succeeded, instead settling for posing as a model for young artists to earn a living. Johnsy falls ill with pneumonia, and the combination of illness and poverty causes her to lose all faith in life. Only Xiu remains, tirelessly working on her paintings, haunted by Johnsy’s thoughts: the sick girl is counting the falling ivy leaves, waiting for the moment when the last leaf falls, signaling the end of her life. The environment of these unfortunate individuals feels as cold and dark as winter, filled with sorrow and despair.

How terrifying it is as each day passes in the snow and endless cold rains, while the ivy leaves continue to fall, leaving only one last leaf for Johnsy to believe that death is drawing near.

Then, at that very moment, a surprising image completely overturns all expectations, reversing the situation that seemed so certain in Johnsy’s mind, in Xiu’s worry, and in the disappointment of everyone. This moment brings back hope like a miracle: There is still one ivy leaf clinging to the brick wall…

The story ends with a twist of fate. The last leaf turns out to be a deception, but a noble one that restores belief in life. Behrman’s final masterpiece was born, surprising everyone. Yet, the last leaf will forever remain a testament to his love for humanity. Thus, The Last Leaf will remain eternal throughout time.

The story of the poor artists in the boarding house has touched many hearts.

Two young artists, Xiu and Johnsy, lived in the attic of a small boarding house, with the elderly artist Behrman living downstairs. Though life had blessed them with talent, it had taken Johnsy's health. She was suffering from severe pneumonia. Lying in her bed, she counted the days she had left to live. She told herself that once the last ivy leaf fell, she would leave this life forever. On a stormy, howling night, everyone believed the fragile ivy leaf would fall into the snowy ground. But to their astonishment, it remained. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed that it wasn’t a leaf at all but a painting Behrman had made in the night before being admitted to the hospital. He had sacrificed his life to restore the spirit of the young girl who was in despair. Just as he hoped, Johnsy regained her will to live and began to dream of creating new masterpieces. That leaf would forever stand as a symbol of Behrman’s love and sacrifice.

Xiu, Johnsy, and the elderly artist Behrman all lived together in a two-story apartment near Washington, D.C. That winter, Johnsy fell ill with pneumonia and, in despair, she believed that when the last ivy leaf near her window fell, she too would die. Upon learning of Johnsy's foolish thoughts, Behrman became deeply angry and worried for her well-being.

After the first stormy night, the ivy leaf remained. On the second night, it still hadn't fallen. Johnsy realized she had been wrong and began to recover. However, soon after, Xiu received news that Behrman had passed away. She embraced Johnsy and explained that during the storm, Behrman had secretly stayed up all night painting the final ivy leaf to save Johnsy. That leaf was his masterpiece, the one he had always longed to create.

Xiu and Johnsy were two young artists living in a boarding house. Behrman, an older artist, also lived there, having spent his life dreaming of creating a masterpiece, though he had never achieved that goal. That winter, Johnsy became gravely ill with pneumonia. Her illness brought her to despair, and she believed that once the last ivy leaf fell from the vine, her life would end. Xiu, deeply concerned, did everything she could to help, but nothing worked. When Behrman learned of Johnsy's tragic belief, he secretly spent the stormy night painting the last ivy leaf on the wall. The leaf didn't fall in the fierce storm, and Johnsy was filled with hope, wanting to live again. However, Behrman died from pneumonia after exposing himself to the harsh elements while painting the final leaf. Xiu quietly informed Johnsy of Behrman's death and the secret behind the last ivy leaf.

In a quaint neighborhood to the west of Washington Park, there lies the old village of Greenwich. Here, struggling artists often seek out affordable rooms with northern-facing windows or tiny attic spaces atop old Dutch-style houses. The studio of two young female artists is situated at the top of a humble three-story brick building, with the third floor occupied by the elderly Behrman, over 60 years old. A chronic alcoholic, Behrman had spent more than 40 years attempting, without success, to paint a masterpiece. He had always dreamed of creating one but had never begun.

The two young artists, named Johnsy and Xiu, had become like sisters, their bond forged through shared passion for art. Johnsy came from Ban-men, and Xiu hailed from California.

That winter, a severe pneumonia outbreak struck the region, claiming many victims. Johnsy, too, was struck by the illness, and she lay motionless on her iron bed. The doctor told Xiu that Johnsy's chance of survival was minimal. Xiu worked tirelessly, painting to earn money for medicine and caring for her sick companion. Days passed, and Johnsy remained weak and pale, staring out of the window, counting the ivy leaves. She resigned herself to the belief that she would die when the last leaf fell from the vine.

Behrman, who often posed for Xiu’s paintings, heard of Johnsy’s hopelessness. One cold, snowy night, the last leaf stubbornly clung to the vine. Johnsy, watching, saw the leaf still there. Slowly, hope returned, and she began to recover.

However, Behrman died of pneumonia after two days in the hospital. His clothes and shoes were soaked from the rain, and a ladder, lantern, and brush lay scattered by the window. Xiu gently whispered to Johnsy, "Look outside at that last leaf on the vine. That is Behrman's masterpiece. He painted it the night the last leaf fell..."

In a run-down three-story house with cheap rental rooms located in a small neighborhood to the west of Washington Park, Xiu and Johnsy moved in to share an attic room in November, just as the cold winds of winter began to blow. Behrman, also a poor artist, lived on the ground floor below them.

Johnsy contracted severe pneumonia, and despite Xiu’s care and encouragement, Johnsy lay staring out the window, watching the ivy leaves on the vine slowly fall one by one. Each time a leaf dropped, she would count how many were left, and she believed that when the last leaf fell, she would give up and die...

Upon hearing Johnsy’s thoughts from Xiu, Behrman was greatly disturbed by her foolishness. He went upstairs, where he and Xiu anxiously observed the ivy vine. The next morning, when Xiu reluctantly lifted the curtain as Johnsy had requested, she was astonished to see that the last ivy leaf was still clinging to the vine...

Another stormy night passed, yet the ivy leaf remained steadfast on the vine. Johnsy, gazing at it, realized that “wanting to die is a sin.” She sat up, ate some porridge, took her medicine, and with Xiu's continued care, Johnsy gradually overcame her illness. However, at the same time, Behrman passed away from pneumonia after spending a night painting the last leaf in the rain and wind.

Xiu and Johnsy are two young female artists who live in a boarding house. That winter, Johnsy fell severely ill with pneumonia, and in her despair, she decided that she would end her life when the last ivy leaf outside her window fell. However, after a fierce storm, the last leaf remained, and she regained her spirit, slowly recovering from her illness. One day, Xiu told her that the last leaf was a masterpiece painted by Behrman, the elderly artist who had recently passed away from pneumonia. He had painted it during the stormy night when the last leaf had fallen.

The short story "The Last Leaf" centers on the character of Johnsy, who is suffering from pneumonia and has lost hope in life. Johnsy believes that when the last ivy leaf on the vine outside her window falls, she too will die, giving up on life. Upon learning of her thoughts, Behrman, the elderly artist living downstairs, who also suffers from pneumonia, secretly paints the last leaf as a masterpiece during a stormy night. The next morning, Behrman passes away, but Johnsy regains her hope, believing that the leaf is real, as Behrman had painted it with all his heart.

The Last Leaf is a story about selflessness and the compassion shared between people during difficult times. Xiu and Johnsy are two impoverished artists. Johnsy is struck by pneumonia and feels no will to live. She believes that when the last ivy leaf falls from the vine outside her window, she will also pass away. However, after a stormy night, the leaf remains firmly attached. Johnsy is amazed by its tenacity and gains new strength to fight for her life. It turns out that the leaf was a masterpiece painted by Behrman, an elderly artist also suffering from pneumonia. Knowing his own time was limited, he used all his remaining energy and passion to paint the leaf as a symbol of hope for Johnsy.

Xiu, Johnsy, and Behrman were all impoverished artists living together in a two-story apartment near Washington. One winter, Johnsy contracted pneumonia, and in her despair, she decided that she would die when the last ivy leaf fell from the vine outside her window. Knowing Johnsy's misguided thoughts, Xiu and Behrman were both deeply concerned and upset. But after the first stormy night, the leaf remained. Then, a second stormy night passed. Johnsy realized her error and began to recover. However, Xiu later learned that Behrman had passed away. She hugged Johnsy tightly and revealed that during the storm, Behrman had painted the last leaf as a final act to save Johnsy. That leaf was his masterpiece, the one he had always dreamed of creating.