Student Question
Why is "The Last Leaf" by O. Henry considered ironic?
Quick answer:
"The Last Leaf" is considered ironic because Mr. Behrman dies of pneumonia while trying to save Johnsy from the same fate. Johnsy believes she will die when the last leaf falls, so Behrman paints a leaf on the wall to give her hope. This act, meant to save her, ultimately causes his own death because he braved the harsh weather to paint the leaf, highlighting the story's irony.
To me, this story is ironic because of the fact that Mr. Behrman dies from pneumonia. This is ironic because that is exactly what he is trying to save Johnsy from. She is dying of pneumonia and because she does not believe that she will be able to live once that last leaf falls.
So Behrman goes and paints a leaf on the wall. It convinces her to live, but painting it kills him because he went out in such bad weather to do it.
So my topic sentence would be something like "The Last Leaf is ironic because Mr. Behrman dies of pneumonia because he was trying to prevent that same thing from happening to Johnsy."
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