NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 7 – The Last Leaf
Page No 48:
Question 1:
What is Johnsy’s illness? What can cure her, the medicine or the willingness to live?
Answer:
Johnsy was suffering from pneumonia. Only the willingness to live could cure her. She had made up her mind that she was not going to get well. The doctor said that if she did not want to live, then medicines would not help her.
Question 2:
Do you think the feeling of depression Johnsy has is common among teenagers?
Answer:
The feeling of depression that Johnsy had is common among teenagers. They get tense and depressed because of various factors. Studies, not scoring well in the examinations, expectations of parents, and peer pressure are some of the factors that have led to the growing problem of depression among teenagers.
Question 3:
Behrman has a dream. What is it? Does it come true?
Answer:
Behrman was a sixty year old painter. His lifelong dream was to paint a masterpiece. It does come true when he paints a leaf such that it looks extremely natural. He painted the last leaf left on a creeper.
Question 4:
What is Behrman’s masterpiece? What makes Sue say so?
Answer:
Behrman’s masterpiece was the painting of a leaf. It was the last leaf left on the creeper. Sue told Johnsy that Behrman had died of pneumonia. He was ill for only two days. The first day the janitor had found him on his bed. His clothes and shoes were wet and he was shivering. He had been out in that stormy night. They found a ladder and a lantern still lighted lying near his bed. There were also some brushes and green and yellow paints on the floor near the ladder. Sue asked Johnsy to look out of the window at the ivy leaf, which was the last remaining leaf on the creeper. She asked her if she did not wonder why it did not flutter when the wind blew. It was so because that last leaf was Behrman’s masterpiece. He painted it the night the last leaf fell. His masterpiece had given the strength to Johnsy to come out of her illness. Behrman’s masterpiece saved her life but took his own.
